Not a new member but have never posted before. I am getting close to retiring, and would like to purchase a trawler in the 50-60 foot range. Trying to get a handle on the costs in order to create a budget and make sure I can do this. Would like to cruise the east coast, Bahamas and possibly a Caribbean run or two. I already have contacted an insurance agent so I know the costs. There would be a separate budget for maintenance and repairs, as with fuel. We would like to be on the hook about 75 percent of the time, and monthly dockage the rest of the time. Could someone please give me a rough idea about the costs yearly? Is 30-40 k a realistic number or am I too low? Are there any moorages available on the east coast for that size boat or am I limited to transient dockage only? Thanks for your help ahead of time! Gerald Borna

That's a real tough question to answer Gerald. I know some folks who have lived on as little as $10K a year and others who easily spend $10K a month. The best recommendation I can offer is to add up all of your estimated expenses both for life in general as well as what it would cost to operate and maintain the boat you have in mind and then multiply by 2. That should give you enough to cover everything you need as well as a little cushion for unexpected things such as a major repair to your boat, bad weather forcing you to hole up at a marina for an extended period, etc. After your first year, you will be able to tailor your budget based upon your actual experience. That said, I've been with my same boat for 7 years now and my total annual expenses still vary quite wildly. Some years I do more cruising than others. Some years we have more maintenance. Last year was heavy due to some electronics upgrades, etc. I'm sure others will nail down some exact figures for you, but I caution you in terms of how much faith you place in those figures versus your actual operation as it is virtually impossible to predict how you will fare based upon how others have fared. -Ryan > Not a new member but have never posted before. I am getting close to > retiring, and would like to purchase a trawler in the 50-60 foot range. > Trying to get a handle on the costs in order to create a budget and make > sure I can do this.

it's really impossible to throw numbers out there, there are too many variables. Some people will throw the typical 10% of the purchase cost per year but that's can be meaningless fuel: in the 50' range, plan on 1 nmpg... see how many miles you'll run every years and pull out your cristal ball to guess where fuel prices will be. if you run 3000 miles a year (the typical snowbird up and down the coast migration), figure $6000 in fuel... at the current $2 a gallons... plan on $3 a gallons to be realistic ove the next few years, and $4 a gallon to be safe. add some extra for generator... that depends on the boat and how you want to live. 3 hours of genny time a day to charge batteries, make water, etc... 3 to 4 gallons a day when you're on the hook. Dockage is the big thing... if you're only staying at marinas 25% of the time, then unless you spend 3 months in one place, you're not gong to get any monthly deals and will pay full transient. Average transient dockage is about $2 a foot... $100 a day... 90 days a years... $9000. If you spent more time in out of the way places, your cost will go down. If you find places with moorings and services (launch, pump out, water delivery), you will save $$$. Maintenance is the big unknown, that depends on the condition of the boat and your skills. If you can do some of teh mainteance, you'll save a lot of money compared to pyaing $90 a hour everytime something happens... if the boat was well maintained and upgraded, you dont' have to spend as much... and luck. pascal miami, fl 70 hatteras 53MY ----- Original Message ----- From: "Anne Borna" <ab32@optonline.net> To: <trawlers-and-trawlering@lists.samurai.com> Sent: Wednesday, June 17, 2009 9:33 AM Subject: T&T: live aboard costs? > Not a new member but have never posted before. I am getting close to > retiring, and would like to purchase a trawler in the 50-60 foot range. > Trying to get a handle on the costs in order to create a budget and make > sure I can do this. Would like to cruise the east coast, Bahamas and > possibly a Caribbean run or two. I already have contacted an insurance > agent > so I know the costs. There would be a separate budget for maintenance and > repairs, as with fuel. We would like to be on the hook about 75 percent of > the time, and monthly dockage the rest of the time. Could someone please > give me a rough idea about the costs yearly? Is 30-40 k a realistic number > or am I too low? Are there any moorages available on the east coast for > that > size boat or am I limited to transient dockage only? Thanks for your help > ahead of time! Gerald Borna > _______________________________________________ > http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/trawlers-and-trawlering > > To unsubscribe or modify your subscription options (get password, change > email address, etc) go to: > http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/options/trawlers-and-trawlering > > Trawlers & Trawlering and T&T are trademarks of Water World > Productions. Unauthorized use is prohibited. 17:55:00

Ann: Liveaboard costs are entirely dependent on the lifestyle that you want to live and to a lesser extent boat maintenance and fuel costs. Here are some numbers for a single, full time liveaboarder who rarely stays in marinas. My boat also gets about 5 NM/gal. Boat Maintenance- $500/mo Boat insurance 150 Fuel 200 Marinas/moorings 150 Food 300 Restaurants and bars 200 Booze 100 Health ins and copay 500 Travel home 200 Cell and aircard 100 Other misc 150 Add or subtract for your lifestyle and boat. Your fuel cost will be at least double and from your description your marina costs may be triple. My boat is 16 years old and something is always breaking. I do all of my own maintenance however, so the cost is mostly for parts. David

<<if you're only staying at marinas 25% of the time, then unless you spend 3 months in one place, you're not gong to get any monthly deals and will pay full transient. Average transient dockage is about $2 a foot... $100 a day... 90 days a years... $9000.>> We've found that the great majority of marinas on the East coast have a monthly rate that is from 9 to 15 times the daily rate, a great savings. We almost never stay in marinas at nightly rates, but have stayed by the month a few times. Get Skipper Bob's "Guide to Marinas along the ICW" for daily and monthly rates for a few hundred marinas, along with a lot of other info. About $16. Mark Richter, Winnie the Pooh, Ortona, FL on the Okeechobee Waterway home from the Keys