Cheapest liveaboard cities of the USA?

[sardinebreath]

You should also be aware that lots and lots of people liveaboard under the radar. If you keep a low profile and spend a few nights a week elsewhere (buy a cheap van), you can often slip by and save the premium.

[Rakuflames]

Originally Posted by watersofdiego

What places in the US are the cheapest to be a liveaboard? Because here in Southern California it's ridiculous. Say you have a 35 foot sailboat. A slip like that here in San Diego is about $560 a month. And there's an additional $225 liveaboard fee. So that right there is $785 a month not including electric, storage, showers - ( Shelter Cove Marina - Live Aboard Information ). And not to mention that it takes like at least 1 - 3 years just to get a liveaboard slip because of the long waiting list.

So guys from your experience what cities are the cheapest to be a liveaboard sailor where it doesn't take years and years to get a liveaboard slip?

I did find this though on Craigslist - a $250 a month liveaboard mooring up in Morro Bay...55' Morro Bay Mooring

And this website here ( Boat Living ) says you could be a liveaboard by Houston, TX for about $300 a month.

I pay $542 a month! For everything incl cable, elec, water, pump outs, wifi--no other bills, in Bradenton, FL--31ft boat.

[capngeo]

$11/ft City Marina at Garrison Bight, Key West, FL

• + Garbage
• +Sewer
• +water
• +electric

But all of the above are metered or at the same rate as a single family residence...
10 year waiting list, but leases can be "bought" for anywhere from $10K to $50K... move right in!

[zeehag]

i still have a boat on a mooring in coronado. san diego mooring company controls them, and there are temporary moorings available, if you are interested in absolutely no amenities other than the mooring ball. there used to be parking available, but that has been stopped by harbor police.

[IrishWake30]

Newport, Oregon has two marinas. The Embarcadero is managed by a private company; South Beach Marina is through the Port of Newport. I have been at SB Marina for 3 years. By paying for my slip annually, I save a bundle. A 40' slip is $2,040 which includes 30 amp electricity and water. A separate liveaboard fee of $45.50 is paid monthly if you stay more than 10 days per month on your boat. That breaks down to $215.50 per month for a liveaboard.

Free Wi-Fi, but the tide usually affects the reception. Showers are $1.50 for 5 minutes. Laundry is $1 a load. There is no waiting list. Newport is a fisherman's port, so there is always activity on the docks. You can sail 9 miles up and down the Yaquina River, or in the Yaquina Bay, or up and down the Oregon Coast, which is rough most of the time.

The Embarcadero marina isn't too much more expensive, but the slips are more limited. There could be a waiting list. Many slips are privately owned and could be leased through the owner. Cable TV on most docks there, with a separate fee through the cable company. Pool, sauna, hot tub, and laundry room are all shared with Embarcadero hotel guests.

It is windy here almost year-round. In the winter we have hurricane force winds at least once or twice. Some slight snow now and then. Temps are in the 30's and 40's. Summertime high is 65-70 on average, with some freakish actual summer days of 75 or 80 degrees on the beach. Go inland by car 30 miles at it will be 108 degrees.

[boatsail]

I bought a 35' slip here in maryland...downtown baltimore...for like 8.5k...the "hoa" fees are equal to about 100 a month. If you were going to have a slip for 3 years of rental or more, it makes more $ents to buy.

[zeitgeist]

Fall of 2022 update for Santa Barbara, I live on a 27' and the fee with liveaboard is just over $400. something like $275 for the boat and $125 for the liveaboard.

I'm looking for a cheap option worldwide, preferably in the Pacific, as I would like to buy a catamaran but won't be able to sail her but a month or so each year for the next few years. So looking for cheap berth or even on the hard somewhere.

[Messing About]

9 years after this thread was posted, it would be very interesting to see how, one, many of these posters are still living on their boats and two, what these prices look like these days.

My current research in SW Florida shows the high end Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda at $17 ft per mo on annual contract, plus $150 live aboard fee plus metered electric. For my planned boat, that’s almost $10,000 a year. Not ideal for me but there’s a 2 year waiting list for a slip, so I’m sure that keeps the prices up.

[JPA Cate]

Generally less expensive on the west side of FL, according to CF.

Ann

[Messing About]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

Generally less expensive on the west side of FL, according to CF.

Ann

I suppose if I intend to be a real Caribbean cruiser in 2024, I should get used to it in SWFL, upon arrival in 2023, instead of relying on a marina as an expensive crutch. I have no intention of regulars paying marina fees once I get to the Caribbean. Certainly not for months on end.

[SV.Maverick]

I know this is an older thread but as it was revived last year and because it’s always going to be a valid topic I’ll weigh in. Best bang for the buck that I have found is in the Kemah / clear lake area on Galveston bay. The marinas are very nice most with pools etc. From the research I have done seems the North Carolina area is among the cheapest places to slip a boat many places doesn’t even charge a live aboard fee.

[Kettlewell]

North Carolina is the cheapest here on the East Coast. I've seen dock spaces for $150 per month. Here in New England any dock is extremely expensive if you can find one, but you can find 6-month mooring rentals for well under $2000 for the season. I paid $1000 this year for 6 months. No electric or anything fancy, but I prefer being on a mooring anyway. I lived aboard for many years and would rent a dock space for the winter but live on the mooring in the summer. But, if you don't need to be in one particular spot just anchor out. I know that is not always easy in California, but here on the East Coast there are a lot of snowbird liveaboards who head south in the winter and come back north in the summer.