Tips On Buying A Sailboat
by Margaret Madgwick of Triton Yachts

Are you thinking about buying your first sailboat?

Buying a boat can be a wonderful experience if you make the right choices.

You can’t do too much research before you buy. There are many fine books in libraries about buying a boat and all the sailing magazines have articles about buying boats on a regular basis. If you know any sailors who own boats, you can get a wealth of information from them – often each sailor will give you completely different advice, so you’ll need to sift it carefully.

The first decision you need to make is: what your needs are and what you are willing to pay per month. Some boats are built with ocean going capabilities in mind while others are designed for coastal use or on lakes. . Everything on the ‘blue water’ boat is built to be stronger to withstand the worst possible conditions so if you don’t need this type of boat it is better to use the money to buy a more spacious comfortable boat for coastal sailing.

The size of a boat is another consideration - bigger is not necessarily better; if there are only two people planning to use the boat bear in mind that a 30-35 foot boat is not only less expensive, but also a lot easier to sail when the conditions get rough and a quick reef is required The cost of owning a boat has several components; you have to consider not just the monthly payment but also dock rental, insurance, annual haulout, maintenance and upkeep.

The choice between a new boat and a used one is also important. While a brand new boat is very exciting, it also requires a lot of extras installed before it can be fully enjoyed, while all these add-ons are already installed on a used boat. If the boat is more than ten to fifteen years old many of the instruments and the engine may be getting close to the end of their useful lives.

If you can define the approximate length, style and price of boat you want,   you are ready to do some serious looking. That is the fun part! Check out the sailing magazines such as Cruising World and Soundings and start calling for detailed specifications on boats. Many people use a reputable brokerage firm to help them line up boats to inspect. The broker can do a lot of the legwork for you, finding boats to look at and lining up appointments. A good broker with years of experience to share with you can be a very valuable assistant.

Once you have located your boat, make an offer and be ready to make a small deposit; most buyers make their offer contingent on a survey, sea trial and availability of finance. A survey generally costs $11 per foot and is a valuable investment; not only do you have a professional inspect the boat but, if any faults are found, the price agreed upon can be renegotiated to allow for these problems. A well-worded contract will also allow you to back out of an agreement if the survey or other contingencies can not be satisfied.

Oriental, NC is the town of choice for many east coast boat buyers . There are three large marinas with another one under construction, three yacht brokers, and two boat yards for all your maintenance needs and several surveyors live and work in the area.

Come down and visit us when the sailing urge strikes you!