Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire has anyone here ever owned a houseboat?

My wife has just retired from teaching 30 years and now we will have some time to get away for quick over night get aways. Wondering about a houseboat, we both like being on the water, it would be less than 1 1/2 hour drive to get there. dock fees, insurance and electricity would be less than $250 a month. Whats the other expenses out there? We are just starting to think about this, what is the pros and cons ? We have a 5th wheel camper now, but with a boat we could just take the car and not the truck and would be there all ready to use. thanks Darrell

I'd plan at least twice that $$ just for maintenance.

Having lived aboard my boats for 1/2 of my 74 years I must tell you that your estimate is a fraction of actual cost, once you add in stuff like maintenance, property tax, upgrades, etc.

A friend is selling his pontoon houseboat. It's at Lake Powell, comes out of the water and into storage every winter. Dock fees are far more than $250/mo, I doubt you'll find dock fees that cheap anywhere.

I think it would be fun to have one. I have a ski boat, we are always spending money on it for something.

We had one for years. We always counted on 10% of purchase price of boat for annual expenses. Unfortunately, that never was enough. There will almost always be something to fix and spend money on. Also, with the new guidelines for waist disposal, you will have pumping as well. We did not have that. We just cruised into the Atlantic Ocean and dumped around five mile out. Our houseboat was a blue water houseboat with twin Mercs, not a box type. That said, we truly enjoyed the boat and if close enough to the ocean or large lake again, would do it all over. Have fun.

I hope that you like working on stuff. A boat is constant maintenance. Having to pay someone else to do it can get expensive. It is much better to keep things in good shape, and fix things before you have a problem. A basic course in electronics and one in engine repair would be very helpful if you don't already have skills in those areas.

They say the two best days in a boat owners life is, #1 the day they buy it,.... and #2 the day they sell it!

Just rent one when the mood strikes. I've done that and it's great fun, and I've owned many other boats. I strongly encourage you NOT to buy one. You are seriously underestimating the cost and headaches involved.

Boat

Break
Out
Another
Thousand

We sold out last boat in the fall of the year. The spring before we sold it, I got it ready to take to the lake for a test ride since it had sat over the winter. $240 for two marine deep cycling batteries and $140 to renew my SeaTow membership and it had not even left the driveway! The next spring after I sold it, I told my wife I was amazed at how much more money I had. I cant imagine what the cost would be if it stayed in the water all the time. If it was me, I would find a house boat you could rent for the weekend and do it that way. You would end up spending less in the long run.

++++ on the rental
The larger marinas around here are even starting a dues type membership deal. For a membership fee, any of the boats in their program are available to their members on a discounted reservation/rental basis. They have access to house boats, cruisers, pontoon boats etc... With None of the boat owner headaches.

Iam 69 years old and have captained and crewed on several big steel cruisers, commercial fishing and tourist charters. Live-abounds from 38 to 55 ft. It’s a wonderful life out on the big lake and I sometimes still crew just for the fun of it for no pay.

I know of a well-found steel cruiser with a beautiful Cummins diesel 55 fter for sale locally for about the same price as a nice bass boat. If I were 30years old I would hock my soul to own that boat. But I’m not that young anymore and have owned my last big boat.

I presently own a 12 ft skiff with 10hp Honda for fishing small inland lakes, also have a 14ft smokercraft with 30hp Merc, got a 19ft homemade welded aluminum skiff with a 75hp Merc and a 18ft Crestliner with 115hp 4-stroke. Got it covered for nice weather and if it ain’t —I ain’t going.

Kkahmann, I looked for a deck barge for quite a while that I could do commercial and residential maintainenance on our area lakes.
There was just not any availability for what I was looking for in my area. I'm still keeping my eyes open tho.

BTDT, but I'd swap those two days around..


DING!

limofarm,

Over the last 4 decades plus, our family has owned TWO houseboats. =
One was 26 feet x 9 feet & was powered by an OB motor.
(SLO-POKEY was our "weekend retreat".)
The other was 16x42 & was powered by a 50HP diesel inboard.

Note: When I was stationed in Savannah, GA long ago with the USA, I leased/lived aboard a 42 foot houseboat for nearly 3 years.

Fwiw, I'm now fully retired & am planning to build a 24x56 foot "condo on a barge" for Darla & I to retire to in the Rockport, TX area. = The "house" will be 16x44 feet or 704SF.
(MV DAYDREAMS will be powered by a "marinized" 6.9 International Harvester NA diesel engine, out of a 1987 Ford F250, driving a BIG/slow-turning prop with an "old school" marine gearbox.).
She will have 2 staterooms, 1.5 heads, a full galley, a large living area & a utility room. There will also be spacious covered decks fore & aft. - The roof will sport a solar-panel "farm" & a sunbathing/picnic area.

Pardon me for disagreeing with some members here but living aboard FULL-TIME is MUCH cheaper than a condo of the same size ashore. = For example: FEW TAXES to be paid, generally LESS electricity cost for AC (presuming that you are in an area where "Winter" is 2-3 weeks total) & most houseboats have LESS complex systems "to go wrong", if you are reasonably handy at ordinary maintenance.
(What IS expensive is living ashore part of the time & afloat the rest of the year.)

yours, tex

Lived on every style of boat there is, including a houseboat. Good times and cheap living because I didn't own and pay for a house. Two were 30's vintage wooden cruisers which I restored. Virtually everything I know about woodcraft came from there. And maintaining Packard straight 8's.

DigitalDan,

GREETINGS to another "live aboard guy".

In my "Savannah period", I was single & had a procession of SCAD grrls on the HB. = My SOLE "problem" was a NOSEY woman on another boat, who constantly called the SPD to complain about my (then) "very well endowed" GF walking about on deck, clad only in a lace mid-thigh length top & sandals. = Glenda's outfits generally "won the prize" for "MOST UNDRESSED", on most warm days.
(SCAD coeds are NOT known for their modesty in dress. - FACT.)

OP states he would not be living full time on the boat, so you're actually not disagreeing with anybody.

That sounds interesting. Are you building from a set of plans and, if you are, whose plans?

What's the old saying "If it flies, floats or f###s....rent it."? It's something like that.