So buying a new/used boat - did I just make a huge mistake

So just bought a new to me pontoon boat.

Not our first adventure in owning a pontoon - but our first time was a pretty wild ride and this will be the first time owning both something a little nicer than the most basic entry level boat, first time at this lake/marina and hoping to learn from mistakes we already made.

So first boat for us we bought in late summer 2019. I got the great idea of offering to rent it out on a peer to peer rental site to help offset the cost - the slip we rented was in a private campground and they were ok with renting and though hey - if I can rent this thing 15-20 times a year I can pay for the slip fee/storage and insurance. Well of course we all know what happened in 2020 and that summer no one could travel so staycations became a thing - and even better for me the lake we were on NO one was renting boats any longer (should have been warning number one when the 2 people doing it previously stopped renting because of the amount of issues with renters).

So we actually made out alright - aside from being booked solidly the entire year - only had a few real problem customers (1 who no showed and after 3 hours of “I’m on the way” I left - only to get a call that the very drunk renter was at the campground causing problems - the other involved a renter who clearly hit a stump and didn’t tell anyone - left the boat without doing a check in and skipped town).

Anyway - that adventure actually netted me a decent amount plus paid for the boat itself in full. We wound up moving that winter and sold the boat for damn near what we paid new - even with 500 hours on it and some repairs from the damage done by the renter who hit the stump) - so overall a profitable venture.

Anyway - wife continues to talk about wanting a place on the waterfront and I actually do enjoy boating - but buying a boat and renting a slip at the local state park is a helluva lot cheaper than moving again I figured - and she seems happy to do this. So we bought a 2023 Tritoon.

Figured the tritoon would give a little more capacity and hopefully a little easier steering when docking. Probably overkill for the lake we are on - but I’m from the school of thought of overbuy and never feel the need to upgrade later as it’s going to cost more. Plus price was right on this set up and for the cost of an entry level new boat - we are getting something that’s definitely a step up in both boat and motor.

Still - a lot of cost to owning a boat - especially rebuying all the accessories we know we will need we learned the first time to keep on the boat. And this time there’s no renting stuff out to offset those cost. But got figuring the cost of renting vs buying and seemed a better value. Especially as gives us flexibility to go elsewhere if we don’t like this lake.

 

Starting to out together a list of must haves on the boat. So far I’ve got:

- First aid kids
- Fenders/dock protector corners
- Life jackets and a couple of throwable’s (comes standard with some cheaper type 2s/probably buy a couple of better type 3 vest)
- flashlight
- better knife
- small toolbox/socket set
- docking pole/hook
- jump pack


what else should I be adding.

I’ll probably take one of my solar generators and a panel and keep out there as well - always nice to have power and not be drawing down the battery.

 

Congrats on the boat. We have a 22' Party Barge which we love. We're out on it just about every weekend during the season. Lots of quality, fun times.

You have a good list of things to keep on the boat. Very similar to our setup. A few other things we keep on the boat are:

Paper plates
Plastic utensils
Paper towels
Extra lines
Vinyl cleaner
Lighter
Coozies
Sunshade

I'm sure there's more things I'm forgetting. We try to leave everything we can (that we use on a regular basis), so we don't have to schlep it down to the dock every weekend.

 

The two happiest days in a man's life. The day he buys his boat and the day he sells it. Boat: Hole in the water in which you pour money.

Just kidding.

I'm 68 and have never been without a boat since a kid. Although there have been a few years I didn't use it but those are very rare. I have one that is small enough it doesn't eat much and is kept in the garage but large enough to be comfortable.

 

I always hear that and think no way. Sure, you gotta maintain them, but they're fun as hell! Wouldn't trade the memories for anything. Whether it's the cruises, the picnics, or even just admiring my wife's cleavage in her bathing suit. Worth it.