Houseboats?

My youngest son is going off to college (UT Austin— EE major) this fall, so dear wife (DW) and I have been spending some time in Austin getting things situated and enjoying all Austin has to offer, and reminiscing about how much the city has grown. We graduated UT back in 1988-89.

Anyhoo, today we drove over to Lake Travis and stumbled across a super clean 1999 vintage Sharpe Houseboat and met the super nice (and persuasive) older owners, and now DW wants it. It’s 60’, aluminum hull, twin 5.7 gassers with EFI, with hydraulic stern and bow thrusters, and a 12kw Westerbeke gen that runs the 2ton house type heat pump AC unit (which I think is pretty interesting). DW says you can’t get a house on the water for this price! [emoji30]

Anyone have any experience with these big floating bricks? I think I can pilot it OK since it has the good thruster setup, as long as the winds are pretty light. It’s been under a covered slip the last 13 years this owner has had it so it looks good, but some of the rail stanchions on the party deck are a bit loose and I wonder what they are screwed into. If it’s wood under the fiberglass roof (and I kind of think it is) I’m a little scared of that.

Should we run away, or go for it and party on the deck like (old) rock stars? [emoji51]

Edit: This boat would not be for the kids and friends, unless we are there on the boat. Too much liability.

Cool college party pad

Wouldn't buy without a serious hull examination for electrolysis. Aluminum is great until it becomes the sacrificial metal from stray current.

Ted

Maybe find out when was the last time the boat was out of the water for inspection? Any pumps on board?

O C Diver said:

Wouldn't buy without a serious hull examination for electrolysis. Aluminum is great until it becomes the sacrificial metal from stray current.

Ted

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Great point. I’m an aluminum idiot. Was planning on a full survey but didn’t think about hull problems.

Things that size in Australia are often outboard powered and are rented out to anyone with a pulse.
Guessing they can't be to hard to control.

You have no loyalties, Dude. First it was go fast boats, then trawlers, then sails, and now house boats. With that one, when you get mega-waked, you’ll have to get out the mop!

According to the current owners, the original owners wanted to do the loop on this boat. Starting off in Kentucky I think. The trip never happened.

Houses appreciate, boats depreciate. After you add up moorage, insurance, maintenance and depreciation is it more or less than what you would spend renting an acceptable apartment. Also are we talking a 4 year time horizon or longer?

Look at the lake area , there are so many of this type boat , it does work for lots and lots of folks.


Keep it in the lakes and it will do a good job for you.

Some houseboats are built like RVs with timber framing covered with aluminum sheet. The smallest leak will let rain water work on the wood and rot it out. That is one reason why the depreciation curve on RVs is so steep. So maybe houseboats are the same, which is why it is priced where it is.


So look at the framing, aluminum members will be far superior to wood.


David

We have a small fiberglass house boat on a small lake in Kentucky. All of the boats are having pitting of the aluminum, except ours. We have lots of other issues[emoji19]. One was so pitted additional aluminum plating was needed.

Also, in that area of Texas is there the infrastructure to service the boat? If it needs hauled out can it be done without bringing a trailer a long distance? That is how they move houseboats and how they are hauled out for maintenance. At our lake there is a trailer but you have to hire a truck driver then block it yourself after it is pulled out. Then find somebody to work on it or do it yourself. On Lake Cumberland getting boats serviced is not an issue.

Another common problem area is outdrives. A boat is currently in the marina parking lot getting both outdrives replaced.

The other issue I have with houseboats in general is they only leave the dock to get pumped out. People say they are going to take them out but don't. You have to run the generator full time because of the large electrical load. Some do have inverters but most don't. They are very hard to handle in the wind.

Here are some pictures of a houseboat under construction showing the wood framing.

https://trifectahouseboats.com/2018/02/267-aramark/#iLightbox[gallery3458]/0

No advice. Just trying to figure out if DW or DH (dear husband) had a little too much firewater....or won Powerball.

Would be surprised if it was not just plywood under the rails. You would be lucky if it’s exterior grade.
On the bright side look at all of the space for solar panels.

Thanks for all the comments.

Tiltrider— I know this houseboat (like most boats) doesn’t make financial sense. My existing boat taught me that. It’s just a lifestyle decision, quality of life thing. Not sure how long we would own it, but yes I assume at least 4 years.

David—I need to find out some info on the construction of this boat but have not found anything yet. The builder went out of business around 2011 I think. Need to keep looking. I don’t want to run into a TT soft deck repair issue. Need to get with some of the repair yards around the lake and ask them.

Kentucky55– there is some pitting on the exposed aluminum poles that support the hard top, but haven’t hauled it yet for a hull check. There does seem to be pretty good infrastructure for repairs and haul outs, but it’s expensive. Last haul for my boat in Fl was like $400, but this thing is like $1500! Owner had it hauled last year for inspection and outdrive service, which they said they did every 5 years. There is a pump out at the slip, and ownership of the nice slip actually comes with the boat (an HOA fee is due monthly along with utilities). The owner took it out yesterday with a big group and they seem to use the boat and take it out quite a bit, but he said most of the houseboats just sit in the slip.

Donsan— no lottery ticket, but firewater might have been involved. [emoji41]However, we woke up the next day and it still seemed like a good (?) idea. I do worry that having two boats one will suffer neglect or not be used, so there is a possibility one might get sold.

IMO house boats are underappreciated when used in rivers and lakes.

We have a share in a 50 footer on Lake Powell and we love it! Easy to drive, lots of room, very stable and hardly a single “marine” item onboard. You will need some sort of skiff or scout boat since houseboats are so slow.

I understand the lifestyle decision as I live on my boat and own a ski cabin. When I buy A boat I only spend money I am willing to walk away from, any money I get in selling the boat I consider bonus. Boats become much more justifiable when they are your primary residence. I like the fact that the moorage comes with the boat deal. I’m not to worried about aluminum in fresh water. You can always weld up aluminum hulls. Now you are just down to, does it leak, does everything work, and is the neighborhood going to work for you as a primary residence.

I agree with FF and bayview!!! As long as it is a good deal, go for it. Get you a little runabout and you are living high on the hog on Lake Travis!!!!

Wifey B: Houseboats rule where houseboats rule. :lol: Someone said to look at the number on the lake and I agree. Lake Powell, some of the Kentucky Lakes, Lake Lanier in GA, houseboats are beyond popular. If there are a bunch there, someone must be servicing and you can find out who. If there are few there, might not be anyone with trailers for them to service them.

They're fun, practical boats. Didn't run across any doing the loop though. Very difficult in a strong wind but that's just part of it, not a reason to avoid.

Sharpe was considered a very good houseboat. Sharpe actually started Somerset (which became Sumerset due to a typo) and then later Sharpe which ended up bought by either Stardust or Sumerset and now all those in the area are owned by the same people as Trifecta Houseboats (Thoroughbred, Stardust, Sumerset). If you have specific questions, it is probably worth a call and likely someone been around long enough to help you.

Might be a Great Idea..........




as long as Lake Travis has water.

ktdtx said:

Might be a Great Idea..........




as long as Lake Travis has water.

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Yes. That’s a worry, and it’s pretty damn low right now. The population in the Austin area has really grown. Lots of demand on Travis for water. Plus the droughts.

cardude01 said:

Yes. That’s a worry, and it’s pretty damn low right now. The population in the Austin area has really grown. Lots of demand on Travis for water. Plus the droughts.

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Well, Lake Lanier in GA has the same problem so when no water, they all just sit with the bows grounded and use them as vacation cottages which is 95% of the use anyway. I haven't been on Lanier in years but it is generally a madhouse. Nearest lake to Atlanta.

cardude01 said:

According to the current owners, the original owners wanted to do the loop on this boat. Starting off in Kentucky I think. The trip never happened.

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Fuel too expensive. Will cost him around $12000

Ask about the water level and lake bottom under your boat slip and if the marina can pull the dock out as the water lowers. Two years ago (?) Lake Travis was down 60 feet (it refilled in a day during a storm!). Some areas of this lake do not lend themselves well to beaching the bow as the water lowers, unless you don't mind hanging off the rock cliffs by ropes at a VERY STEEP angle. Others can sit it out on a relatively level 'sandy' bottom (sometimes for years at a time in the northwestern coves). Also, if you want a varied nightlife, get Uber - plenty to do OFF the lake (surprisingly not that much happening with water access from the lake after dark). I like it that way, since I spend the night on "my lake" on my boat. VERY popular on summer weekend days (like every lake near a metropolis). Weekdays - relatively empty. Don't get me wrong, Travis is one of my favorite lakes to visit - just giving you some things to inquire about and be aware of to help you make the right decision for you. If I see you, I'll be sure to drop by for a beer.

Todd

FoxtrotCharlie said:

Cool college party pad

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We had drunken college parties on Lake Union in Seattle. Crazy. Three of us rented a houseboat thinking it would be fun. This is a stick built house floating on logs. Very popular on the lake. It all started when Jim Wall ran across the roof at oh dark thirty am. Bang bang bang a big yell and a matching splash. Never knew what was going to be on your nose when you came up in Lake Union even in those days (mid 50’s). The police couldn’t smash the partying because it was subject to CG jurisdiction, law and general CG practices. Well after several weeks (I was long gone by this time) the police finally got a court order and decended on the houseboat. That was the end of my house-boating days.

My wife and I chartered houseboats three times. We did the St. John’s River, the Swanee River and Everglades National Park. It was fun but we were able to visit different places by chartering.

They were all underpowered and difficult to keep on a straight course. That doesn’t sound like a problem for the one you’re looking at.

And remember , most of those classic Trumpy boats were sold as "house boats".


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