Country of Registration / Spec for Caribbean cat?

[Sandy Bottom]

Following on from our previous thread (South Florida for Caribbean base) we have taken all of the excellent advice offered (thank you) and have decided to heed what was said by basing a Cat (probably a Lagoon 440/450) in Trinidad below the hurricane belt. Direct flights from UK are also a big help to us as we have onward flights to the Isle of Man in any case. IOM flights are notoriously unreliable in winter so we always allow a 24 hour stop over in UK just in case - three flights makes it a bit of a pain.

So boat search now begins in earnest - we are determined to be out there this winter.

Question - once actually out in the Caribbean, are there any big advantages / disadvantages to Country of Registration? At the moment we could buy in the States, the Caribbean itself or even Europe and do the milk run. Three cabin Lagoons (private owners version) are a bit thin on the ground, so having a bigger pool to fish in would be advantageous.

Ditto electrical spec 240 or 120? etc. (Though we expect to anchor / Genny most of the time).

Any thoughts?
Cheers.

 

[Zing]

Following on from our previous thread (South Florida for Caribbean base) we have taken all of the excellent advice offered (thank you) and have decided to heed what was said by basing a Cat (probably a Lagoon 440/450) in Trinidad below the hurricane belt. Direct flights from UK are also a big help to us as we have onward flights to the Isle of Man in any case. IOM flights are notoriously unreliable in winter so we always allow a 24 hour stop over in UK just in case - three flights makes it a bit of a pain.

So boat search now begins in earnest - we are determined to be out there this winter.

Question - once actually out in the Caribbean, are there any big advantages / disadvantages to Country of Registration? At the moment we could buy in the States, the Caribbean itself or even Europe and do the milk run. Three cabin Lagoons (private owners version) are a bit thin on the ground, so having a bigger pool to fish in would be advantageous.

Ditto electrical spec 240 or 120? etc. (Though we expect to anchor / Genny most of the time).

Any thoughts?
Cheers.

Registration is unimportant to the local authorities. Any will do.

If buying in the Caribbean be careful, there are a lot of rebuilt hurricane wrecks around. I wouldn’t trust my life to one.

You can usually get any power in marinas, so boat voltage doesn’t matter much.

 

[TQA]

Only country I would avoid is South Africa any where else is OK for the Caribe. Life gets more complicated if you are visiting the USA. One route is to make an initial reg on UK SSR and then transfer to UK Part 1 if the domicile issue raises it's ugly head. [No of nights in the UK]

Given a choice between 250 volts and 110 go with 110. Yes most marinas and boat yards will have both but 250 volt tools and appliances will be less common and more expensive.

 

[Sandy Bottom]

Registration is unimportant to the local authorities. Any will do.

If buying in the Caribbean be careful, there are a lot of rebuilt hurricane wrecks around. I wouldn’t trust my life to one.

You can usually get any power in marinas, so boat voltage doesn’t matter much.

Noted thanks; I did scan the specs of some cheaper cats until it dawned on me what they were - similarly I look carefully at anything with a suspicious about of new soft furnishings / electronics etc. :encouragement:

 

[Sandy Bottom]

Only country I would avoid is South Africa any where else is OK for the Caribe. Life gets more complicated if you are visiting the USA. One route is to make an initial reg on UK SSR and then transfer to UK Part 1 if the domicile issue raises it's ugly head. [No of nights in the UK]

Given a choice between 250 volts and 110 go with 110. Yes most marinas and boat yards will have both but 250 volt tools and appliances will be less common and more expensive.

That makes sense. I'll have to look into the Trinidad regs as to limitations on 'Yachts in Transit' etc. Are there any big import taxes anymore - I seem to recall up to 35% in the Bahamas 1990's??

 

[macd]

One route is to make an initial reg on UK SSR and then transfer to UK Part 1 if the domicile issue raises it's ugly head. [No of nights in the UK]

This is old hat. The test for SSR eligibility is no longer nights spent in UK but the more flexible (and more lawful) issue of "ordinarily resident".

 

[AndrewB]

Lagoon cats are not brilliant sailing machines, being designed principally for the charter market - accommodation over performance. If you buy in Florida, be prepared for a long, none to comfortable motor windward down to Trinidad.

You are of course aware of recent problems reported between Grenada and Trinidad.

There's usually a fairly healthy yacht market in Chaguramas itself. It might be an idea to fly over and take a look at what is available.

Registering your yacht in the same country as your passport avoids a certain amount of questioning by customs officials in the Caribbean. If you want Part 1 registration, the yacht must come with an unimpeachable paper trail of its origin and previous ownership.

 

[Sandy Bottom]

The issue of UK Domicile and Residency is not something that affects me as I am Isle of Man registered for both (and could use Isle of Man boat registration if required).

The Lagoon's performance restrictions have been accepted by me on the basis that ease of re-sale for my wife & family in the event of something happening to me is a primary requirement and a Private owners version of the Lagoon wins that one hands down (I have done my research on this). I've done plenty of Ocean racing in the past and I'm sure that I could always jump aboard something in one of the Caribbean races if I ever felt the need again.

In the past I've searched out the very best deals (including undertaking major refits lasting years) in order to 'make it happen' - but this time I just want an 'easy in / easy out' enjoy time together situation so I'm thinking of approaching some of the more reliable brokers (that I expect to still be around in 5 or 6 years time) with a view to them sourcing a boat that I can buy through them now and re-sell via the same broker at the end - I see it as a purchase minus resale plus running costs situation.

I've been running our businesses and my other half has been putting in over 100 hours a week at the hospital for some decades now - coincidentally she comes off call at 9am this morning having covered the IOM TT for trauma (again :roll eyes )- we are both more than a bit mentally and physically shot - 6 knots drifting appeals!

A recce trip to Chaguaramas is indeed under consideration!

 

[KellysEye]

We had 240 volts and a marina in Puerto Rico had 110 volts they rewired our plug to take that.

 

[t21]

Yachtworld website, advanced search is an important website for distant boat-browsing. Seems all dealers get their boats on there, and if it isn't on there, it's likely only for sale privately - not very likely. The 2nd hand cat market in the caribbean is buoyant since hurricanes damaged lotsa boats a couple of years ago.

 

[Sandy Bottom]

Yachtworld website, advanced search is an important website for distant boat-browsing. Seems all dealers get their boats on there, and if it isn't on there, it's likely only for sale privately - not very likely. The 2nd hand cat market in the caribbean is buoyant since hurricanes damaged lotsa boats a couple of years ago.

Yes I browse Yachtworld - do you mean 'buoyant' as in active whereby boats sell fairly quickly? I guess it's people with a wad of cash in their pockets from insurance payouts?

 

[t21]

Yes I browse Yachtworld - do you mean 'buoyant' as in active whereby boats sell fairly quickly? I guess it's people with a wad of cash in their pockets from insurance payouts?

Yeah buoyant as in the market moves quickly. Perhaps people with insurance payouts, perhaps people (like you?) just fancy the idea anyway. Carib catamaran charter is popular so mainstream 40ft+ cat models aren't much distress/rushed sales at rock bottom prices. Owners version (fewer cabins) are rarer, higher prices. I think the catamaran market is weaker in Europe and there will be proportionally more owners versions although mostly all 240V of course. Shipping a 45' from Europe to carib under £25k.

 

[Sandy Bottom]

Yeah buoyant as in the market moves quickly. Perhaps people with insurance payouts, perhaps people (like you?) just fancy the idea anyway. Carib catamaran charter is popular so mainstream 40ft+ cat models aren't much distress/rushed sales at rock bottom prices. Owners version (fewer cabins) are rarer, higher prices. I think the catamaran market is weaker in Europe and there will be proportionally more owners versions although mostly all 240V of course. Shipping a 45' from Europe to carib under £25k.

That's V. interesting! We paid £54,000 for a Squadron 65 in 1997! Is that one particular company or the going rate across the board?

 

[t21]

That's V. interesting! We paid £54,000 for a Squadron 65 in 1997! Is that one particular company or the going rate across the board?

£54k sounds high. I paid £32k for a 60ft Fontaine Pajot cat with maybe twice the footprint of the squaddie in 2017 shipped from Turkey to Antigua. Peters and May was mine - yours?

 

[Sandy Bottom]

£54k sounds high. I paid £32k for a 60ft Fontaine Pajot cat with maybe twice the footprint of the squaddie in 2017 shipped from Turkey to Antigua. Peters and May was mine - yours?

Yes Peters & May also - Ipswich to Fort Lauderdale - to to be fair that was in a different era before Dock Express et al came along - it was calculated on the number of shipping containers displaced on a standard ship.

Watching the slingers at FL very nearly drop it 40' down on to the concrete was an ageing process!