Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Step 1. Finding the boat.


by Riley
buying a C&C 30' live aboard sailboat

I have been a very careful spender my entire life.  Finding a boat that met our needs within a small budget was a very difficult task.  I quickly ruled out Yacht World and other dealer websites because brokers tend to ask more for their boats.  Instead, I focused on owner sales on websites such as Craigslist, which is where I found several potential boats.  

Boat performance is a high priority since I’m coming from a racing background.  We don't plan to live on this boat long term, so full blown cruising luxury is not as imperative, but still a factor.  A solid hull and rigging is very important.  The mechanical portions of the boat are not as critical as I feel more capable for a refit.

They say a boat picks it’s owner.  We eventually settled on Winbrandt, a 1980 C&C 30.  Hours before I had contacted the owner, he had actually turned his boat over to a broker.  After examining the boat, I spent over month negotiating the final sale price.  Now she’s ours, along with all the issues that come with buying a 32 year old boat. 

1 comment:

  1. i love this! :) you're guys' dream reminds me of how my husband wants so badly with all his heart just to live in hawaii, even if it means living in a shack. he believes he belongs on a surfboard in the waves. i love that you guys are "leaving the rat race" and living your dream. this is exactly what dallas and i want to do. we are making serious plans on moving to hawaii as soon as we can. but also - your husband BUILT your house?! that's really cool.

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