Liveaboad instead of house - Yes or no

[kof]

Looking for the wisdom and honest input from this group. I'm at a point in my life where there kids are almost all gone and am looking for where next. I could buy a house somewhere nice but I figure I might end up looking at 4 walls for most of the time. My alternate idea is to buy a boat (again) and live on board. This would be in the med or the Caribbean (not sure yet) and fortunately I won't need to work - I can afford a large boat so will have all the nice extras to make it very comfortable.

This would be full time, winter and summer. The idea is that it would also serve as a family holiday home and the kids would get use out of it as well.

Question is - would you do it? We all know the high points - warm climates, 15 knot breeze and a flat sea. What are downfalls, the negatives? I realize I would end up in one place in the Summer until the next visit from friends and family, and then move on.

 

[Yngmar]

Depends on how spoiled you are from living in a house. Boats are different - less luxury, less safe and more maintenance. Also depends on if you want to use the boat to cruise or just stick it in a marina (upon which you then become dependent) and never move.

In the Med, winters are cold and summers hot and crowded. In the Caribbean you get more even temperatures, but it can be very wet and you have to think about hurricane season, which severely restricts the idea of year-round living aboard.

If you don't want to cruise on it, you're definitely better off with a house. If you do want to cruise, be prepared to deal with a lot of boat maintenance, times of high stress (gales, sudden squalls and dragging anchors, other boaters ) and lots of annoyances (rolly anchorages, leaky dinghy, stuck anchor, broken fridge, fried instruments, rude authorities, etc.). You'll spend a lot of time reading pilot books and learning how to take apart a blocked toilet pump. If you can cope with these things, the rest of the lifestyle is great, but it's a lot more work than a house (which never needs hauling out). Some love it, some wash out after a season or two or have to stop because they didn't embrace the technical side of it, spent all their money on having other folk fix every little problem or got tired of stuff breaking down all the time. Many buy the boat but never leave

 

[jordanbasset]

Depends on how spoiled you are from living in a house. Boats are different - less luxury, less safe and more maintenance. Also depends on if you want to use the boat to cruise or just stick it in a marina (upon which you then become dependent) and never move.

In the Med, winters are cold and summers hot and crowded. In the Caribbean you get more even temperatures, but it can be very wet and you have to think about hurricane season, which severely restricts the idea of year-round living aboard.

If you don't want to cruise on it, you're definitely better off with a house. If you do want to cruise, be prepared to deal with a lot of boat maintenance, times of high stress (gales, sudden squalls and dragging anchors, other boaters ) and lots of annoyances (rolly anchorages, leaky dinghy, stuck anchor, broken fridge, fried instruments, rude authorities, etc.). You'll spend a lot of time reading pilot books and learning how to take apart a blocked toilet pump. If you can cope with these things, the rest of the lifestyle is great, but it's a lot more work than a house (which never needs hauling out). Some love it, some wash out after a season or two or have to stop because they didn't embrace the technical side of it, spent all their money on having other folk fix every little problem or got tired of stuff breaking down all the time. Many buy the boat but never leave

Sensible post, we have met people who have loved the liveaboard life and are still doing it ten years later. But, and it's a big but, we have met many more who have enjoyed it but within a couple to 5 years or so decided the full time live aboard life was not for them - indeed that was also our decision. Some give it up altogether, others (like us) do it just for the summer
My tuppence worth for the OP would be to buy a smaller house to rent out and use the money left over for a yacht to live on and see if you like it. There are a lot of good older boats out there for not a lot of money for you to test the waters. If you do decide to stay as a liveaboard you can always sell the house and the current boat and buy your special boat.
If you do go spend all your money now on the boat of your dreams, in five years time depreciation will make it much more difficult to move back onto land

 

[kof]

Great reply. First off I already have a house and two of the kids are currently sharing it. Will not be getting rid of it anytime soon. The boat is something I would do for 5/10 years and yes will be cruising it extensively - Caribbean for the winter and maybe back to the med for the summer. It will be a new or almost new boat, so maintenance would be lower - I've maintained a boat before and can take things apart and put them back together again (and not have any bits left over) so that's not an issue.

The boat I'm looking at is a CNB 66 - more like a New York loft apartment and will be very comfortable. I guess I'm asking whether I'll go nuts during the time on my own. Is this a big problem for people ?

Depends on how spoiled you are from living in a house. Boats are different - less luxury, less safe and more maintenance. Also depends on if you want to use the boat to cruise or just stick it in a marina (upon which you then become dependent) and never move.

In the Med, winters are cold and summers hot and crowded. In the Caribbean you get more even temperatures, but it can be very wet and you have to think about hurricane season, which severely restricts the idea of year-round living aboard.

If you don't want to cruise on it, you're definitely better off with a house. If you do want to cruise, be prepared to deal with a lot of boat maintenance, times of high stress (gales, sudden squalls and dragging anchors, other boaters ) and lots of annoyances (rolly anchorages, leaky dinghy, stuck anchor, broken fridge, fried instruments, rude authorities, etc.). You'll spend a lot of time reading pilot books and learning how to take apart a blocked toilet pump. If you can cope with these things, the rest of the lifestyle is great, but it's a lot more work than a house (which never needs hauling out). Some love it, some wash out after a season or two or have to stop because they didn't embrace the technical side of it, spent all their money on having other folk fix every little problem or got tired of stuff breaking down all the time. Many buy the boat but never leave

 

[sailaboutvic]

Sensible post, we have met people who have loved the liveaboard life and are still doing it ten years later. But, and it's a big but, we have met many more who have enjoyed it but within a couple to 5 years or so decided the full time live aboard life was not for them - indeed that was also our decision. Some give it up altogether, others (like us) do it just for the summer
My tuppence worth for the OP would be to buy a smaller house to rent out and use the money left over for a yacht to live on and see if you like it. There are a lot of good older boats out there for not a lot of money for you to test the waters. If you do decide to stay as a liveaboard you can always sell the house and the current boat and buy your special boat.
If you do go spend all your money now on the boat of your dreams, in five years time depreciation will make it much more difficult to move back onto land

It's 9 years since we first met . God how times fly .
Op take note of both posting above , very few last more then 5 years that's a fact some don't make 3 the first and second year are exciting , then from there on it start to wear many down .
We been out 10 years this time round , all in all I been at it well over 28 years on and off for the first 15 years .
It's not worn us down yet .
Be live me when I say it's more like the first posting here then what you read and see in the yachting press .

 

[jordanbasset]

It's 9 years since we first met . God how times fly .
Op take note of both posting above , very few last more then 5 years that's a fact some don't make 3 the first and second year are exciting , then from there on it start to wear many down .
We been out 10 years this time round , all in all I been at it well over 28 years on and off for the first 15 years .
It's not worn us down yet .
Be live me when I say it's more like the first posting here then what you read and see in the yachting press .

Hi Vic, I was thinking about you and agree with your post. Out of the dozen or so liveaboard couples we knew quite well over the years, I think you are the only ones still living the dream full time

 

[sailaboutvic]

Hi Vic, I was thinking about you and agree with your post. Out of the dozen or so liveaboard couples we knew quite well over the years, I think you are the only ones still living the dream full time

Dream , more like a night mare at times
I can't think of any another then Terry and he only out a few months a year now , even bobby and ian after their experience of being rammed last year have called it a day . Although they too wasn't full time .
Everyone we met in the last four years have gone back to land life or selling up as I write . Just to day we got emails from two set of couple who just after there second season are calling it a day , I think the heat is getting to them .
I never know how to reply to these posting anymore , knowing very well most don't make it and wasted a large amount of money buying a boat that won't be worth anything like they paid for should they need to sell it .
I hate to put the damper on people dream but we need to be honest and that's telling them how it is.

 

[kof]

is there any common reason why people pack it in? Were they new to sailing and thought it would be a "cool" thing to do? On the flip side - why are you still doing it? What makes it so worthwhile that you are still going after 28 years?

Dream , more like a night mare at times
I can't think of any another then Terry and he only out a few months a year now , even bobby and ian after their experience of being rammed last year have called it a day . Although they too wasn't full time .
Everyone we met in the last four years have gone back to land life or selling up as I write . Just to day we got emails from two set of couple who just after there second season are calling it a day , I think the heat is getting to them .
I never know how to reply to these posting anymore , knowing very well most don't make it and wasted a large amount of money buying a boat that won't be worth anything like they paid for should they need to sell it .
I hate to put the damper on people dream but we need to be honest and that's telling them how it is.

 

[sailaboutvic]

is there any common reason why people pack it in? Where they new to sailing and thought it would be a "cool" thing to do? On the flip side - why are you still doing it? What makes it so worthwhile that you are still going after 28 years?

First 15 years was part time summer out then back in the uk to earn dosh for the following year , in between I took a few boats back , last 10 years full time cruisers , that what I like to think of our self not liveaboard .
To answer your question .
A....Most common within no time people realise it's not what it's been made out to be .
Nothing like the mag and video on youtube and it's bloody hard work at time much too hot and miss there house and garden and want land life back .
B....boredom too much sitting about waiting for the season to end so they can go back into the marina ..
C..... cash flow , they come out and start throwing money around like no tomorrow only to find it soon runs out ,don't sound in your case that's a problem
D....Many come out on a charter for a week or two and think , this is a way to life . Find out its very different once they do it for real.
E.....Heath that speak for it self .
The list goes on .
Why do we still do it ? Now there a question .
It's no secret , it's a way of life for us , we enjoy every day , we happy to take the good with the bad and we love seeing new places and making new friends.
We both sailor and happy to go along in 5 kts of wind or 35 kts or more if need be .
Anchoring is a way or life for us and if it means bouncing all night or having a flat sea it's no big deal admitting we rather have flat sea .
We on the move most of the time so Borden isn't a problem , we cruise for nine months of the year , the few months we in the marina each winter we busy fixing the boat of visiting family and friends .
We happy with our own company as we are with others around us.

Without sounding rude it sound like your kids have moved off , you not short of a few bob and you bored looking for a change of life .
Good luck I wish you all the best tho I not sure if living on a boat on your own is the answer and finding someone to share it with may not be that easy .

 

[Tony Cross]

is there any common reason why people pack it in? Where they new to sailing and thought it would be a "cool" thing to do? On the flip side - why are you still doing it? What makes it so worthwhile that you are still going after 28 years?

We did it for 12 years (full time) and sold up two years ago to live on land (in Crete). There were two main reasons why we stopped; one was that the deal SWMBO and I agreed when we started was then when she'd had enough we'd stop, and she'd eventually had enough. The other, and far more important, reason was that living full time on a sailing yacht was expensive. Even doing a lot of the maintenance ourselves the cost of fixing stuff that broke was far more than even we'd anticipated (and we'd done our research and well understood what the likely costs would be). As soon as you need a professional to fix stuff you can add an extra zero to the cost. Living in a rented apartment in Crete is massively cheaper than living on (and maintaining) a boat. I'm very glad we did it, but I wouldn't go back now.

 

[kof]

Again great feedback. So I'm a lifelong sailor since the age of 8 , racing , cruising, some oceans and lots of sleepless nights on many boats - I'm not going into this blind and know it's not all roses. My plan is to do summers in the med and winter in the Caribbean. It looks like the boat will be almost 100% used June-Sept with friends and family and given the Med is so close. Then a break until Oct, Canaries and the Caribbean. I suspect I'll have maybe 50% free time there just that it's a longer flight and Winter (people have less time off). Bottom line is the boat will be used a lot and most times at anchor or med moored.

And no I don't take offense (that I'm bored and that time of life). It's a fair question. My wife passed away last month after a long illness - this is something I've had a lot of time to think about and see if it's the right move for me and also for the kids who will get as much use out of the boat as I will.

First 15 years was part time summer out then back in the uk to earn dosh for the following year , in between I took a few boats back , last 10 years full time cruisers , that what I like to think of our self not liveaboard .
To answer your question .
A....Most common within no time people realise it's not what it's been made out to be .
Nothing like the mag and video on youtube and it's bloody hard work at time much too hot and miss there house and garden and want land life back .
B....boredom too much sitting about waiting for the season to end so they can go back into the marina ..
C..... cash flow , they come out and start throwing money around like no tomorrow only to find it soon runs out ,don't sound in your case that's a problem
D....Many come out on a charter for a week or two and think , this is a way to life . Find out its very different once they do it for real.
E.....Heath that speak for it self .
The list goes on .
Why do we still do it ? Now there a question .
It's no secret , it's a way of life for us , we enjoy every day , we happy to take the good with the bad and we love seeing new places and making new friends.
We both sailor and happy to go along in 5 kts of wind or 35 kts or more if need be .
Anchoring is a way or life for us and if it means bouncing all night or having a flat sea it's no big deal admitting we rather have flat sea .
We on the move most of the time so Borden isn't a problem , we cruise for nine months of the year , the few months we in the marina each winter we busy fixing the boat of visiting family and friends .
We happy with our own company as we are with others around us.

Without sounding rude it sound like your kids have moved off , you not short of a few bob and you bored looking for a change of life .
Good luck I wish you all the best tho I not sure if living on a boat on your own is the answer and finding someone to share it with may not be that easy .

 

[PlanB]

My partner and I bought a boat instead of a Greek holiday home, took early retirement and lived aboard full time in the Med for 12 years. I'd be there still if he hadn't died. I just didn't want to spend the rest of my life on my own on the boat, although I had friends of both sexes who lived aboard alone quite happily. The (expat) boating community is a great group of friends. Now happily settled on dry land with a new partner, I do sometimes miss my boat. One odd thing was that the kids and friends didn't seem to want to come and visit as often as we thought they would, so we were on our own more than expected. So, given that you are fully aware of the joys or otherwise of boating, the there are pros and cons to what you propose. I guess only you can know whether it's right for you, although the fact that you have a UK base makes it a less risky proposition so I'm tempted to say, if you can afford it, give it a go.

 

[steveej]

I think you should do it, but not straight away.

Ownership is a different thing to sailing on other peoples boats. The major issue is repairs and routine maintenance for which you get zero experience of unless you own the thing. It is part of the process and so you need to be comfortable with it.

If you have never owned a boat before I would be tempted to buy a smaller, cheaper, older boat from perhaps the mid noughties to see if you enjoy the maintenance side of it. Have a few years in a UK south coast marina with trips to Brittany and Channel Islands. Make all the maintenance mistakes on that when its much cheaper to fix problems as they grow exponential with size.

This should leave enough left over in the mean time to have some med/carribean charters with the kids, get them to fall in love with it, find out the nice places to go for your adventure etc.

Then take the plunge much better educated and knowing what you are getting yourself into.

How much does a boat cost?

1. Purchase price
2. Cost of immediate refit to bring it up to your standard, do not underestimate this.
3. Cost of previous owners lack of maintenance
4. Cost of routine annual maintenance
5. Cost of repairs and upgrades
6. Cost of parking it

Purchase price over a ten year period is very small in the grand scheme of things.

This is an achievable project for you but if you want to do it the right way isn't going to happen overnight.

Don't be a slave to the yard as my experience tells me the yards like it when you know your stuff and they will then go out of their way to help you.

Then for the difficult bit...........you need to find a partner in Crime to share it with. But after you have done all of the above should not be too difficult.

Good luck. You can do it!

So Do It!

 

[kof]

Steve,
thanks for the reply. I did own a boat - had a Beneteau 40.7 for a long time and raced it a lot, cruised it in Ireland, France and Spain with the family. That was 12/15 years ago. Did all the maintenance, installed a heater, furler and upgraded the batteries - so the maintenance doesn't frighten me.

I think you should do it, but not straight away.

Ownership is a different thing to sailing on other peoples boats. The major issue is repairs and routine maintenance for which you get zero experience of unless you own the thing. It is part of the process and so you need to be comfortable with it.

If you have never owned a boat before I would be tempted to buy a smaller, cheaper, older boat from perhaps the mid noughties to see if you enjoy the maintenance side of it. Have a few years in a UK south coast marina with trips to Brittany and Channel Islands. Make all the maintenance mistakes on that when its much cheaper to fix problems as they grow exponential with size.

This should leave enough left over in the mean time to have some med/carribean charters with the kids, get them to fall in love with it, find out the nice places to go for your adventure etc.

Then take the plunge much better educated and knowing what you are getting yourself into.

How much does a boat cost?

1. Purchase price
2. Cost of immediate refit to bring it up to your standard, do not underestimate this.
3. Cost of previous owners lack of maintenance
4. Cost of routine annual maintenance
5. Cost of repairs and upgrades
6. Cost of parking it

Purchase price over a ten year period is very small in the grand scheme of things.

This is an achievable project for you but if you want to do it the right way isn't going to happen overnight.

Don't be a slave to the yard as my experience tells me the yards like it when you know your stuff and they will then go out of their way to help you.

Then for the difficult bit...........you need to find a partner in Crime to share it with. But after you have done all of the above should not be too difficult.

Good luck. You can do it!

So Do It!

 

[steveej]

Then you know the answer

 

[kof]

Steve.
Guess I'm just looking for "as many fingerprints on the murder weapon as possible"!. I think I knew the answer but it's always good to stop, pause, ask for the horror stories and downsides, get some realism before pulling the trigger.

Then you know the answer

 

[kof]

Thanks for that and sorry to hear about your partner. Think I have to try it, even if only for 5/10 years (in my mid 50's now). Can always park it in a marina and move to the house when the weather stinks or I lose the desire. I suspect one of my kids would use it and cruise it for a couple of years if I gave him the keys.

My partner and I bought a boat instead of a Greek holiday home, took early retirement and lived aboard full time in the Med for 12 years. I'd be there still if he hadn't died. I just didn't want to spend the rest of my life on my own on the boat, although I had friends of both sexes who lived aboard alone quite happily. The (expat) boating community is a great group of friends. Now happily settled on dry land with a new partner, I do sometimes miss my boat. One odd thing was that the kids and friends didn't seem to want to come and visit as often as we thought they would, so we were on our own more than expected. So, given that you are fully aware of the joys or otherwise of boating, the there are pros and cons to what you propose. I guess only you can know whether it's right for you, although the fact that you have a UK base makes it a less risky proposition so I'm tempted to say, if you can afford it, give it a go.

 

[RAI]

Ill health is an issue, Caribbean or Med., you may need health care all of a sudden. I think many fade from living aboard because they become needy of a doctor.
For comfy living in a marina, a motor boat offers more useful volume for living aboard, but not a good solution for ocean crossings.
You could have two boats, one each side, but that's double the maintenance. Maybe one boat in the sun and another further north is better. Some on here do that.
Mostly its important that you want to do it, so much that you do it anyway.

 

[alexsailor]

no.

 

[AndrewB]

Go for it. With the kids at uni or in first jobs, SWMBO and I took the plunge over 25 years ago, though for the past 15 we have owned a small UK apartment as well, rented out much of the time. Living aboard was a little bit constricting at times while we were still working, though we did love the idea that if jobs took one of us to London (or wherever), we could just relocate to Limehouse for a month or two.

Raking in the sheckles by living cheap, we retired early and then with a boat we knew inside out, the world was our oyster: Atlantic, Pacific, everywhere. Fabulous life!

But if there is one downside, it is that the kids - and then the grandkids when they came along, never found it that easy. So we saw less of them than we might have liked. (Or maybe that was a plus). If you are a big family man, as it sounds like you might be, think twice.