real cost of owning this boat

Carefully read post #57. Mark is very right about the cost of ownership and its relationship to the initial condition of the boat you are buying. Please have the engine, transmissions and generator surveyed by a certified Cummins technician before you accept the boat.

Here is anexaample: There was a very nice low time (475 hr,) 460 with 6CTA Cummins engines in the slip next to me since it was delivered from Sea Ray in 2001, until she was sold in 7/19). One owner boat that was serviced and maintained by the local dealer since new. However, the boat was neglected due to the fact that the owner lost interest because of his poor health and advancing age. He agreed to repair anything the buyers surveyor found and the list grew and grew until the number was staggering........new seawater pumps ($2450) and cooling hoses ($1200), Aftercooler service, cleaning, testing and replacing aftercooler cores, ($12,000), polishing the fuel in the tanks ($4500), Engine service and all new fuel filters ($ ?), Cleaning the cooling system, replacing heat exchanger cores ($?)....(? were about $2800....I just heard the total, not the itemized cost. The new owner was very fortunate that the seller was a classy guy who wanted the new owner to be satisfied and happy with the boat that had given him and his family almost 20 years of pleasure and trouble free fun. No doubt an extreme example because all these costs occurred at the time of sale. They usually happen over 6-8 months after a new owner takes delivery and slowly finds out that the lowest priced boat on yacht world.com is seldom a good value.
 
Frank - as I recall, you sea trialed that boat with me in 2009 or 2010...

Someone mentioned complexity as well can increase maintenance costs. I can speak to that going from a 340 (single head/single AC unit), to a 410 (two heads/two AC units), to a 58 (two heads/five AC units).
 
I have had various size boats and cost for over twenty years. I have never hit that 10% of purchase price as annual maintenance cost unless i looked at my lower cost boats and counting slipping fees. Recently, I have had larger 40 foot boats slipped behind my house, so slip fees don't factor in. Winterization fees ran 1500 to 2000 if all systems were done and outside of upgrades to electronics or other systems, I have had repairs of a couple thousand a year and a couple thousand for waxing, but outside of that, nothing. This was on a boat that the 10% rule stated that I would spend 20K per year. Not even close! Maybe 5 or 6, but not more unless I replaced a GPS or Radar unit. That is my experience.
Rob
 
For me that 10% rule does come into play, maybe a little more. That's if I count total cost of everything though. Slip, gas, insurance, storage, cleaning, maintenance, winterization, etc. I think the answer to Tuggers questions depends on the owner of the boat and the boat itself. When we get on the subject of cost of owning the boat I just tell them I have a 10k to 15k per year hobby. If you can afford it then it's definitely worth it. I do tell the wife though that the cost is maxed out at that expense just in case a more expensive opportunity does show up.:D;):D;)
 
I have used quicken for over 20 years to track home finances so I know exactly what I have spent on boating vacations food housing etc. I don’t regret any of it but I am eyes wide open about what it costs. Full disclosure I am a CPA at a big 4 firm so it’s in my nature.

So in the interest of new boaters that might want to know what it costs to own a 33ft ish dual engine boat. This is for a 1997 330 sundancer, 454 vDrives, used mostly from say June 1 to Sept 30th located in Canada.

Here is my spend by year over 10 years, which is how long I have owned it basically. I actually bought in 2009, but I am excluding that year because my spend overlaps with another boat I owned over that year. (This is in Canadian dollars - Rates now are $1C = $US0.75. Back in 2010 it was $1 = $1).

Its surprising how consistent the total cost is, despite "one-time" spends (HA! One-time. That's a laugh!). Marina and Storage include winter storage on site and our fee includes power, water and pumpouts. Repairs and maintenance includes fall winterizing and shrink wrapping. That accounts for about C$1,700 approx each year of that category. I am not sure all of my "upgrades" are in these R&M costs. Most should be. I hope this helps.

Updated to add a few things. Other than more significant engine work, I am 100% DIY. In my numbers there have been two or three impeller jobs I won't do myself on v-drives. I don't do my oil changes. I let the marina do it when they winterize. I did pay once for a hull topside buffing.

Boat spend.JPG
 
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I see some folks saying others are spending way too much on the same size boat. Many other costs sway up and down a little, depending on where you live and how much DIY you do. But for many figuring 10%, I think you will see slips in some places are expensive. For me 10% was always a wise number, even though I never really looked at it. For example, to be in a nice marina in southeast florida, it can cost $12k annually. For a nice marina on Long Island, NY, I was paying $6,000. Some folks pay less than $2,000 or nada (behind home) per year.

In short if you don’t pay much for a slip, 10% may be a high estimate.

But remember S@#$T happens with boats, so be prepared to spend $10k+ when it does hit the fan! Fortunately this is not normally an annual expense!
 
I see some folks saying others are spending way too much on the same size boat. Many other costs sway up and down a little, depending on where you live and how much DIY you do. But for many figuring 10%, I think you will see slips in some places are expensive. For me 10% was always a wise number, even though I never really looked at it. For example, to be in a nice marina in southeast florida, it can cost $12k annually. For a nice marina on Long Island, NY, I was paying $6,000. Some folks pay less than $2,000 or nada (behind home) per year.

In short if you don’t pay much for a slip, 10% may be a high estimate.

But remember S@#$T happens with boats, so be prepared to spend $10k+ when it does hit the fan! Fortunately this is not normally an annual expense!
As I always like to say..."Boating is such good negative cash flow"!!
 
I think I am up to speed on the pluses and minuses of diesel vs gas. I realize a good engine survey is critical. Here's where I get blurry. Internal engine corrosion of both gas and diesel, what is myth and what is fact? If I can find a fresh water boat (mine will be in florida salt water) will internal engine corrosion be less? Also, this balance of getting an engine with plenty of life remaining but run enough to not have problems such as corrosion is very confusing. Again, I am looking at 2004-2007 boats as a reminder. Any additives and a nice long run that will help the engine as a precautionary measure once I buy. ALSO, any insurance company recommendations, my homeowner/car insurer is not an option as they are admittedly not strong on boats. Someone with good prices AND service through your experience? Happy new year to all and thank you.
 
Tugger, There are just so many variables when it comes to engine condition on aging boats. My 44DB is 13 years old, has been operated in salt water and only has 400 hrs on the engines. 300 of those have been put on it in the past four years. As far as I know the sea water side of the engines have never been serviced except periodic pencil zinc replacement. I just removed and opened the system for service and was happy to see that although I did have some mineral deposits clogging up 40% of the HX core and about 25% of the aftercooler core, there was no significant corrosion to speak of. I would think that if you can get a sense from the seller that there has been regular service and at least one core removal and service and you get a good engine survey which at a minimum includes an internal camera inspection of the cooler cores. I'm doing the R&R and cored cleaning myself and I figure that Ill conservatively have 25 hrs labor and $500+ in parts and supplies to do both engines.
I insure thru a local broker who set me up with Chubb and Sons. Ive had one major claim and an agreed value of $350,000 and I pay $1600/year.
Hope this helps
 
I think I am up to speed on the pluses and minuses of diesel vs gas. I realize a good engine survey is critical. Here's where I get blurry. Internal engine corrosion of both gas and diesel, what is myth and what is fact? If I can find a fresh water boat (mine will be in florida salt water) will internal engine corrosion be less? Also, this balance of getting an engine with plenty of life remaining but run enough to not have problems such as corrosion is very confusing. Again, I am looking at 2004-2007 boats as a reminder. Any additives and a nice long run that will help the engine as a precautionary measure once I buy. ALSO, any insurance company recommendations, my homeowner/car insurer is not an option as they are admittedly not strong on boats. Someone with good prices AND service through your experience? Happy new year to all and thank you.

Unless you find raw water cooled engines (not super common) the only engine components that would "corrode" would be the exhaust manifolds and (as mentioned above) the HX? I believe these are a pretty typical replacement item in salt water. The rest of the engine has coolant running through it, not salt water.

On insurance - make sure you get a yacht policy, not a boat policy. If your carrier doesn't know the difference, move on :)
 

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