Please give feedback on boat purchase..thanks!

[advocate777]

Based on all of your accumulative knowledge; I have the following criteria so I welcome feedback especially since this thread is about the 'best' boats:

1.) Don't tell me to 'keep looking and when you fall in love with a boat you will know. Unfortunately there are too many boats to 'date' while waiting to 'fall in love'
2.) Don't tell me to 'sail every boat you can to learn what you really want' because I have already been sailing on alot of boats and I have certain restrictive parameters.
3.) Don't tell me to 'buy a dinghy now and learn how to sail best and then buy a bigger boat' because I already know how to sail and I am an old man and may die soon. I can buy 'one boat' for my life, at my age.
4.) I need to find a boat that can be found on the east coast of the USA. I cannot afford to travel to Mexico, the BVI's, Asia, or Panama to find a 'great deal'.
5.) I need a boat that is 'blue water capable or blue water modifiable'. I am not interested in a day sailor no matter how fast it sails or how neat it is.
6.) I need a smaller-ish sailboat that can be single-handed or 'mom and pop' crewed by a 55 year old skipper and a 45 year old first mate.
7.) I need a used sailboat for about 50K.
8.) I need that 50K sailboat to have a good diesel engine as part of the 50K.
9.) I can put about 20K more into the boat to prepare it over a 3-5 year period.
10.) The boat should be mid to heavy displacement and with a full keel with a seakindly motion that does not cause us to puke our guts out in a seaway or 24-hour passage.
11.) Although I can learn 'diesel mechanics', I am not a talented 'Do it yourself- lets build a new bulkhead' kind of guy. I am not great at manual mechanic skills- I am more of the intellectual brain power doctor/lawyer type skills; ie., no 'do it youself' ability whatsoever.........but not such a rich lawyer or doctor that I can pay someone else to do everything. In other words; I cannot do a 'fix-me-up' boat because I suck at changing a light bulb (although if you have been arrested or in need of an appendectomy our crew can save you- ha-ha..)
Based on the above criterion.....does anybody have a 'top 10 blue water sailboats readily accessible for review on America's east coast that do not require major deck work or tens of thousands of dollars in refit costs for blue water work for a crew of 2?)

Is that asking too much?
Help me to focus.....I am getting weary of my sailboat search...
HELP! Any ideas on what boats to focus in on?
(And dont tell me to buy what my heart falls in love with...

[goat]

Island packets, Tartans, and Cape Dory's seem pretty common on the right side of the continent.

[boatpoker]

alberg 37

[Whaubner]

There should be many options in your rNge. Fine the one that works and buy it.

[Stumpkiller]

Pearson 365 Ketch, $49,500 - Yachtworld, Longboat Key, FL

Pearson 35 $35K - Yachtworld, Washington NC

[eyschulman]

J/35 ex racer. Make sure the deck and hull are sound. the yanmar motors at 24-28 hp are solid little motors easy to work on and maintain. The boats convert to cruisers with excellent sailing characteristics with just a main and working jib. You will find the interior makes a good cruiser provided you are not much over 6 ft tall. The price is right. There are lots of used sails around often cheap. We used one for cruising northwest waters for a few years and liked it so much we bought its big sister J/44 when one popped up at the right price.