Inexpensive Live-a-board?

My nephew lives on Block Island and is looking to buy a boat to live on. He has worked out a place to keep the boat on a dock with power, water, etc. All good there, but when he told what he was looking to pay for the boat, I thought it improbable?.

He told me that the word around BI workers is that you can get a boat for around $10,000 as a live-a-board. I asked him if he wanted the boat to work, engine system, etc. He said "Yes", so that they could leave the island once in a while.

So, looking for a live-a-board for a couple, which has working systems, for around $10,000. Is this doable?

Yes, done all the time if accepting a wood boat, a gas powered boat, an pld boat, a really rough around the edges boat and you shop around.

I had a friend that was willing to give away a nice 32 (I think) glass, gas singleTrojan in good shape a few years back. Had it listed for $10, 000....then $5,000, then free.

IO think what's liveable, seaworthy and inexpensive is entirely up to him. "Inexpensive" includes total cost of ownership beyond initial price. Cheap boats can be extremely expensive.

Here's a 30 footer that might work:

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1976/uniflite-30-sedan-2853015/

This one is listed at $13,500 and sounds like it needs nothing:

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1980/chris-craft-333-sedan-w-fwc-inboards-3663616/

there was a marine trader 34 for I think 7,500 interior was rough. supposedly ran well .was going to take a friend to look at it but it sold fast. In beaufort nc

Benthic2 said:

Here's a 30 footer that might work:

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1976/uniflite-30-sedan-2853015/

Click to expand...

That Uniflite looks to be in ASTOUNDING condition for its age & price!

In all honesty he should wait,save up his money and start researching and reading more into it,has he ever even had a boat,sounds to me he's just looking for cheap housing,have him buy a sailboat if that's the case

Or a houseboat if he stays in semi protected waters.

Greetings,
Mr. ITB. Regardless of logistics, which are doable IMO, your nephew had better make 1000% sure his "mate" is on board with the situation particularly under possible circumstances where, for example, the boat starts sinking, the bilge pump(s) quit(s) and it's February with a snow storm going on. He/she would have to be pretty committed to the adventure.

The most very obvious inexpensive live-aboard is the Bayliner (and many other makes) twenty some foot cruisers that are very available and very inexpensive.
And if you cut your expenses to the bone saving for a bigger more expensive boat is far easier. Gotta be very wary of rotten stringers and stern drives though.
Just accross from Willy is a 26-28’ Apollo and the live-aboard within seems very happy.

I watch non boaters buy boats in the spring, move aboard, brag about how good it is and how cheap it is, then disappear in the middle of the winter.

Cheap and living are defined differently by all. I see a lot of people camping on boats to save money. Others camp in their car and save more money. It is really up to the skills of the individual as to how successful they are. In the end there are more failure than successes. The failures don’t hang out here discussing the errors of their ways. The success ones, like my self hang out here.

Boaters who become liveaboards are far more successful at it then non boaters who become liveaboards to save money.

Block Island livaboard - is this for the extended summer season only?

Tiltrider1,
Few live on boats for years upon years. It’s not ideal diggs.

People usually live on boats for economic reasons laced w notions of romance.
The word camping is a derogatory word on TF. It’s never used in a positive way.
And we all live where we live because it’s what we can afford whether it’s on a boat or in a house. Living aboard dosn’t make us a bum. The livaboards that are bums are easy to spot. Everything around them is filthy including their boat. If you’re on the same finger as they you’ll need to tip toe through a maze of garbage and dog poo.

Where is it that we cross over from camping to living respectably?

Wow...some grossly incorrect generalizations from one tiny corner of the planet.

On the East coast where looping and cruising are easy and make snowbirding attractive....living aboard is far from only one reason to do it.

In every walk of life there is a wide variation in lifestyle....some narrow opinions here are just that.

When I think of living on-board through the winter, at least in the PNW, what comes to mind is cold, wet and dark. Unless.....you have a warm, dry boat with adequate room, which Tiltrider probably does. I live on-board during the summer months during our Alaska trips but it's not at all attractive to me year-round.

I know that over the past 3 or 4 years there have been 3 boat in our marina yard (Mystic) that could have been had for $5K or less. I think they were all circa 1977/78 Silverton sedans.
Would not trust the engines however as they were dock queens for many years.
He'll find one if he looks.

Craigslist seems to be the source for underpriced boats with flaws. A Willard 36 pilot house recently sold in Florida with an asking price of $15k.

Theyre out there. Must have cash and willing to make a quick decision.

Peter

"Would not trust the engines however as they were dock queens for many years."

Some liveaboards simply remove the engine to gain storage space .

If the boat is a pure dock queen who needs engines?

some get rid of the engine(s) and stick a bracket and small used outboard on the transom to get to their haulout if the marina requires that ability.

psneeld said:

I had a friend that was willing to give away a nice 32 (I think) glass, gas singleTrojan in good shape a few years back. Had it listed for $10, 000....then $5,000, then free.

Click to expand...

Been there, done that. Old gassers are hard to sell. When I wanted it gone I had to face a very long time of moorage + insurance + at least minimal upkeep = $9,000 per year. Maybe if I got lucky sell it for $10,000. Just letting go was the better option.

Benthic2 said:

Here's a 30 footer that might work:

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1976/uniflite-30-sedan-2853015/

This one is listed at $13,500 and sounds like it needs nothing:

https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1980/chris-craft-333-sedan-w-fwc-inboards-3663616/

Click to expand...

I must be getting old plus I have a mate with LOTS of clothes. This boat looks too much like camping to me.
If he has a dock with power and water, is the water shut off in the winter? What about a pump out boat or facilities?

Bayliner

Nomad Willy said:

The most very obvious inexpensive live-aboard is the Bayliner (and many other makes) twenty some foot cruisers that are very available and very inexpensive.
And if you cut your expenses to the bone saving for a bigger more expensive boat is far easier. Gotta be very wary of rotten stringers and stern drives though.
Just accross from Willy is a 26-28’ Apollo and the live-aboard within seems very happy.

Click to expand...

Ha! I had a live aboard here in my home marina who had a Bayliner from the 70’s-nothing had been updated - including the OIL! Big, Cheap & comfortable for one dude!

Liveaboard costs...

Some insurances (e.g. Progressive) will not permit liveaboard at all without a land home. Others will without a problem, however(1) will not extend Personal Liability and Personal Property not related to the boat. However(2) , with some digging, I am finding 2 and maybe 3 carriers who WILL cover our needs for Liability and Personal Property NOT related to the boat, even when we go 100% liveaboard! It comes at a price, but its available. ((Young folks without a nest egg to protect, might not need the protection that some of us gray hairs have. Oh to be young again! LOL))

In the price range, I'd be looking at a sailboat, preferably around 30 feet or more. The amount the guy wants to spend tells me he won't want to spend a lot on fuel.

We hear it all the time. "I'll save a bunch of money by buying a cheap boat and living on it". Well it's just not true. For the short term, maybe. Like one summer. But then you have to "eat" the cost of the boat, maybe $10,000, maybe more or less. Best plan on giving it away after living on it for a year, trying to save funds. That means the brightwork will not be very bright, the leaky windows will still leak and have a years worth of additional moisture in and around the frames. Forget about the tanks, they were rotten or full of scum when you bought it and being you are "cheap" I doubt if you did anything with them. Electronics? What came with the boat is what goes with the boat, antiques and junk.

Very difficult to own a boat for less than $500 a month. Dockage, maybe a little insurance, some electricity, some emergency repairs. Like when the bilge pump or switch shorts out. Or when you need a new shore power cord because your melted. Plastic wrap or some kind of insulation, how about a few space heaters? Living aboard you will want cable TV and I'm sure you are not ready to give up your cell phone.

Then there are the land based expenses which will not change no matter where you live. Groceries,gas for the car, car insurance, clothes, an occasional meal out or maybe coffee..

So $500 for the boat, $500 for the other stuff. Living on the cheap on land in a fleabag apartment will be about the same as in a leaky, cold boat.

Don't do it unless you can afford a boat worth at least $50,000 and will take you south in the winter. Also it is nice to not HAVE to work.

pete

I remember early in my career my wife and I (pre-offspring) were considering a job offer I got in San Francisco CA; living on a boat was discussed. No susceptibility to earthquakes was one of the benefits! LOL
It was not too long after the memorable quake that hit there in Oct 1989.

Build one of these:

Capt Ray said:

I remember early in my career my wife and I (pre-offspring) were considering a job offer I got in San Francisco CA; living on a boat was discussed. No susceptibility to earthquakes was one of the benefits! LOL
It was not too long after the memorable quake that hit there in Oct 1989.

Click to expand...

And the results of your plan?

Pete Meisinger said:

We hear it all the time. "I'll save a bunch of money by buying a cheap boat and living on it". Well it's just not true. For the short term, maybe. Like one summer. But then you have to "eat" the cost of the boat, maybe $10,000, maybe more or less.

Click to expand...

It very easy to save a bunch of money by buying a cheap boat and living on it.

How much does a house on the water cost to buy or rent?
Same for an apartment.

How much does it cost to anchor?

It can be done on a budget like that but the smaller you budget gets the more knowledgeable and capable the person buying it needs to be if they do not want to get burned in my opinion. Knowing how to properly sift through boats can allow a person to buy a good or great boat at an amazingly discounted rate. But at the same time not having the knowledge of what to look for or where to look can very quickly put a person in a bad spot with a boat that really should be taken to the scrap yard and is a total loss