Hamble waiting list - is it worth it?

[MissFitz]

Just about to hand over my £30 to stay on the waiting list for a Hamble mooring & wondering if it's worth it. I don't have a boat at present & have no idea when I will have one, nor do I know where I'll be in 20 years' time when I finally get to the head of the list. On the other hand, if it's anywhere near the Solent (which is not unlikely) & I have a boat (ditto), a cheap Hamble mooring would obviously be great. But is it worth £30 a year on the off-chance?

(Also not clear whether, if I don't get a boat, I would be able to sub-let - anyone know?)

 

[Giblets]

I don't think you can sub-let. Also 30 odd years ago you could only pass the mooring down to your sons not to your daughters but I expect that has changed now.

 

[NOHOH]

Unhappily, The Crown Estate now seem to just see the moorings system as a licence to collect money and give very little in return... It used to be that ...if lets say you went on a trip around Brittany...or you hauled your boat out to do a re-fit..... you could let out your mooring for a certain number of months per year and you would get 90% of it....But then they changed it so that they kept the 90% and you got around 10%.
Hey ho...the demographic is changing....and it may not be too long before the majority of boats will be charter boats ...trundling inexpertly from marina to marina....with "designated anchorages" being few and far between....and ......boat owning will be too expensive , complicated, or just too much hassle for all but a few.

 

[jac]

If you're above me in the list then no it's not

Only you know if it's worth it. If in reality you will not have a boat or are happy to have one somewhere else then no. There are other cheap places in the Solent, Chichester or Portsmouth for example with minimal if any waiting lists.

On the other hand if you are seriously likely to have a boat in 5 or 10 years time and would strongly prefer the Hamble then the £30 p.a. Is fairly small change for that. It barely covers a pub lunch for two once a year.

 

[jordanbasset]

Out of interest does anyone know about how long the waiting list is in years, a ballpark figure?

 

[NOHOH]

Depends........on a few things...including but not limited to..... how big your boat is

 

[boatsRus]

The mooring waiting list is divided into size bands (based on total LOA) and the likely length of wait does, indeed, depend on how big your boat is. The current extimated waiting times are:

up to 8 metres 3 to 4 years
8 - 9.8 metres 8 to 10 years
9.8 - 12.2 metres 15-18 years
12.2 -15.3 metres 12 -15 years

In answer to the OP, if you don't have a boat, you won't be offered a mooring but your date of application can be transferred to any of teh size bands so that, when you decide what you want to buy, you can contact the Harbour Office and they will tell you where you would be on the list for the size of boat you want. Assuming that your waiting list date puts you at or very near the top of your chosen size band, it is very straightforward to arrange matters so that you get your new mooring at the same time as you get your new boat.

If your boat is going to be away from its mooring for a while (minimum 2 months), the Harbour Office can arrange a sub-let, for which you will receive a rebate of 90% of what you have paid (pro rata for the length of time involved) for the mooring licence and Harbour Dues (but not cost of a pontoon, if there is one).

 

[npf1]

The mooring waiting list is divided into size bands (based on total LOA) and the likely length of wait does, indeed, depend on how big your boat is. The current extimated waiting times are:

up to 8 metres 3 to 4 years
8 - 9.8 metres 8 to 10 years
9.8 - 12.2 metres 15-18 years
12.2 -15.3 metres 12 -15 years

In answer to the OP, if you don't have a boat, you won't be offered a mooring but your date of application can be transferred to any of teh size bands so that, when you decide what you want to buy, you can contact the Harbour Office and they will tell you where you would be on the list for the size of boat you want. Assuming that your waiting list date puts you at or very near the top of your chosen size band, it is very straightforward to arrange matters so that you get your new mooring at the same time as you get your new boat.

If your boat is going to be away from its mooring for a while (minimum 2 months), the Harbour Office can arrange a sub-let, for which you will receive a rebate of 90% of what you have paid (pro rata for the length of time involved) for the mooring licence and Harbour Dues (but not cost of a pontoon, if there is one).

What happens if you have a mooring, but want to change boats, as there could be a longish gap in-between selling one and buying the next one?

Thanks

 

[boatsRus]

Anything up to 9 months is fine - you can ask for your mooring to be sub-let for that period. Over 9 months, you have to surrender your mooring and go back on the waiting list (with your original date, so you will be at or very near the top), and you will be allocated a new mooring when you get the new boat (subject to availability, so it pays to keep in touch with the Harbour Office during the whole process).

Beware though, the fact that you have a mooring for a vessel of, say, between 8 and 9.8 metres (by virtue of having been at the top of that waiting list) does not necessarily mean that you will automatically get a mooring for a new boat in a different size band. You transfer between bands with your original date so someone who has been at the top of the 8 - 9.8 band may well be quite a long way down the 9.8 - 12.2 metre band, simply because that is by far the most popular size, with the longest waiting list.

 

[MissFitz]

That's very helpful guys, thanks - especially boatsRus. I'd clearly got quite the wrong end of the stick about this, didn't realise the waiting time varied with boat length or that there was no possibility of sub-letting. If I ever do get a boat it'll be less than 8m long, so it clearly doesn't make sense to keep paying for years on the off-chance - will save my £30!

 

[npf1]

Anything up to 9 months is fine - you can ask for your mooring to be sub-let for that period. Over 9 months, you have to surrender your mooring and go back on the waiting list (with your original date, so you will be at or very near the top), and you will be allocated a new mooring when you get the new boat (subject to availability, so it pays to keep in touch with the Harbour Office during the whole process).

Beware though, the fact that you have a mooring for a vessel of, say, between 8 and 9.8 metres (by virtue of having been at the top of that waiting list) does not necessarily mean that you will automatically get a mooring for a new boat in a different size band. You transfer between bands with your original date so someone who has been at the top of the 8 - 9.8 band may well be quite a long way down the 9.8 - 12.2 metre band, simply because that is by far the most popular size, with the longest waiting list.

That's useful to know. Thank you.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Took me about four years from the off to be offered a 28' mooring, but I managed on sublets until then. When I moved up to 34' I had to give up the mooring (2009) because too small. Beginning of this year I was offered a choice of two in my size band, but didn't fancy either, so said no. High hopes of getting something suitable in 2015.

 

[xyachtdave]

Also 30 odd years ago you could only pass the mooring down to your sons not to your daughters but I expect that has changed now.

Unbelievable (by today's standards)!

15 years to get a mooring and paying to be on the waiting list....that's not a train I'll be riding anytime soon.

 

[dk]

You could just try Tucker Monday. They found me a mooring within weeks, in a really good spot opposite Universal and on a pontoon. Sensible money too - in Hamble terms anyway!

 

[JumbleDuck]

Unbelievable (by today's standards)!

15 years to get a mooring and paying to be on the waiting list....that's not a train I'll be riding anytime soon.

The waiting time for a pontoon berth at Kirkcudbright marina is around fifty years. Mind you, there is no annual charge.

 

[xyachtdave]

The waiting time for a pontoon berth at Kirkcudbright marina is around fifty years. Mind you, there is no annual charge.

Well that could be an option when I'm 91.

I'll give them a ring in the morning....

 

[jac]

You could just try Tucker Monday. They found me a mooring within weeks, in a really good spot opposite Universal and on a pontoon. Sensible money too - in Hamble terms anyway!

Waiting list for them too. I'm on it!

 

[345000]

MissFitz,

I wouldn't give up just yet - I've been on the 9m waiting list since 2007, and I'm due to take over a mooring at the beginning of 2015.

The draw of Hamble for me is that their mooring fees are half the price of anyone else in the area.

Dear All - please feel free to prove me wrong on that point !

I'm fairly certain that sub-lets are still allowed, but it's best to contact the Harbour Masters' Office in Warsash, and get it from the proverbial horse's mouth - they really are nice people.

Best Regards,

 

[phodger]

I came to the top of the list after 5 years waiting and was offered a berth for a 30 footer. Unfortunately, the week before we'd upgraded to a 40 footer, so we're now back at number 60 on the waiting list.

 

[oldvarnish]

15 years to get a mooring and paying to be on the waiting list....that's not a train I'll be riding anytime soon.

Don't know about the Hamble, but on the Dart your deposit is returned when your number comes up.