Posted on 03/10/2019 9:48:59 AM PDT by amorphous
A recently retired friend is thinking of selling his home (which is paid for) and buying a boat for himself and his wife to live aboard without ever having lived aboard a boat before.
Are there any FReepers who have done something similar, or who have experience living this kind of lifestyle, or have advice I could maybe pass on to them?
Double bump for renting a boat and try it first. It is not for everyone. Lots of folks underestimate the cost to maintain a boat, marina costs, etc.
I agree. It’s a huge risk and you should not be taking risks at this point in your life.
As William of Barsoom says, it depends on where you are. I had a coworker who lived on a boat in North Texas for a couple of years. It was not bad in summer, but a fiberglass boat hull in North Texas in the winter, especially if exposed to North winds on a large lake, was constantly frigid. They bought a house.
Houseboat on Mississippi River. The government will still find a way to annoy you though.
I see people down here that do it. Most have cabin cruisers as opposed to sail boats. Bigger, more stable than sail boats. But you have to have an income to handle docking fees, fuel, etc.
There is a Facebook page of a couple who sold their home, bought a boat and sailing around the world with a number of similar travelers.
Best idea is to rent a Class A motor home and try living in it first. It will give them an idea if they can live the lifestyle.
buying a boat for himself and his wife to live aboard without ever having lived aboard a boat before. >
If he is mechanically minded, he can pull it off, as long as he stays withing the canal/lake system of the Great Lakes and New England.
No way he should try blue water sailing unless he has a good deck hand and experience.
He should do it, if he can keep to these guidelines.
My family of 4 lived on a 42’ trawler type boat similar to a Grand Banks trawler, during my high school years. We never had any problems, but do not underestimate the time and money for maintenance. I spent a lot of my youth scraping paint and repainting, and working in the engine room.
You won’t save money living on a boat. Slip fees and availability are other issues, and periodic expensive dry hauling to remove growth from and repaint the hull. I agree with others, you can live in a rented mobile home for several months to try on the size, and burn 30 Benjamin’s per month to try on the maintenance expense.
My grandparents did this for a couple of years. I flew out to spend a couple of weeks with them. It was an experience seeing and using river locks, meeting different people and eating at all kinds of unique restaurants along the rivers.
Upfront, my grandmother had set an agreed time for my grandfather to wrap it up and when that time came she informed him she was packing up and heading home (and that he needed to sell the boat and return home per agreement). He could have lived on the river forever but he honored their agreement.
NNNNOOOOO! Don’t do it! Tried the boat life thing about 12 years ago. It was a 40 ft Catalina, second hand, very nice for sailing, but despite its many amenities it simply sucked as a home. Cold in the winter (and this is in NE Florida!) and hotter than hell in the summer. Takes daily maintenance, slip fees, sewage pumpouts, water and fuel replinisment costs, shore power (30 amp only). Gotta use the laundromat at least once a week because of the heat/cold/boat maintenance chores and very limited closet (locker) space. Very limited cooking and refrigerator space, limited pantry, and on and on, and on. Difficult to get around in with even two people living on it.
If you like going up and down ladders, banging your shins, knees and toes on bulkheads and deck fittings, exposed to the sun and rain all the time, constant motion even dockside, then it’s probably the life for you! The only enjoyable thing about it was the fellow live-aboards. Small, highly stressed cadre of friends that enjoyed drinking and bar-b-queing on the dock or in the parking lot (no place to park your car under cover, by the way).
Even takes the fun out of actually sailing because you have disconnect, stow everything, tie everything down, roust out the sails, etc. Then when you’re done sailing you gotta reconnect, unstow, blah blah. Never again for us.
As I read your post, you are seeking opinions indirectly to share with friends.
1. Assuming a long & strong friendship, be kind & listen.
2. Offer zero advice & pray for divine guidance for yourself & your friends.
The sea is fickle & unforgiving of mistakes.
Just the problem of everyday logistics can be a royal PITA, and coming anywhere near genuine self-sufficiency will require a lot more fortitude and ability than many people can handle. As people have noted, the weather will be magnified on a boat to a surprising degree, and everything "goes to hell" fairly fast because of salt and/or humidity.
The RV option you suggested was good.
I read a story some time back about a couple who did just that. Just as they were finished, the boat burned down to the waterline. They lost everything.
A pearl of wisdom for land or sea.
I knew a couple who sold their house and got a nice RV. They loved it.
Knew a guy that tried. Imagine heating yer house ... submerged in water. Blew thru many a heat pump and they, are not cheap. Also have to consider the marina; how choppy is the water. He moved to the other side of the river to find it TOO rough. Off to a condo at that point.
Yes
Dan Kilmer ping
A land yatch (rv) makes a lot more sense.
And a smaller one at that.
I’ve seen ones that are half the size of the big ones and they are quite nice.
Have everything the bid ones except they removed the wasted space.
Personally I don’t get rvs..big, wasteful and you have to tow an a vehicle if you don’t want to drive your rv (7mpg)
everywhere.
Smaller tow along camper makes more sense.
There is a bay in southern Puerto Rico...
Didn’t they have a little hurricane there recently?
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