Exit strategy?

[Gabe n Em]

We've lived aboard for 3 years now and while we really enjoy it, we have seen that we'd like a faster boat so we can cover more ground on a weekend. It would be a push to have the boat prepped for sale this spring and we aren't really sure we want to move on from our beautiful "In Sanity" just yet anyway so we're tenatively aiming for next spring. What is a liveaboard to do? ? Anyone on here made the transition from boat to boat/dirt house? We don't really want to rent a dirt house for a year to make the shuffle, but I've seen those cluttered liveaboard "for sale" photos.... (We live it! ). And for everyone's consideration: with over a years planning, what would you tackle in preparation to sell?

Thanks everyone for the wisdom.

Gabe and Em

 

[ranger58sb]

I'd probably try to take two concurrent paths:
1) Find and buy the next home (boat)
2) Spiff up the current boat for immediate sale

Make the next boat happen first, so you have a place to schlepp all your stuff.

Price your current boat right and make it as immaculate as possible so it'll sell relatively expeditiously, and actually list it when you have the new boat in sight. You can do a lot of that "immaculate" early, in non-living spaces. For example, detail the engine room, etc.

-Chris

 

[Tom.B]

Could you put part of your belonging into a local storage unit (or a mobile one like Pack Rat) for the short-term while you transition?

 

[Gabe n Em]

Thanks for the comments guys.

Chris: Dual ownership seems almost inevitable but the costs would be tough to swallow (2 slips, shucking out the cash for the next boat when so much is tied up in the first one already)

Tom: Interesting idea, a partial cleanout. Would people be put off if stuff was neatly in drawers, out of sight? Obviously no photos on the walls or dirty laundry out for initial walk through. It still leaves us high and dry if we actually sell/ have an inspection before we can find another occupancy... hmmm.... we're kind of looking at a short term rental again.....

If only cash were no issue....

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
G&E. The FIRST question that popped into MY mind when I read your post was...Hmmm....Do you really want much faster OR just bigger and a bit faster?

IF your boat is anything like ours and we're NOT live aboards, you need more room. In addition to the excellent suggestions thus far (tidy up and "stage" your vessel) it may be of some advantage to you to reorganize and prioritize the "stuff" you have aboard. Downsize, as it were. Probably the same exercise you went through when you moved on board. You should have less to store ashore once it's "showtime" while allowing yourselves the luxury of a place to live without additional expenses (dirt rental/2nd boat).

Easy for me to say but at this stage in our boating lives but apparently, impossible.

Almost every time the Admiral brings something aboard I scratch my head and say TO MYSELF, "What the heck do we need THAT for?" Of course I NEVER question MY additions. "Yes dear, we really DO need an air compressor on board AND I even have the perfect place to stow it (mis-calculated-it doesn't fit!).

All this being said, and perhaps I do not understand your situation at all, apologies, if not, do you have any particular replacement vessels or models in mind?

 

[tiltrider1]

Twice I have upgraded boats while being a liveaboard.

The first time I was able to get the seller to take my old boat as part trade. I ended up paying top dollar for the new boat and got low dollar for my trade in but no dual ownership.

The second time I bought first moved and sold. I bought a boat that was being lived on. I paid way below low dollar, guy had been trying to sell the boat for years, got lots of looks but the boat showed so bad no one was interested. After I moved I prepped my boat for sale, priced it right (not cheap but right for the market) and sold it in 2 months, 3 if you count the closing period.

It was certainly easier the first time(especially cash flow), financially better the second time.

 

[Tom.B]

Chris: Dual ownership seems almost inevitable but the costs would be tough to swallow (2 slips, shucking out the cash for the next boat when so much is tied up in the first one already)

When you talk to brokers for your sale listing, see if they will supply your boat with a slip and a reduced (or free) cost to you. Some brokers already have a handful of slips in their local marina. As the most visible slips become available, they will snap them up and use them to stage some of their most attractive listings. That is true in two (or perhaps more) marinas here in New Bern. At one marina nearly all to the slips that are nearest to where the public walkway are held by one broker. At another, the slip on the common pier up the center of the marina are all reserved by a different broker.

So you may be able to defer SOME of your cost that way. Maybe offer the listing broker an extra commission point or bonus after the sale.

 

[Nightsky]

We are thinking of doing the same as you in that we want to change from our present boat to a larger, semi-displacement type hull. We are planning on putting one more summer cruising season on her before getting her ready for sale. In the meantime we are looking at different boats that may fit our future needs. Like you, we would like to not have to own 2 boats at once and being able to sell one and buy the other ideally would happen in a short period of time. Seems unlikely to happen that way unless we were able to find someone interested in our boat and agreed in advance to a price, and when we found our next boat, then could sell to this pre-arranged suitor. We do have someone that has expressed interest in our boat but have no commitments as yet. I think by letting people know your intentions you may be able to line up a suitor that can wait until you find your next boat. Good luck.

 

[tiltrider1]

It is very hard to stage a boat for sale while living on it. Nothing makes a boat look small like a bunch of some one else’s stuff in every nook and cranny. Even though people know they are looking at used boats they don’t want to feel like they are buying someone’s old boat, nothing makes the wife go “eieew” like some else’s belongings.

Boat buyers are going to open every door, drawer, and hatch to inspect, if they have to dig through a bunch of stuff to see anything they are going to be put off. The buyer who can see beyond your stuff is the buyer who is looking for a diamond in rough and he is not planning to pay much.

 

[aboatman]

If $$$ is not a big issue you could trade the old boat on a new boat. Pull the old boat up next to the new boat, transfer all your stuff and sail off into the sunset.

 

[aboatman]

............ Almost every time the Admiral brings something aboard I scratch my head and say TO MYSELF, "What the heck do we need THAT for?" .........

I say it out loud. It doesn't help.

My wife bought a couple new dresses yesterday. She said "I should put a couple dresses on the boat for when we go out to dinner." How many dresses to you need on a boat? How often do you go to a restaurant where you have to wear a dress?

I have a nice pair of jeans and two pairs of "dress" shorts and two shirts with collars on the boat. If they won't let me in, I probably can't afford to eat there anyway.

 

[Comodave]

Whenever we sell a boat, first thing is to move everything personal off the boat and detail it. You want the buyer to be able to visualize the boat as theirs, not see all of your stuff. That is going to be very difficult if you are a liveaboard. The photos look bad with all the stuff on board. Real problem. Hope you are able to figure it out.

 

[Gabe n Em]

Great stuff, Great stuff!

Firefly: We're looking for something that will cruise above 12 kts if we ask it to for a 40+ mile run (diving/ fishing grounds). Currently she'll go 11-12 kts wide open. Not good for those Diesels to do it so we go everywhere around 8 kts. Downsizing is one of our ongoing activities. 3 garbage bags full of clothes just got donated last week. (They were kitchen sized, not commercial, OK?) We're not unhappy with our current size. Maybe a hair more would be nice....like 2 feet...

Tilt, Tom, and Aboatman: The trade-in idea would be good. How many people on here do this? That would check all the boxes I think. Hold one until the paper-signing day with a day or two to transfer goodies. Probably get dinged price-wise but it could be better than renting an apartment for a year.....

Good point Comodave on "other people's stuff". However the "half-move" to a storage unit and then having a patient buyer on hand sure sounds like the best option if it could be finagled....Hmm... more to ponder.

 

[Woodland Hills]

It is very hard to stage a boat for sale while living on it. Nothing makes a boat look small like a bunch of some one else’s stuff in every nook and cranny. Even though people know they are looking at used boats they don’t want to feel like they are buying someone’s old boat, nothing makes the wife go “eieew” like some else’s belongings.

Boat buyers are going to open every door, drawer, and hatch to inspect, if they have to dig through a bunch of stuff to see anything they are going to be put off. The buyer who can see beyond your stuff is the buyer who is looking for a diamond in rough and he is not planning to pay much.

What he said! We are boat shopping now and as much as I try to look past personal (as opposed to ships stores) items, it is not always easy. We just sold our house and after staging it we moved our belongings into storage and slept in our RV at a nice resort for the first two weeks of the listing for just that reason. There must be some merit to this approach since we got 10% over our asking price and it sold in those two weeks.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
G&M. Thanks for the clarification and again, apologies for any misunderstandings on my part. Enjoy the hunt.

 

[Moonfish]

Almost every time the Admiral brings something aboard I scratch my head and say TO MYSELF, "What the heck do we need THAT for?"

I used to play the same thing out in my head. But now when my wife or daughter bring something new onboard, I've taken to asking - OUT LOUD - "What will that replace?" or "What do we gid rid of to make room for it?"

As you would expect, neither question is very well received...

 

[Shrew]

Thanks for the comments guys.

Chris: Dual ownership seems almost inevitable but the costs would be tough to swallow (2 slips, shucking out the cash for the next boat when so much is tied up in the first one already)

How much of a difference between the cost of storage for two boats vs the cost of storage for 1 boat, plus a terrestrial residence. Terrestrial residence will more than likely include utilities on top of rent.

 

[Insequent]

Buying a new house before selling the old one has been the financial downfall of lots of people. With boats it is worse, as boats can take a very long time to sell. And it is not always about price. But likely you will have to sell relatively cheap anyway, as there are always lots of boats for sale. I would live dirtside and stage the boat, and push hard to get a sale in the short term (staging, promoting, pricing). I would not look too hard for the next boat until you have sold the first one.

Given that changing boats usually comes with a financial hit - the dirtside cost and/or selling price - then I'd suggest you aim for 'the perfect boat' for the next one, rather than one that cruises 50% faster. You don't want to be looking to change boats again in just a few years time.