Trawler boat owners are seen as some of the most experienced boaters in the boating industry.
Truth is that there are no statistics to back this up. But over the years, we’ve been privileged to meet a lot of boaters living the trawler boat life. It turned out that many of these boaters have quite impressive cruising experiences.
But does that now mean they are experts at buying a trawler boat? I’m not going to call anyone a trawler boating expert. As it is said in the industry, not many people get to buy that many boats in their lifetime to make them become experts.
Even with decades of experience, you’ll still need to update yourself on the intricacies and risks of the boat buying process.
Not one person is immune to making mistakes but with the right knowledge and resources, you can get to buy the best trawler boat for the money. This will guarantee your confidence in your boat purchase, something which will be needed for a happy boat ownership experience.
So, what’s it with Trawler Boats?
It’s often kind of difficult to define what makes a trawler a trawler.
However, it is generally accepted that they come designed with round displacement bottoms or hulls and are fitted with smaller fuel-efficient engines.
Trawlers are more of a leisure cruiser.
They average about 6 knots to 12 knots, although some more powerful displacement hull models can go as fast as 20 knots if you want more power. If you’ll be buying a trawler boat, you won’t be in a hurry. Rather, you’ll be getting ready to soak in the fun as you cruise leisurely en route your chosen destination.
Trawler boats are also loved because of their abundant space.
They’ll usually have spacious saloons on their main decks along with several staterooms or cabins below. If you want to soak in the sunshine, the open aft deck will give you enough space for that.
Trawler boats can offer all the convenience of a modern home.
The 2009 Bruce Roberts 65’ trawler yacht, for instance, features very comfortable sleeping accommodations as well as a nice galley and bathrooms.
Aside from making you comfortable all through your long-distance cruises, you can also decide to live aboard your trawler. Many a boater will give anything for a thrilling and adventurous trawler life.
You’ve got a choice between choosing a new trawler boat and buying a good used trawler boat for sale.
Both of these instances come with a lot of benefits along with their downsides. Ordering a new boat gives you greater flexibility of design and specifications.
You can also expect your boat to arrive brand new and in excellent condition.
However, this is quite expensive and you may have to wait a long while before your order gets manufactured, shipped and delivered. Often this is longer than one year.
Used boats offer greater value but if you aren’t careful enough, a bad purchase will easily ruin your boating experience. You can always try and find a trawler boat in excellent condition.
For a boat that’s a decade old but is still in excellent condition, consider the 2009 Bruce Roberts TY620 65’ trawler yacht.
Built from scratch, she was designed to provide her passengers with many adventures and holidays and allow them to go to places that they would normally not experience.
She was built with all the creature comforts of home in mind so one can live onboard very comfortably, comprising of a saloon with pop up 48″ TV and surround sound, fully fitted large galley, including a dishwasher, gas hob, electric oven, microwave, coffee maker, fridge freezer, wine fridge and a reasonable amount of storage.
Read The Pros and Cons of Buying a Used Boat
Buying a trawler boat to live the trawler life is a dream that excites many enthusiastic boaters. However, there are a lot of things which when combined, will help to shape your boating experience.
As part of your decision-making phase, you’ll need to consider your trawler boating goals and objectives. Answer important questions that will relate to what experience you want.
These include how much time you’ll have to be spending on board and which places you’ll likely want to go. Some other things include the number of people you’ll mostly have onboard which would greatly determine the perfect size of the trawler boat you’ll need.
You’ll need to also be clear on your budget for repairs and maintenance.
However, don’t over-analyse these to the extent where you’ll end up confused and not doing anything.
Related Post: Why Are Most Boats White
In our article on “How to Buy a Boat – The 3 Stages of the Boat Buying Process”, we discussed the importance of getting up to speed with the correct ‘nautical know-how’ you’ll need, so you avoid costly boat buying mistakes.
A lot of people in the market to buy a trawler boat don’t know what exactly to expect, nor do they have people they can trust to turn to for advice on how to buy a boat.
This affects their boat buying confidence, and in fact, research has shown that 70% of first-time boat buyers feel they don’t know enough to buy a boat.Therefore, many go all-in with so many unrealistic expectations. This is perhaps the easiest mistake to make.
As it is, this is an easy avenue for frustration to set in when reality begins to set in. If you want enough confidence in your trawler boat ownership, you’ll need to get real with your trawler boat buying research to avoid carrying unrealistic expectations.
Some other mistakes we see quite often include inadequate planning such as underestimating the costs of your trawler boat ownership.
Another is falling in love with and purchasing the wrong boat, probably from impulse buying or from information overwhelm and a lack of a clear focus and boat buying process for selecting the right boat.
Buying a boat is a big decision and you’ll also need your partner or significant other to be on board with your decision.
Many people do not understand this and either fail to heed their mate’s advice or completely ignore them.
We’ve previously discussed some tips on how to convince your significant other to buy a boat. It will do you a whole lot of good to heed the advice in there to save you unnecessary stress and troubles.
- Buy a boat suitable enough for the crew and passenger size as well as the cruising goals you have.
- Good used trawler boats have the best value but you should be wary of fixer-uppers.
- Buy a boat that has an excellent maintenance record.
- Have a definite budget and financing option before going into the market to buy a trawler boat.
- Consider several options before finally settling for the most suitable one
- Be wary of fixer-uppers, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
- Be sensible with your negotiations and purchase. It doesn’t hurt to seek advice from boating experts and professionals.
- Remember that buying a boat is just the first step; you’ll need to maintain it properly and arrange for small unexpected repairs and running costs.
Buying a trawler boat to live the trawler life is a fantasy most of us would like to experience.
Trawlers are great as liveaboards and are also perfect for holiday and weekend getaways. As beautiful as the idea seems, getting things wrong can make it become suddenly ugly and sad.
This happens all too often in our experience.
However, with the right knowledge, and nautical know-how your trawler boat purchasing experience will go smoothly. If you buy the perfect boat for your cruising goals, you’ll be setting yourself up for relaxing and happy boating experiences.
Buying a trawler boat can easily get complicated.
That’s just how the marine industry is. You’ll need an experienced hand to guide you through the decision making phase right through to the buying phase.
If you ever need something like this, check the BASCO Boat Buyers Academy to help you with a wealth of free content on boat buying, tips, online courses, connections, and more.
Don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll always be there for you!
Cheers!
