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Thread: Living on a boat

  1. #1
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    Default Living on a boat

    Anyone here ever had a boat as their primary residence? Not ready to buy a house yet or pay the outrageous charleston home prices. Would be fun to do for a couple years and potentially build some equity. My guess is slip fees would kill my budget pretty quick but it is fun to think about.

  2. #2
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    Last edited by Luvin' Labs; 06-19-2017 at 08:53 AM.

  3. #3
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    Yeah somewhere more desirable like Tolers looks like it's $14/' a month.

  4. #4
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    Add in upkeep and depreciation on a boat.

  5. #5
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    I have some friends that have lived on sailboats right off of the Folly Beach boat landing. They just simply moor the boat for free in the creek and have a kayak to paddle over to their vehicle at the landing. Summer months would be a little brutal IMO
    "some men are mere hunters, others are turkey hunters"-Archibald Rutledge

  6. #6
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    Do it

  7. #7
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    Something like this shouldn't depreciate too much in two years. What would typical annual upkeep costs be?
    http://www.boattrader.com/listing/19...sport-97289211

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Highstrung View Post
    Do it
    .

    I had a friend that did it for 3 years. but he was living on daddy's boat so that was a little different.

  9. #9
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    Probably $3-5k a year to keep it afloat. Living on a boat at the same dock year round sounds miserable. If horse people are weird, live aboard people are 10x weirder. I worked at Charleston City Marina in college and you could smell most of the live aboard people long before they got to you.
    cut\'em

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by swampknob View Post
    Something like this shouldn't depreciate too much in two years. What would typical annual upkeep costs be?
    http://www.boattrader.com/listing/19...sport-97289211
    if you run and use it, proper upkeep including keeping it current is $1000 per foot per year- if it just sits and is used as a live in probably half that. so $2000/ $2500 month in upkeep and slip fees

  11. #11
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    Unless you have cash to pay most lenders won't finance on "older" boats. Some marine insurance won't cover a live a board so make sure you specify when getting quotes.

    Some marinas won't allow live a boards. But it would be worth stopping in to ask in person. Some advertise not wanting live a boards because of the general crowd that does this. But a young kid who maintains a decent boat and can keep an eye on things may get a pass.

    Maintenance is hard to put a number on. Are you going to keep up the engines or just sit at the dock? Older diesels are pretty easy to work on, newer common rail stuff is not. The more teak the more work. But I kind of enjoy the little projects. Try and find a boat with as few systems as possible. 1-2 Reverse cycle AC systems, hot water heater, fresh water tank, head, shower, and galley


    Bottom job $1,500-$3k every 1.5-2years
    Bottom cleaning $100 a month
    Insurance $2k a year
    Dockage may or may not include electric and water so watch that.

  12. #12
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    Slip Costs: $14 per foot per month- $672/month

    Boat Costs: $199500 financed for 15 years at 0% interest- $1109/month
    $199500 financed for 30 years at 0% interest- $555/month

    Insurace, taxes, boat upkeep, miscellaneous: ~$150/month(?)



    I would never discourage anyone from doing it, that's a badass way to live for a couple of years. However, for around $1400/month just to get the boat and have somewhere to dock it. I think I would rather own a small home and a smaller boat for around the same monthly costs. A home will build equity.

    ETA: Looks like my upkeep and miscellaneous costs are way too low. For over $2,000 per month, the pirate life is not the life for me.
    Last edited by Moonlight Hunter; 06-19-2017 at 09:38 AM.

  13. #13
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    Some marinas have rules about liveaboards so be sure to check before you try. Sailboats are really cheap for what you get. In the ICW/MYR marinas we all joke that they are chained to the dock because most are floating condos. Beyond that I am a huge fan of Miami Vice so if Crockett did it, it must be cool. Of course the aligator as a pet watchdog is mandatory. MG

    Dum Spiro Spero

  14. #14
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    And the $1,000 per foot per year thing is goofy. I don't know why people always say that.

    As southernduck alluded to. I would highly suggest renting a boat for a week and try living on it before you dive in with both feet. A boat will get real tight...real quick.

  15. #15
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    Yeah about what I figured. Was expecting to lose some money over the course of it but not that much. Was fun to think about.

  16. #16
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    If you really want to do it...go cruise the docks and find out who owns some of the ️️boats that have a years worth of bottom growth on them. Find out who the owner is and ask them if you can live aboard in exchange for care taking the boat.

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by marsh chicken View Post
    And the $1,000 per foot per year thing is goofy. I don't know why people always say that.

    As southernduck alluded to. I would highly suggest renting a boat for a week and try living on it before you dive in with both feet. A boat will get real tight...real quick.

    Years back, Staying on the boat in the Bahamas for 10+ days was enough to make you go crazy....let me tell you a couple of things that suck....walking to/from the boat in the rain, cold, heat, etc. Carrying groceries down to the boat. Carrying laundry back and forth. Windy/rough nights with everything creaking/squeaking and the wind howling like a banshee though all the rigging on the blow boats. Water cooled A/C systems. Dealing with holding tanks and the fact that no matter how many times you tell females that come to "visit" not to flush anything down the head but they still do it any damn way. Dumb asses that do 10 kts out of the marina to go fishing at 2AM. Drunk dumb asses that do 15 knots coming back into the marina at 2 AM...

    The list goes on and on....and if you can afford a large enough boat that makes all these things moot, then you can buy a house and pay the outrageous mortgage prices that are only going to go up the longer you wait.

    Just my two pennies...

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by marsh chicken View Post
    And the $1,000 per foot per year thing is goofy. I don't know why people always say that.

    As southernduck alluded to. I would highly suggest renting a boat for a week and try living on it before you dive in with both feet. A boat will get real tight...real quick.
    apparently you must not know any owners- that cost includes keeping it current( saving money for repowers etc) and is averaged out over a period of years- it is a pretty accurate number for a boat that size with DD engines.

  19. #19
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    Captain Stabbin would send it.

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bad Habit View Post
    apparently you must not know any owners- that cost includes keeping it current( saving money for repowers etc) and is averaged out over a period of years- it is a pretty accurate number for a boat that size with DD engines.
    I own one myself. The cost to maintain it has so many factors that the $1,000 a foot estimate is not accurate. It can be less or it can be more. Every boat is different and every owner is different.

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