The Cost of Owning a Boat - "Seas The Day" (Catalina 425) 2nd Season Costs

Photo credit:  Wealth Management

First, for reference see last year's post for 1st season costs of owning a Catalina 425.

Second, a citation... we did this experiment with our Catalina 315.  Additional links to the costs over our ownership of that vessel are found on that page.

If you click on the 315 link above and go back to the first-year costs, I spoke about how we didn't approach buying a boat lightly and how we carefully researched costs and couldn't find specifics so I decided to share mine so others could understand the total picture.

Well... for Seas The Day 425... it's hard to say we didn't approach buying this boat lightly.  This boat was basically a spur of the moment purchase... we were at the checkout line and basically said: "oh look... they have 425s... let's put one on the belt".

Not quite... but close.  The story of the purchase is here.

As in the other cost-related posts, we'll group the costs into three categories.

ONE-TIME COSTS - costs of major equipment that we don't expect to have regularly.

RECURRING COSTS - Those costs that we expect to see regularly (yearly) as owners.

EXCURSION COSTS - We only had two excursions this year... our trip to Baltimore's Inner Harbor, and our trip up the Chester River to Chestertown.  The rest were just days sailing on the Chesapeake Bay.

Once again please understand that I'm rounding excessively.   If you're a CPA type, you're going to rapidly realize that things don't cross-check, etc.  The goal here is to share approximate costs to other potential boat owners, not to give an exact accounting.

ONE-TIME COSTS:

There were only three one-time costs.  Having them after the start-up season in our experience isn't normal, but as readers know from our post on issues and warranty experience, this wasn't a normal first year compared to our last boat.  The two main costs were $1900 to upgrade the three batteries to AGM batteries when our batteries failed early, and $1700 to convert the sliding companionway door (that kept trapping us inside) into a standard teak/glass door.  We also paid $400 to install a line cutter on our prop shaft back in the spring (I have no idea how long these last... it might be a recurring cost.)  So the total one-time costs this year rounds to $4000.

RECURRING COSTS:

When we purchased Seas The Day (425) I had to make a guess at how much the operating costs would increase relative to the 315... I had guessed $36K to $40K.  It looks like I was off by about 10%.

Our total recurring costs round to $44,400 (remember, everything is rounded).

The mortgage is $2500/month or $30,000.

Insurance for the year was $2500.

The marina clocked in at $5300.

Hauling, winterizing, spring commissioning, etc., came to $5000.

Maintenance (the 50hr engine service plus monthly battery charging over the winter) was $600.

Accessories (only the spare propane tank) was $200.

Finally the excursion costs were just under $800 (see below).

EXCURSION COSTS:

Our overnight trip to Baltimore Inner Harbor cost us $220 for the slip and a takeout dinner from the marina restaurant (The Rusty Scupper).  The overnight to Chestertown was $230 for the same.  Neither amount includes fuel costs (my guess would be $20 to $25 per trip).  Most of the rest of our days out were simple day-trips... motor out to the Swan Creek #3 buoy, then either raise the sails or motor to our "destination" and back.  Because of COVID, we were much more comfortable this year staying at our Marina than exploring the many offerings on the bay.

We don't normally include food on land in our yearly cost summary, but this year, our restaurant expenditures was greatly reduced (again due to COVID).  The only restaurant we visited by boat was Watermans and that only one time.  We maybe stopped at two other outdoor dining experiences and then did take-out from our marina's restaurant a few times, oh and picking up crabs for Vicky a few times as well.  This fact, probably saved us a few grand over a more typical year (last year for example, every trip included a significant restaurant meal).

Finally, I'm guessing a total of about $150 in pump out costs (I'm including tips here), and approximately $200 for fuel.

All these costs are included in the recurring costs above... I expect excursion costs will increase a lot next year after a COVID vaccine is available and we relax about that.

SUMMARY: 

We had an abbreviated season this year... 23 weekends rather than a typical (4/15 to 11/15) 30 weekends.   So $44,400 divided by 23 means each weekend cost us just shy of $2K.  In a more typical year with 30 weekends, but similar costs, it would be about $1500 per weekend.  (Of course, counting weekends alone isn't a great picture as we had 3 weeks of vacation on-board this year as well.)

What did we get for that?

We spent 54 days interacting with Seas The Day - anywhere from a brief nap or an hour troubleshooting the dead electrical system to a full day on-board including staying the night before and following night.

We had 31 days on the water.  Most of these were day trips.  We spent 40 overnights (one with two guests onboard) on board.  And finally, we shared her with 20 other people... mostly repeats from last year but a handful of new folks as well.

So how do we gauge this?  I'm planning a subsequent "Was it worth it" post, but based on our experience with the 315, we have 5 years of data telling us that a day on the water costs us $1K  Let's use that as a basis to break this all apart on the new Seas The Day.  Thirty-one days on the water is $31K, leaving $13,400 for the overnight costs or about $335 a night.  That's not bad for a private (floating) condo at a high end resort... Osprey Point certainly qualifies as that.