Is this a bad idea?

States "some rot in substructure and deck" If you dont have the time to go look at it and the skills to fix it or have lots of extra cash. It will always cost more and take longer to fix than you can imagine. It may not be bad, but I would expect the worse. Once you fix the rot you have to rewire it then rebuild the engine then you find the sails are shot. But it depends on what you want and your skill and cash level. I would save the survey money for the one you have really gone over first and still like. The more you look the more you will find. Best of luck

Run like hell. If they're advertising it as having some rot in the substructure and deck, it's got a lot of problems and buying it will cost a lot more than the purchase price. Also, the sailing performance of those style trimarans leaves a lot to be desired IMHO.

I'd also recommend you read the Boat Inspection Trip Tips thread I started, as it will help you determine whether other boats you look at are even worth going forward on, saving you the price of a survey for boats that aren't worth looking at further.

I know little to Nothing of Boats. BUT, I know a bit about Wood, Wood with NO Coatinns or Paint is easy to Find Rot.. With Paints, Varnishes , Stains, Fiberglass, Gellcoats and the lot, ... its a Garrentee, they have NOT found ALL the rot there is and Just from the Price, They cant Give the thing away..
Like someone said about another Boat Fixer, "Have them Pay YOU to Cart it off "

I have built many trimarans of that size and larger. The best thing I see that this boat has going for it is that the hulls are molded glass. If you view the purchase as that of three hulls ,a rig and possibly other reuseable parts, you will have a better idea of what you could easily be up against. The smaller Pivers were not that great of designs. If you got the boat for free ,know how to build and restore boats, and did all of the work yourself following accepted practices, you could still end up with easily $15,000 and a lot of time in the project. What's your time worth? What else is on the market at even $15,000? My apology to you Piver fans out there, but to steal a phrase from another thread on a similar topic, RUN!!!