"jps" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 8 Jun 2010 13:56:42 -0700, "nom=de=plume"
wrote:


"jps" wrote in message
. ..
On Tue, 8 Jun 2010 13:09:52 -0700, "nom=de=plume"
wrote:


"Wayne.B" wrote in message
news On Tue, 8 Jun 2010 10:45:46 -0700, "nom=de=plume"
wrote:

I'd be interested to hear what those who've made major purchases, such
as
for a boat, have done (or not done) along these lines. Did you pretty
much
go all in or did you do something similar?

The strategy of buying less than you can afford works well because
everyone always under estimates the cost of essential upgrades and
maintenance. It is important to try and estimate the upgrades and
maintenance as closely as possible and then double that number.

It is also important to try and nail down your ongoing expenses for
storage, both in and out of the water, and insurance. Insurance costs
vary by location, length of season, cruising range, and quality of
policy. There are big differences in policies, not always readily
apparent until you scrutinize the fine print.

The most expensive thing of all is buying the wrong boat, or buying it
with the wrong people. That may sound obvious but it happens all the
time. Have all of you spent a lot of time together on a boat before?
If not, I'd highly recommend chartering a boat similar to what you
want for two weeks and sail it somewhere. You'll learn a lot about
the boat, the people, and whether or not you really like the life
style.

Yes, good point about insurance. We haven't really talked about that
much,
nor investigated, other than saying, yes, we need some.

We're going to charter... definitely the smart thing to do. Might have
an
opportunity to do that for about a six-week stretch this summer. We've
spent
some time on a boat, but not more than a few weeks. I think it's a
viable
plan. Perhaps we could just live in a van in parking lot behind a 7/11
for
a
few weeks. Seems like that would be pretty close.

You'd have to have someone rocking it at all times while simulating
system breakdowns, while dousing it with salt laden water that you
have to attend to as it dries.

Try to find a fiberglass van with lots of chrome on it so you get an
opportunity to keep up the appearance.

Yeah, and pooping in the van... don't forget that. lol

Don't know if it's a fair comparison to just throw a porta potty in
there. Boats of any decent size always have a well ventilated,
closeable box in which to perform daily rituals.

Well, I wasn't talking about doing it on the floor! lol