Buying my first small motor Yacht.

If you intend to hire all your service, then maybe 10%/year is useful for long-term planning... but be aware that's a really wild rule of thumb, and in any given year it's liable to be incorrect... by a lot.

The MM costs are VERY high, but then again they've got labor charges built in, too. I can't tell if they're BS'ing or not, but I'd guess they're maybe also trying to prepare you for the worst. But for comparison, my cost of typical annual diesel service is probably $250/engine (plus my labor); annual service usually means an oil/filter change, coolant filter change, fuel filter clean-out (Racors) and change (spin-ons), zinc anodes... and sometimes a raw water pump impeller change. Longer term maintenance items would be things like valve adjustments, coolant system drain/flush/fill, belt changes, hose replacements, etc... but then those service points might only come up every 3-5 years depending on your usage. I have purposely used that as an example that you maybe don't know much about, point being that you'll want to know lots more about everything or else service guys will take you to the cleaners...

And then replacement of major systems -- air conditioners for example -- will greatly skew costs in any given year, so you should expect a baseline (to be learned in your first few years of ownership) plus some big jumps from time to time.

That marina cost is also VERY high, almost as much per month as we pay per year. Even when we lived near FLL and kept our previous boat in the Dania Cut... it was LOTS less than your quote and not too far different from what we pay now. OTOH, we're not in your environment now and our current boat doesn't lend itself to inside storage high-and-dry storage. BTW, "Complimentary Fueling" will likely mean they do the pumping... but you still pay the cost of fuel. And on that topic, you'd likely find that fuel will not be your largest budget item.

You might be in luck about buyer's brokers. Look up user JWY here; Judy has a good rep here.

-Chris

"Look up user JWY here; Judy has a good rep here."
I will second this thought.

When I started looking a few years ago, many on here told me (rightfully so) that I dont even know what I dont know. Time and JWY made it go very smoothly. Under the expert guidance of Cap'n Don I learned many "tricks" during our excursion and have been learning new stuff every day. Take your time...dont rush what may be the first or second largest capital outlay in your life. Good Luck !!!!

I meant to hum a few bars about that. I expect if you negotiate cut-throat style and get your purchase price down to as low as possible... a year old version of the same boat would cost you 20-30% less than that. Just a WAG, but a buyer's broker can look up Sold Boat prices and give you real comparisons.

Anyway, that could mean you could get essentially the same boat (used) for less money... or a larger used boat for the same money.

Also, it's not uncommon to "survey" new boats... just as you would a used boat... because new boats often don't come off the showroom floor (so to speak) in perfect working order. IOW, brand new isn't always the virtue you might expect. Used boats often have some of the kinks worked out already... although that depends largely on the previous owner, his/her wallet, his/her inclination and/or skill at upkeep.

Depends, largely on the dealer, especially the actual dealership, and somewhat on the builder. You can read about Marine Max or Azimut (for examples) on line in various places.

Yep, somewhat wrong. Light usage isn't always great, which is probably counter-intuitive. Systems on an unused boat often crap out earlier than a well-used boat.

You use case suggests membership in a boat club could be viable. You don't own stuff, you just rent when you want to... and they do all the service and so forth on their boats. I'd imagine yearly costs could be much lower than straight ownership.

It occurs to me Carver also has some new-ish express boat styles that you might look at.

I mis-spoke earlier about marina costs. About 2-1/2" months at the place you quoted would be about a whole year for us.

-Chris

The Galeon is very large for dry storage and that would account for the price, if it can even be handled.

You're a rather typical totally unprepared new boat looker falling victim quickly to Marine Max without the knowledge or experience to know whether anything they say is true or not.

You're in no way ready or even close to ready for boat ownership. My earlier suggestion of renting was completely ignored so I'll make it again. You need to take some courses, including hands on, and you need to rent for the occasional use you have. You can rent for very little more than you'd spend for dockage and maintenance without the capital layout. Rent, charter, learn. Don't even think of buying until you've done those.

You keep saying how you're in finance. This isn't finance. Any good financial evaluation would say boat ownership is a lousy investment. My background is originally financial but I graduated to operational and I do budget everything but boat ownership is not a financial decision. I buy new boats, but buying new is a horrible financial decision where you pick up the first three years depreciation as the value drops dramatically.

I see people going to Marine Max and buying and first time out running aground and destroying the props and shafts and when they get the boat back two months later they decide to go to Bimini and it breaks down on them there and they realize no warranty service there. After about six months they sell the boat at a huge loss and celebrate being out of boating and never going to own another boat. Marine Max is convenient but not the place for you to learn. You think you're going to decrease your depreciation with your negotiation skills. Marine Max sells the brands with the huge markups and everyone gets discounts but the depreciation is still there. Dealers like Marine Max typically have costs 30% or so less than the MSRP. Boats sold through brokers or by the brand ownership run on more like 10-15%.

I'd suggest you sign up for a Captain's course at a place like MPT just to find out how much about operating a boat you have to learn, not to become a captain. Then charter with a training captain. Oh, and if you come back and say, the course is expensive at $999 and the charter with a captain is expensive and renting is expensive, then you're in no way ready for the real world of boating as boating is expensive.

I had nearly 30 years experience boating when I moved to FLL, but I knew that I was just a novice when it came to coastal and ocean boating and larger boats.

Maintenance is not a reason to go straight to new in order to save money in my experience, even if you were able to negotiate a decent price. Find a good surveyor as well as the broker, and if you can find a pre-owned boat that's only a few years old and been properly taken care of, the numbers will be likely be much, much better on the front end and the depreciation curve is not as steep. Boats have a fair amount complexity and parts, especially the bigger you go, and yours will be sitting in and around salt water which is a terribly corrosive environment. You're going to have maintenance issues new or used in that first year. It's just the nature of boats.

Also, it's already been covered a bit by others, but you don't really know what you're going to like and dislike yet. You mentioned that you've walked a few and discovered features that you prefer, but you really have to get on on the water and see how they all operate to make a proper judgement. For example, you say you don't like the plastic curtains and you don't want a fly bridge, but you may discover that you actually don't like the closed in feeling and like the feeling of the wind in your face when under way. Stuff like that you can only discover after you've been at it a while.

AA, a few more thoughts...

An example of more things you'll need to learn: lines, knots, and hitches, included in a field called marlinspike seamanship. You'll need to know at least some minimums -- bowline, clove hitch, cleat hitch, etc. -- and you'll also need to be able to instruct crew on how and when to use some of those.

FWIW, I am purposely trying to emphasize how much work it will take to get from zero to hero. What happens if your boat breaks down while you're out on the water somewhere? Often that means you've got to fix it, at least enough to limp home, using whatever tools and onboard spares you happen to have with you. Which in turn means you'll need to know how to do that. IOW, "hands off" works OK if the boat never leaves the dock... or never breaks down... but "it's a boat" and they do that so sometimes all that goes downhill in open water. (And of course unlimited towing insurance can be a good thing, too.)

Fractional ownership might be another approach to consider...

I think Regal, Marquis, and maybe Formula built some hardtop express boats; you might have a rummage for those brands.

Further to OB's post, he may well be able to point you at some local charter/rental operations who offer the kind of sport boats you've been considering. Crewed charter first, then charter (often) with a teaching captain, eventually work up to being safely able to bareboat charter, etc.

-Chris

I guess something to consider would be that, if you want to be a boater, just get a boat. Maybe not the exact kind you want in the future, but something to get you out on the water having fun, then after a couple years, buy that 40ft express.

I think someone else mentioned a center console and I would agree. Dual console would be a great option to look at too. With the center consoles, that whole category of boats has advanced considerably from what was once mostly hardcore fishing boats now a slew of family friendly day-boating options. The creature comforts for the wife and kids you can get on those boats these days is impressive. Pursuit, Scout, Whaler would be good places to start. But they aren't cheap either and it's not my money so if you are set on the express cruiser right off the bat, then chartering is definitely an option. That just takes a bit more planning than having your own boat you can just jump in and use whenever you want.

Hit the boat shows down there too. You're right in the middle of where some of the biggest shows on the planet take place and you'll be overwhelmed, but you'll see so many things you didn't even know existed. It's a lot of fun too.

Best of luck in whatever you decide!

There base line power at receptacles in Europe is 220 volt 50 Hertz , USA standard is 120 volt 60 Hertz. then a boat your describing will have 240 volt 60 hz AC, electric cooktop and maybe a small electric water heater.

Yes, and sort of. It's largely about the AC electrical systems... not just different voltages and clock speeds (Hz) as above but also that the actual wires can be skinnier (a technical term) on EU boats... not thick (another tech term) enough for some US voltages... so conversion to US voltages can be more problematic than just swapping a few appliances. There are ways around it, but for your purposes... I wouldn't recommend pursuing the idea.

I think also (but don't know for sure) some boats in the EU can be delivered without holding tanks... which you would need here.

-Chris

AckAck

Good advice given in other posts. My gentle recommendation is to “pump the brakes” a bit -not slam, just pump-in deciding what you want until you and your wife try out several types of boats. Day charters are great idea. Walk docks to get a sense of what exists. Go to boat shows. Read magazines.

I live in Midwest, and after 15 years of lake runabouts bought my first big boat (2007 54’ Flybridge ) a year ago in FLL and it has been great; but I was almost 10 years into the process of deciding what I wanted and didn’t want. Time is a good thing to have on your side. What I ended up with is a direct result of trying Trawlers in a Boating 101 class, being a guest on. 54’ Pershing that will go 50knots, and attending a few in water boat shows- TrawlerFest, Palm Beach Boat Show...

I’d also stay away from a dealer; find a buyers agent who can help you find the right boat - and who will absolutely and honestly tell you a boat you think is great is wrong for you.

And all boats need ongoing maintenance ; luckily I’m the kind of guy who looks to get my windshield caulking redone, shaft replaced to get rid of vibrations, new mattresses, teak restored... I look at these yearly ongoing expenses as a part of the lifestyle that I am proud to be able to do.

I earned my Captain’s license online from Mariners Learning Systems , but in no way was that more important than time on the water with a Captain you can learn from and who wants to teach you. In the first year we have put 210 Hrs on boat, but from May-December I always had my Captain onboard didn’t take it out solo til January. We mostly go on Intracoastal as far north as Titusville, and inside down to Key West.

Year one taught me how much I didn’t know, but I luckily have a great captain/boat manager who is there for us.

Good luck in this fun process