Just joined

[dblynn]

I have been thinking of buying offshore cruiser for some time now, but have not sailed in 20 years so know little or nothing of what is available.
I did notice one thread where it was suggested one should “go to the yards and find unregistered boats then contact the owner”
Now to show my ignorance: yards? unreqistered? how would you know a boat is unreqistered.

[skipmac]

Yard = boat yard where they haul boats out of the water to paint the bottom, do repairs, etc.

How to find an unregistered boat. Go to a boat yard, wander around the back corners and look for a boat with faded paint, grass growing under the keel and rain water collecting in the covers. There is a good chance that this boat has been sitting there for a couple of years, registration has expired and the owner owes the boat yard for six months back storage (or maybe not). So you go ask the yard manager the status of the boat and maybe find the owner is in a jam and will sell the boat for enough to pay the yard rent.

So your decision is, how good a deal? How good a boat is it? Is the engine frozen after sitting for X number of years. Is any equipment working or even still on the boat (lots of gear seems to disappear from boats that sit unattended for a couple of years)? How much will is cost to fix? What kind of skills/time/money do I have to fix it. AND how much would it cost to buy a boat that is in better condition and ready to go?

In a bad economy there are some good deals on used boats that are not unregistered in a yard.

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and Welcome aboard!
There are lots of boats in pretty good condition for very little money just now. Check all the internet used boat sites to get an idea about price.
kind regards,
JohnL

[dblynn]

Thank you both for your information and thoughts, much appreciated.

[dblynn]

Any cities that have boat yards. I am mobile at this time so can go where the deals are.
Having hitting internet sites, not sure the best ones perhaps. One person on in the forum suggested Craig list, and would be interested in recommended cities those places that might have a larger boating community.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by dblynn

Any cities that have boat yards. I am mobile at this time so can go where the deals are.
Having hitting internet sites, not sure the best ones perhaps. One person on in the forum suggested Craig list, and would be interested in recommended cities those places that might have a larger boating community.

Well it might help to narrow down the location just a little. North America? East coast or west coast? Essentially every coastal city of any size in the civilized world will have boat yards. Anywhere you find boats. Warmer places and larger cities have more, like Miami or LA.

[dblynn]

Basically I will go where there would be the best chance of finding a good boat, east or west coast. I am relatively mobile at this time and am just looking for suggestions on some of the best areas - which I suppose means where there is a large number of boat yards and boats. Where there are good prices would certainly be nice to know as well.
Thanks

[skipmac]

East coast: Miami, Ft Lauderdale, all about New England especially RI, CT, Long Island.

West Coast: LA, San Diego, SF Bay Area.

If you are truly mobile fly to Hawaii, Tahiti, other spots in South Pacific. Ocassionally find a boat for sale cheap when a new sailor starts out and decides sailing is not for them and wants to bail out and fly home.

[Thegirlis]

In sandusky, one of the marinas has an auction in mid-july every year to sell abandoned boats in their yard. A good place to pick up fixer-uppers

[MoonlightShadow]

Also you could try USauctions.com they have a lot of damaged repairable stuff. Try phoning them as a lot of their really cheap stuff doesn't always go on the net, as they break it for spares. They seem to have boats all over the USA but mostly in Florida, Louissianna etc. (apologies if I spelt Louissianna wrong).

[dblynn]

Thanks for the thoughts and advice, much appreciated, though I do have one questions "sandusky"?

[Thegirlis]

Sandusky Ohio, on lake Erie. A lot of times you can find good sea worthy boats that aren't as beat up as others of the same age because they've been in freshwater instead of saltwater.