Thursday, May 22, 2008

NPR Says You Are Not Boating

National Public Radio is the latest media outlet to claim that boaters are boating less due to high gas prices. They say the economy is even forcing some folks to sell their boat, or at least leave them in storage this season.

I believe this is probably true on the fringe of boating. The folks who bought boats because they thought they could afford them - only to find out that the costs to maintain and enjoy a boat are usually a larger expense than those "low monthly payments".

Boats cost more than the price of the boat. It's easy to see the price of a boat broken down into low monthly payments, but before you say "I can afford that" you need to think about your entire financial exposure - just like any investment.

First Boat has been responsibly explaining this issue to new boaters for years, but there is only so much one website could do.

Don't mean to sound all preachy on you.

Anyway, here's the NPR story - take a listen and if you're really concerned, buy a sailboat.

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