Liveaboard marina?

[FuzzyBrick]

Long story short, I always wanted to live on a sailboat but was laughed at by everyone. But now that I'm getting a divorce, selling my house, and pretty much starting over, I figured now was a good a time to do it as any. I'm going into this with zero knowledge or know-how. Which is fine to me.

My only concern is... There doesn't appear to be any Marina's in my location that will accommodate a liveaboard. My job is here and I cannot just move. I was hoping to live at the local marina so that I could work until retirement then sail off.

My job is in Newport Delaware...

Sorry, my first post..

[2savage]

IMO you should look elsewhere to fix your mid life crisis. Would you go skydiving with zero knowledge?

As a minimum, get the knowledge before the boat.

[dhenline]

forget the advice above. Get the boat. Midlife crises is a perfect time to expand the horizon

[boatpoker]

Originally Posted by dhenline

forget the advice above. Get the boat. Midlife crises is a perfect time to expand the horizon

it ain't rocket surgery just look at some of the characters that do it.

[LittleWing77]

Hey there, FB,

First, welcome aboard!

We have a Forum Member who is just a few months ahead of you. Try these threads for the scoop:

Itching to Move Aboard - Advice Needed Please
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...se-243993.html

I Finally Did It!
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...it-245945.html

Grampian 30
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...-a-247400.html

He must have sailed off into the sunset, since the last time he logged on was June, 2021.

Good luck!
LittleWing77

[gonesail]

i would have a marina in mind before you bought the boat. also check for insurance as well.

[Wckoek]

No one can make the decision for you, you may want to plan how many years more till your planned retirement, and your savings?
I look at your location on the map for a while, looks like it would be ideal if you can find a trawler.

[rwidman]

If there is no marina within reasonable commuting distance of your job that allows liveaboards, that pretty much seals the deal.

You could buy a boat and keep it at a local marina but yuo will have to rent a house, apartment or room to live in.

[Auklet]

Originally Posted by FuzzyBrick

Long story short, I always wanted to live on a sailboat but was laughed at by everyone. But now that I'm getting a divorce, selling my house, and pretty much starting over, I figured now was a good a time to do it as any. I'm going into this with zero knowledge or know-how. Which is fine to me.

My only concern is... There doesn't appear to be any Marina's in my location that will accommodate a liveaboard. My job is here and I cannot just move. I was hoping to live at the local marina so that I could work until retirement then sail off.

My job is in Newport Delaware...

Sorry, my first post..

Even if the Marina did allow live-a-board likely you would fare no better. For those marinas that do, the live-a-board occupancy varies between 10% and 50% of available slips, most often 10%. Usually there is a waiting list. Many folks already with slips in the Marina are on the live-a-board waiting list. So first you have to get a boat, then a slip in a Marina that allows live-a-boards, and then on to the waiting list which can be, often is, years long (but not always). Sometimes one just cannot jump feet-first into the unknown and “land anywhere.” But good luck with it all!

[Auklet]

Originally Posted by LittleWing77

Hey there, FB,

First, welcome aboard!

We have a Forum Member who is just a few months ahead of you. Try these threads for the scoop:

Itching to Move Aboard - Advice Needed Please
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...se-243993.html

I Finally Did It!
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...it-245945.html

Grampian 30
https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...-a-247400.html

He must have sailed off into the sunset, since the last time he logged on was June, 2021.

Good luck!
LittleWing77

I notice he did not say that he had a live-a-board slip in St. Petersburg.

[alctel]

Originally Posted by dhenline

forget the advice above. Get the boat. Midlife crises is a perfect time to expand the horizon

Seriously, it seemed like half of my old marina moved onto a boat because of a bad breakup and wanting a change

[cr180]

Much good advice. Reality is that available marina slips are few and far between everywhere; most marinas have years long waiting lists live aboard or not. We actually rented a slip because it was available months before we bought our most recent boat. And as others have implied, getting insurance particularly for older boats is getting to be a very real problem. That said, you may have to expand your geographic search area and get on a waiting list, but go for it.

[nwdiver]

Look to buy a boat in a live aboard slip, not that difficult really…. It may take time and effort.

[Auklet]

Originally Posted by nwdiver

Look to buy a boat in a live aboard slip, not that difficult really…. It may take time and effort.

Doubtful that would work in many places. Buyer gets the boat, yes. But the slip is offered to the next person in the marina on the waiting list. Sometimes a broker can pull strings but I suspect that trick might be saved for big commission sales.

[Deep Blue Water]

Great 1st post. As long as the marina is within an acceptable distance from your work and accepts liveaboards, it's fine. For reasons unknown some people do better when they're on the water, so if it appeals to you, that's what matters.


If people are laughing at your desire to improve your life, especially in the face of a divorce, then perhaps you need a better group of "friends"; I'm genuinely puzzled by this. Among other things, divorce is when you see who's a friend and who's an acquaintance.


There's many good posts on this thread, I second that you should be aware of the periodic maintenance - even if you don't go anywhere - just so you don't encounter any nasty surprises.