Gonna live on a sailboat.

[manlymatt83]

I've done some cost calculations, and I can actually save a lot of money by purchasing a decent sailboat (32 feet?) and living on it full time. Looks like I can dock it in Boston for about $6000/yr, and then there'd be the upkeep and maintenance, but still cheaper than buying a house and paying a mortgage or contuing to throw away the rent I do now (which is $1400 plus utils).

Is there a flaw in my logic? Has anyone done this before? I'm taking sailing lessons beginning in two weeks to start the process.

 

[Platypus]

Is there a flaw in my logic?

Yes, you get to be the homeless guy living on a boat down by the river.

 

[Krazy4Real]

What about your cat?

 

[calvinbiss]

Mailing address? How do your utilities cost compare at the marina/harbor vs. a home?

Why not just rent a place if you are concerned about maintenance?

Have you factored in the cost of large maintenance items on a boat (especially if buying used)? Clean hull/new bottom coat, new generator, new AC?

 

[Jeffg010]

Why don't you live down by the river in a van?

 

[DrPizza]

I've seen enough movies to know that this can only work if you are a detective. Oh, and during the next year, a girlfriend or someone you're having a one night stand with will end up murdered in your boat and you'll be implicated.

 

[Capt Caveman]

I'm sure you'll be loving it in the winter time unless you're going to sail it down south for the winter.

You could always rent a mobile home in a trailer park too.

 

[lxskllr]

It's doable, but living on the water puts you in a fragile position. Storms, ice, and routine maintenance can put you out of a house, maybe permanently. If I did something like that, I'd prefer it to be land based. Maybe a trailer in a state park, or something like that.

 

[etrigan420]

I've seen enough movies to know that this can only work if you are a detective. Oh, and during the next year, a girlfriend or someone you're having a one night stand with will end up murdered in your boat and you'll be implicated.

Nailed it.

OP, you *don't* want Jim Rockford sniffing into your past.

 

[Vdubchaos]

WOW

Dude, get an RV or something. Regardless you will be dealing with weather.

 

[ichy]

Living on a 32 foot sailboat sucks. I have a friend who lived in on Islander 30 for a year or so, it was pretty much like permanently camping. Expect serious misery on hot summer days or during the winter.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

A 32 foot boat is not very large; you're going to have a pretty cramped cabin. You'll have to run the engine to charge the battery for power, so you'll need to figure out how much that will run you in annual fuel costs. And, as others have mentioned, you'll be that crazy guy living in a boat.

 

[ConwayJim]

Seems like a plan, go for it!

 

[MichaelD]

The cost of a 30-foot sailboat, in good condition, that won't need thousands of dollars in immediate repairs is not cheap. Add in docking/mooring fees, etc and it's really not cheap.

If you don't want the expense or upkeep a house requires, just rent an apartment. Stay away from "mobile homes." Even the nicest double-wide with a patio and such is still just a trailer. Besides, when all the sailboats are full, the murderers dump the bodies where? In the trailer park. In your trailer. Then you've got Rockford on your ass all over again.

In fact...just stay where you are.

 

[clamum]

No way I'd do that. Sounds kinda cool but there's plenty of reasons to say "fuck that" (many of which were mentioned in this thread).

$1400 + utils a month? lollerskates. Move out of that fucking shit city.

 

[KeithP]

Have you actually checked on availability for a live aboard slip?

To live on your boat in a marina, most places require that you have a "live aboard" slip. Maybe Boston is different than the West Coast, but those types of slips are few and far between. Multi-year waiting lists are not uncommon, at least in popular cities.

32" is pretty small. I had friend that was living on a 37" and it was rather tight. The upside is you will save money simply because you want have room to own a lot of stuff.


-KeithP

 

[Fausto]

A 32 foot boat is not very large; you're going to have a pretty cramped cabin. You'll have to run the engine to charge the battery for power, so you'll need to figure out how much that will run you in annual fuel costs. And, as others have mentioned, you'll be that crazy guy living in a boat.

No. You plug in when you're docked. Shore power.

I do agree that 32 is not that big. It may seem okay at first, but the walls will start to close in on your after a while. I'd personally want at least 40 if I were going to be living aboard and probably not a sailboat since they have a much narrower beam than a powerboat of the same length.

 

[Sentrosi2121]

Thread screams for this: http://youtu.be/R7yfISlGLNU

 

[erikistired]

maybe a houseboat. but not a sailboat. have you actually looked at the size you'd have available inside? and i don't live in boston, but i heard it gets cold there.

 

[OlafSicky]

You will have to get it out of the water every year and clean it that costs money too. I have no idea what you will do in the winter.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

No. You plug in when you're docked. Shore power.

Is that included in the cost of a berth or do you have an additional utility cost?

Also, $6,000 annually seems cheap compared to $1,400 a month, but you also have to factor in the cost of the boat. Unless you can get a boat for less than $11,000, the cost for the first year is going to be higher, and I'd hope that a $1,400 a month apartment is slightly roomier than the cabin on a 32 foot sailboat. Have you thought about moving to a lower cost neighborhood or finding a place with roommates?

 

[manlymatt83]

Is that included in the cost of a berth or do you have an additional utility cost?

Also, $6,000 annually seems cheap compared to $1,400 a month, but you also have to factor in the cost of the boat. Unless you can get a boat for less than $11,000, the cost for the first year is going to be higher, and I'd hope that a $1,400 a month apartment is slightly roomier than the cabin on a 32 foot sailboat. Have you thought about moving to a lower cost neighborhood or finding a place with roommates?

I'm not really doing this to save money. It'd be a nice extra. I'm more doing it for:

* the adventure
* the fact that I love water
* I want to sail.
* I like being weird.

 

[dawp]

I've seen enough movies to know that this can only work if you are a detective. Oh, and during the next year, a girlfriend or someone you're having a one night stand with will end up murdered in your boat and you'll be implicated.

you can be a M.E. also, or did you forget Quincy?

 

[Atomic Playboy]

I'm not really doing this to save money. It'd be a nice extra. I'm more doing it for:

* the adventure
* the fact that I love water
* I want to sail.
* I like being weird.

In that case, you should sail to San Diego where you won't die in the winter.

 

[calvinbiss]

I'm not really doing this to save money. It'd be a nice extra. I'm more doing it for:

* the adventure
* the fact that I love water
* I want to sail.
* I like being weird.

Then why are you asking ATOT for advice. Seems like you have your mind made up.