Final Signatures...

Can't. Seem. To. Find. Pen...

Urg.

Survey is great!  Financing is approved!  (had to verify that survey was all good before they committed fully)  Insurance is lined up!  Now we just need to sign this Acceptance of Vessel form.  This is the form that says we want the boat AND (more critically) that from this point on, if we change our minds we don't get any of the 10% down that is sitting in an escrow account.  It also happens to be the form that has the repairs that we want done by the seller.  It's the final bargaining step.  Practically the FINAL final step.  Practically.  I just need to sign it.  And so does Mark.  Then we email it and *POOF* several thousand dollars are no longer ours...  Just like that.  And I know - it's just the beginning.  People seem to find no end to telling us allll about the giant hole of a money pit that boats are.

So what's the problem?  I am a serial saver.  Some people hoard cats.  Some people hoard food.  I hoard cash.  It's not a bad thing, just ask my husband.  I'm not a spender.  But I AM a traveler!  And what does spending this money do?  It frees us up to traveltraveltravel!  Yay!  It's like a floating trailer.  We get tired of one watery trailer park, we just pull anchor and find another one.  Easy-peasy.

*For the record, I don't really like peas, but I like easy.  Well, I like black eyed peas, I suppose.  Just not green peas.  Easy-blackeyedpeasy!


Here I go.  I'm going to sign it.



No.  No, I'm not.  I'm waiting on him to get home so we can commit together.  Then neither is more to blame than the other... ;)

Jinx! (Part 1 of The Top Secret Steps of Buying a Boat)

I know, I know.  I don't technically own the boat yet, and I could be tempting the fates by assuming all will go thru, blah blahsidy blah.  I'm not a Tempting of the Fates kinda girl.  I'm more of a Ask the Universe for What You Want and Boom! It'll Happen kinda girl.  Anyway, I have been reading sailing blogs for a couple of years and often get frustrated when the writer chooses not to share all the details of that time between picking a boat and closing on the sucker (I get it - I just want to read about it!).  How am I supposed to learn anything if people don't blog about it!?!  (um, that's kind of a joke - see, I know I can learn things from places other than sailing blogs...) So here I am, documenting the purchase of a boat - good or bad you need to know the nitty gritty details, right?

Here's the low down:  (Keep in mind that we're starting from ground zero here - we don't even know how to sail yet!  This is just what we've learned up to this point)

1. Figure out what you really NEED in a boat - then find the smallest, most affordable version you can handle. It took us 2 years to travel from wanting a motor yacht to a trawler to a catamaran to this monohull...
2. Find that boat! As soon as we knew exactly what we were looking for, it showed up.  Thanks Universe :)
3. Make an offer (- good rule of thumb seems to be 10% less than listing price, but that may be something I've learned in haggling in general)
4. Put 10% of agreed upon price down via an escrow account with the Broker.  We went back and forth a couple of times before we agreed on a price (this 10% is to be wired to the account in most cases, and completely refundable to you if you change your mind at any time before signing the Acceptance of Vessel form)
5. Arrange for a survey/sea trial - find a surveyor that is certified with SAMS or NAMS in case the insurance/financing requires this.  Try to get referrals!  
6. Schedule a haul out at near by marina that coincides with Surveyor's schedule (Duh, they need to coincide, but I had to be told this.  Sometimes common sense is not so common.)
7. Apparently the broker/seller handles the hiring of a Captain to move the boat for haul out/sea trial
8. Arrange financing (if necessary) This will take a few weeks to close - just like a mortgage.  They will need a copy of the survey in order to close the deal.
9. Arrange insurance (they will also need a copy of your survey)
10. Arrange a slip for your new boat at a local marina!

We've completed almost all 10 of these items so far.  Just a few more details to be handled and then the waiting part kicks in.  Our survey/sea trial is scheduled in a couple of weeks, then closing is a couple of weeks after that.  Then we have to get our new floating home home!  We are still looking for a Captain for this, but have a couple of options lined up, I think.

I'll be doing another post after closing to list the rest of the steps - after I learn them ;)  In the meantime, I DO have photos and videos that I'm hanging onto for later posts.  Be patient - it'll happen!

Penalties at the 40' line

We're still boat searching.  It has slowed down considerably - and as we continue to narrow our window on brand and model, the key question has become length.  

Here's where I need some help.  We're shooting for a 38' + size, but I've read snippets here and there about increased fees for docking, customs etc.  But that's just it - only snippets.  Hints at higher costs, but no concrete evidence.  So I'm on the prowl for information.  Is it true that something magical happens after 39' and that we should be charged accordingly?  Should I stick to searches for 38' and 39' catamarans?  Or is it just more boating folklore floating around on the web?

If it's true - that certainly narrows my searches and helps me focus.  If it's just another tall tale of the seas, well, I'd entertain the possibility of another few feet!

 Cat haulout   Image from Cruiser's Forum 

*The longer the boat is, the wider it is - the longer and wider it it, the more it costs to haul out of the water!  And once you hit a certain (TBD by more research) width, it seriously limits your choices of marinas throughout the world.

Can we or can't we?

There's been a law in Georgia for about the last 20 years that you cannot live on your boat.  Not officially, anyway.  Lot's of people find ways around this law, just like any other law.  As we're often sticklers for following the rules (even stupid rules) we never really pursued living on a boat in Savannah.  We love Savannah, and have always wanted to live on a boat - but obviously the two were not compatible.  Until now (or 8 months ago).  Rumor has it that a law was passed and took effect in January 2012 that allows boaters to officially live on their boats.

I decided to Google that law for two reasons:
1.  I never understood why a state would FORBID a boater to live on the water, and I want the backstory.
2. Still a stickler for rule following, I want to be sure I don't go buy a boat only to find out that I can't really live on it.  (That would seriously suck.)

So here's what Mrs. Google has shared with me today:

http://www.gpb.org/news/2012/02/20/bill-would-legalize-living-on-boats

I still don't have an answer.  And I have a hard time believing that a law was passed purely based on improper disposal of waste.

Here's an exert from another article:
The law’s original intent when it was passed in the early 1990s as an amendment to the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act was to address a 
problem of people living aboard makeshift rafts and stilt houses on the Altamaha River and discharging untreated sewage overboard.

 I mean, really people.  If waste disposal is an issue - fine those found to be breaking waste disposal laws.  Don't forbid people from living on a boat.  Surely there is some other (perhaps, gasp, $$ based) reason for prohibiting liveaboards?

I love Savannah.  It's a gorgeous place.  We've spent 14 years here - almost more time than I've spent anywhere else.  We have loads of friends.  We have loads of access to water.  But I want to be IN water.  ON water.  SURROUNDED by water.  I promise promise promise I will dispose of my waste properly (ew).