Best US Liveaboard Locations

[Tingum]

Why stay in the States?

[Rocketman]

Why stay in the States? That is the question? There are a lot of reasons, it depends on the persons. We all may think that we are being taken advatage of here, but I have lived in a lot of places all over the world and the states arn't that bad. Yes we have to put up with some ******** but compared to some places the ******** is still there, only different. Everyone has a diferent prospective. If you were to ask 100 differnt people what the perfect boat was you would get 100 different answers. I think Safety and freedom top my list why the US is one of the best not to mention supplies, appility to make a decent living, ease of movement, the list could go on, depending on your point of view. Just because some one doesn't like it when they get a nasty gram because they have been told that they need to cut the grass doesn't make the US a bad place to live. I have talked with people all over the world that would do almost anything to live here. We as sailors can be a little disaulusioned when we pull in to a port some where in the world. We sometimes get treated like kings and that is great, but we are also need to understand that we are usally giving them a lot more then we take. They depend on us to make a living many times. If one were to stay for a life time there and compete with them to make our livings we might find the situation a little different.

[Hudson Force]

We spend our time on the US East Coast from Maine to the Florida Keys as well as the Bahamas with our own boat, but we've been boating in Ireland, Egypt, Holland, Germany, France, Barbados up to St. Kitts, Panama and Costa Rica within the last three years. I love to travel and I've enjoyed all these places and yet I know how well adapted and comfortable I am with home.

[aquarian]

I considered buying a boat on the hook in Tampa Bay (had been there year round). Wasn't being lived aboard so not sure how that would fly, but you can definitely hang on the hook there.

[aquarian]

Originally Posted by zeehag

west fla has many really nice places--many havent any amenities. but the rent is good--i promised not to reveal their locales under threat of my ultimate demise--is too gorgeous to share with anyone.....who needs amenities when the place is such a real deal in rent!!!!!

Thanks Zee

[Dylan.Josselin]

Deale MD.
20 minutes south of Annapolis by car, yet its a world apart. quiet, lovely, and a total boat haven. to get an idea of how much of a boaters town it is, check out active captains interactive map, or Google earth and see all the slips. close enough for all the conveniences of the city, but without the ********. did I mention that the locals actually wave at you when you drive by? still a commuting distance from DC too. Deale has a nice new breakwater and a world class yard. Herrington Harbour Marinas Chesapeake Bay Resort - Dining - Lodging yeah, that's where I tie up. jealous? lol. I love it here!

[levm]

I will not jump to that conclusion, there are many places which are not that expensive. Living on the hook or on mooring balls is much more economical, the US is not the only country on this planet and there are so many places eswhere which offer an economical and pleasant envirinment.
I live and work on a boat in St. Martin and can assure you that it is as close to paradise at it gets.

[Dylan.Josselin]

Levm, what conclusion won't you jump to? the thread is titled best US liveaboard locations. If it was titled best live-aboard locations in the world, Im sure you'd see alot of different locations.
Since we need to continue working for another 15 years or so, going to the Caribbean and anchoring isnt the best option for us right now. We plan to transition to long distance cruising at the ripe old age of 47, but till then we'll have t settle for living aboard, and gunk holing. It's a tough life, lol.

[erinsavov]

Originally Posted by Sailorman375

I find Kemah to be a very friendly place. Which marina are you referring to?

I lived at the Boardwalk Marina which was very unfriendly. I'm familiar with some other marinas such as Watergate which is really nice. But Kemah itself is a problem. Very unfriendly town in general.

[erinsavov]

Originally Posted by lancelot9898

My boat draws about 6 feet so are my choices limited in Oriental? Also how's the sailing and exploring on the Sound with that sort of draft?

The boat that I was on in Oriental had a 5.5 foot draft. We did choose an outside slip because of that but never really had a problem. Of course at the moment the name of the marina escapes me. But it was outside of town and they even had a van which people could check out and use for an hour or two. Very nice clubhouse with showers, washer and dryer, etc.
We did not do much exploring as the time I spent there was mostly working on the boat doing a ton of varnishing and putting in things like refrigeration, replacing chainplates etc.
We did sail to Ocracoke (spelled wrong) and that was very nice. Oh visit towndock.net for the "happenings" in Oriental. They also have some webcams!
Erin

[teejayevans]

Originally Posted by lancelot9898

My boat draws about 6 feet so are my choices limited in Oriental? Also how's the sailing and exploring on the Sound with that sort of draft?

Sound will be no problem, some marinas will be, there are no moon tides, but significant wind tides (+-3 ft). New Bern is bigger town, further up river if you prefer. Lots of places to explore, fairly inexpensive.
Tom

[claddagh]

No one has said anything on Taxes
I understand MD has a 5% use tax if you are in their waters for 91 days.
Is this true?
How about DE?

[teejayevans]

FL requires you to register boat after 90 days, $100-200/yr. No income tax!
NC has personal property tax, depends on what county you are in, figure $500/$100K, and income tax starts at 6.5%
TX has no income tax, don't know their boat laws.
GA supposedly has laws against liveaboards
Tom

[wingNwing]

Originally Posted by claddagh

No one has said anything on Taxes
I understand MD has a 5% use tax if you are in their waters for 91 days.
Is this true?

Nope. If you're in MD waters longer than you are in the waters of any other state, you need a MD registration and you need to prove you paid the sales tax *somewhere.* If the place you bought the boat has a lower sales tax rate than MD, you pay just the difference. Then if you're USCG documented, your MD registration is something like $12/year. For that you get great gunkholing in the Chesapeake, only minor threat from hurricanes, and a generally liveaboard-friendly atmosphere.

[hellosailor]

"I understand MD has a 5% use tax if you are in their waters for 91 days."

MOST states require you to register and title a motor vehicle in state, if the vehicle itself is in-state for 90-181 days. Sometimes that's continuous days, sometimes that's days per calendar year, sometimes it is days per last 365 days.

Along with registration (as a boat or motor vehicle, depending on state) you may also be asked to pay tax, or show it was already paid elsewhere up to that state's rate. And some states will require regstration of the dinghy as well, if it has an engine.

So if you're not just passing through...you need to check the rules in every state you're planning to stay in. Tax menu just love surprises, and the rules and exceptions differ in every state, just about.