Money

[Jeffamc]

I read many articles on this site about the cost of crusing and I was just wondering like if you wanted to spend your life sailing what are some ways that you can make money to use to make repairs, buy food, ect?

[GordMay]

Check out:
http://cruisersforum.com
under "Making a living".
Regards & good luck,
Gord

[southernwind]

its not as much as they want you to think. If you stay out of the marinas and stick more to the boat you can do it on much less. Dont forget the need to have a "kitty" for repairs and such for back-up. I have known people that have went cruising on as little as 10 grand a year, but if you want to go "paint the town" at every stop then it will take more of course.

[vega1860]

Annie Hill - "Voyaging on a Small Income"

The short version:

• work
• save
• invest
• cruise frugally
• work as needed to keep the kitty topped off

Read the book

[Keldee]

The question how much do you need to go cruising is exactly the same as how much do you need to retire.It all depends on what is important to you and as southernwind says stay out of marinas (in one 365 day period we spent only 8 nights in a marina)w
When you entertain ask people for a cup of tea or coffee instead of drinks.
If your systems are simple they wont cost so much to replace or repair as if it can go wrong it will go wrong.Cut down on the monthly payments phones are just a burdon and expense.Tell the family you will call them from a public phone once a week or write letters. Remember that lost art?
The list could go on but you get the idea it will cost as much as you have and are willing to spend.

[wind_magic]

Jeffamc,

With an interest rate of 5%, your financial independence will cost the sum of all of your recurring costs multiplied by a factor of 20. Do you want to drink a coke every day ? That's about 0.50$us/can multiplied by 365 multiplied again by 20, for a total of 3650$us. Save 3650$us and put it in something that pays 5% (bank CD, corporate bond, etc ..) and you can drink a coke every day for the rest of your life without ever having to work to pay for it. You can just sit out on the beach somewhere and drink your coke.

Want to stay in a marina one day a week at 50$us/night ? That's 50$us multiplied by 52 multiplied by 20, or 52k$us that you have to save in order to pay for that one night a week for the rest of your life without having to ever work again.

Thinking like that really puts that 40$us/month cell phone bill into perspective, that's 40$us times 12 times 20, or 9600$us to have cellular service for the rest of your life.

There are people who live in poor countries who cook their own food, etc, take a machete out into the field every day and work hard, and who live on a few hundred $us/year. They have trouble understanding why anyone in the United States isn't financially independent, because the 20k$us one of us might spend on a new car would be enough to keep an entire family at their present living standard for the rest of their life without any of them ever having to work again. 20k$us times 0.05 divided by 365 equals 2.74$us/day. If you can manage to live on 2.74$us/day all it takes is 20k$us to never have to work again, can you find a way to live on 2.74$us/day ? Much of the world lives on less than that.

I second Vega1860's recommendation, Annie Hill's book is very instructive.

What's your freedom worth to you ?

[JohnRPollard]

Windy,

I was going to point out that Jeff hasn't been heard from for a few years, but your post is so intriguing I've decided not to.

That's a very interesting way to look at it. Turns out, coca-cola is a pretty expensive habit. I'll bet there are a lot of folks that don't even want to know what one mocha latte a day at Starbucks really "costs" them!

[wind_magic]

Beach Bum Budget ..

Recurring costs

Big beach umbrella - 70$us/year
Flip flops - 10$us/year
Bottle openers - 10$us/year
Canned baked beans - 1$us/day, 365$us/year
Coke - 2$us/day, 730$us/year
Hammock - 100$us/year
Clothing (optional) - 200$us/year
Misc (optional) - 400$us/year
Cardboard box - Free

Total, 1885$us/year, multiplied by 20 equals 37700$us.

I think that's a good starting place.

[chuckg5]

I read a lot about cruising 'doesn't have tobe exspensive'. but in cruising all those miles, I would think you'd be checking into a lot of different countries and they're fees alone would choke a horse. What's European countries charge, Phillipeans, ect - I know the Bahamas is 300 a year and Panama- forget it!
chuck

[Joesaila]

One book I read suggests shopping at places that sell bulk cheaply. You can do that and still splurge. I think if the boats paid for and the mortgage on the home is being paid [sell it!] You can have a great life. My wife hyperventillates when I start talking about this but its important to have, develope and execute a plan...