Substandard Housing

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by LauraleeG

Yep, you have the facts... but let’s talk about quality of your life onland vs on boat. On the boat, is your life experience richer/fuller? Or is the cost differential solely upkeep and maintenance? Would you be living your life onland , doing the same stuff that costs on the boat. Does being on the boat feel more of a vacation and you are on holiday so you eat out more etc? Would living on land and not having the boat mean you would do things onland that cost more? Cinemas, theatre, golf etc?
I guess I am asking - why is the boat more expensive then a mortgage/ property tax, saving for a furnace/ roof/appliances/ new flooring periodically and other home improvements. Is it because on a boat it’s a safety issue so stuff can’t slide and with a house, new flooring is neither here nor there?

Oh, don't be put off by old grouchy pants . SB has the facts for him. My financials are different, as are many others who have discussed this question.

This is why I said it probably depends on location, the boat, the style of cruising, and likely a host of other factors. I suppose it also depends on your previous land life. I.E. what you're comparing boat life to.

[smj]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Oh, don't be put off by old grouchy pants . SB has the facts for him. My financials are different, as are many others who have discussed this question.

This is why I said it probably depends on location, the boat, the style of cruising, and likely a host of other factors. I suppose it also depends on your previous land life. I.E. what you're comparing boat life to.

I think your right. It was much more expensive living in our house, but our house is in a beach/resort setting so the taxes and insurance were pretty high. We either anchor or rent a mooring so our monthly boat ownership costs are quite low. I’m sure if you come from an area where your taxes and insurance are low on the house and you choose to spend $3,000 per month on a marina in Key West then boat ownership would be more expensive.

[sailorboy1]

No need to take shots at me. I admit i am wrong and tell people this regularly.

Just an FYI - those living in expensive high cost houses i feel are unlikely to live the “cheap” boat life. Sorry for for most of you, but that just isnt who you are and you should plan according.

[smj]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

No need to take shots at me. I admit i am wrong and tell people this regularly.

Just an FYI - those living in expensive high cost house i feel are unlikely to live the “cheap” boat life. Sorry for for most of you that just isnt who you ate and you should plan according.

I don’t think anyone’s taking shots at you just relaying their experiences.
Whether we are in a house or on the boat we tend to be frugal as that’s the only way we can afford our lifestyle. And the houses we have owned have primarily been investments because that’s how I make a living.

[wingssail]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

Read an interesting phase the other day on some boating forum that the more i thought about the more i agreed with.

Unless you are underway or actively cruising, living on a boat is just living in substandard housing....

When we first moved aboard Wings I worked hard to set the boat up so that it would not be "substandard", meaning not a hardship living in any way.

We put in heat, good lighting, TV, Stereo, Internet, library, comfortable seating, a great bed, hot shower, a workshop, fantastic galley..in fact everything that I'd come to expect in a shoreside condo. (Well, it had less sq ft. but it had MORE storage than the apartment which we moved out of. We know, we measured that)

I wanted nothing that could be used as an excuse to move back ashore. In fact we made the boat as comfortable at anchor as at the dock.

We never wanted to be "camping".

So there was nothing in our liveaboard lifestyle that was substandard to us. Of course someone with higher standards might feel otherwise. But for us, we missed nothing, We felt no hardship.

There were pluses too: We had waterfront. We could sail and race. We could visit faraway places. And we thought our home was a thing of beauty (it was and is)

Now, 34 years later, it still feels that way, and now we have air-conditioning!

So, for us, living in a shoreside condo or apartment would be substandard.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

No need to take shots at me. I admit i am wrong and tell people this regularly.

Just an FYI - those living in expensive high cost houses i feel are unlikely to live the “cheap” boat life. Sorry for for most of you, but that just isnt who you are and you should plan according.

I didn't say you were wrong, if I'm the one you're aiming this at. In fact, I said the exact opposite:

"SB has the facts for him. My financials are different, as are many others who have discussed this question"

I do think you make a good point about people's lifestyles. Most people don't change just because they move from land to water. So, if you live a luxurious lifestyle on land, you will likely do the same on the water. Moving onto a boat doesn't necessarily lead to any big life changes.

[contrail]

So much is perception! I have lived aboard for 34 years, first in a smallish 33 foot monohull, and now in a 46 foot catamaran. Early on, I was in my first career as a golf professional. When people asked what I did, I would say, "well, I split my time between my yacht and the country club!" And, now, when asked where I live, I say, "In a four bedroom, four bathroom house, with salt water infinity pool." Nobody ever mentioned the word "substandard" or "camping". but they often said I seem happy. I am, and I don't use those two words, either.

[Scarlettn]

Sailor boy,

The purpose of your post was essentially what? To stir up indignation amongst otherwise happy people?

We live in Florida and did at one time live on our 42ft tayana for a spell, so if that means we were homeless, I have a helluva inspiration story for others!

[dwedeking2]

Sailorboy's just got the old retired angry man routine stereotype going. He's harmless.

[peter loveridge]

we live on our just over 30feet sailboat most of the summer, and spent a year taking it to the Bahamas and back. Our boat is far better built than our house, and far, far better built than our RV, ( which now is mostly used by the children) We have almost all the facilities we have in the house ( Coastal Nova Scotia you can live without AC) We could survive a lot longer independently on the boat than in the house. Though I'm a global warming skeptic, our carbon footprint is one tenth on the boat than in our 900 square feet house. Insurance for the boat is $500, for the house $2300. Camping is what I did in the army, draughty tents, dug latrines, washing in freezing cold streams and the like

[Stewie12]

Of the yacht owners I have known, they never buy more than three. The first one is too small. The second one is bigger and affordable. The third one is a large yacht they find out that it costs too much to run. And it is sold.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by contrail

So much is perception! I have lived aboard for 34 years, first in a smallish 33 foot monohull, and now in a 46 foot catamaran. Early on, I was in my first career as a golf professional. When people asked what I did, I would say, "well, I split my time between my yacht and the country club!" And, now, when asked where I live, I say, "In a four bedroom, four bathroom house, with salt water infinity pool." Nobody ever mentioned the word "substandard" or "camping". but they often said I seem happy. I am, and I don't use those two words, either.

I'm proud to say, "I'm a homeless vagabond," whenever someone asks me where I live, or where I'm from. I usually go on to say my home is my sailboat, and it is currently based in Newfoundland (or where ever it is).

I've never, ever, had someone respond negatively to this. The usual response is somewhere between slight confusion and envy. No one has ever suggested we live poorly -- that comment only comes up here on these interwebs.

Originally Posted by peter loveridge

we live on our just over 30feet sailboat most of the summer, and spent a year taking it to the Bahamas and back. Our boat is far better built than our house, and far, far better built than our RV, ( which now is mostly used by the children) We have almost all the facilities we have in the house ( Coastal Nova Scotia you can live without AC) We could survive a lot longer independently on the boat than in the house. Though I'm a global warming skeptic, our carbon footprint is one tenth on the boat than in our 900 square feet house. Insurance for the boat is $500, for the house $2300. Camping is what I did in the army, draughty tents, dug latrines, washing in freezing cold streams and the like

As I often say, those who suggests people are camping on any cruising-level boat, have never actually been camping. And like you, I can (and do) live far cheaper on my boat than on any land home I've owned. And my biggest house was 950 sq. ft.

I'm sure it is possible to spend more money cruising than living on land. It depends on the boat, the location, and more importantly your lifestyle. But the nice thing about a boat is that if you find yourself in an expensive area, you can always move. There are lots of places which don't cost an arm-and-a-leg.

Originally Posted by Stewie12

Of the yacht owners I have known, they never buy more than three. The first one is too small. The second one is bigger and affordable. The third one is a large yacht they find out that it costs too much to run. And it is sold.

Cool. I'm at #2, and have no plans to go bigger.

Originally Posted by Scarlettn

Sailor boy, The purpose of your post was essentially what? To stir up indignation amongst otherwise happy people?

Oh, he's just bored -- like the rest of us here .

[letsgetsailing3]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

As I often say, those who suggests people are camping on any cruising-level boat, have never actually been camping.

I'm suggesting that boating and RVing are similar to camping.

And I've camped extensively.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by letsgetsailing3

I'm suggesting that boating and RVing are similar to camping.

And I've camped extensively.

Cruising is like RVing. RVing is not camping. An RV is a mobile home, just like a cruising-level boat. RVs have most, if not all, of the same tools found in a typical fixed home.

Main difference between a boat and an RV is that you don't have to worry about an RV sinking out from underneath you .

[letsgetsailing3]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Cruising is like RVing. RVing is not camping. An RV is a mobile home, just like a cruising-level boat. RVs have most, if not all, of the same tools found in a typical fixed home.

Main difference between a boat and an RV is that you don't have to worry about an RV sinking out from underneath you .

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly
And I agree. It's interesting to see the evolution of "camping." I guess it parallels the evolution of boating, but it seems even more extreme. These days you can get a fancy Class A bus that, with all the sliders and whatnot, turns out to have more floor space than any home I ever owned.


We already covered this.