Buying a 1994-1996 Hunter 26-280

[tbh1234]

Hi I'm new to this forum, I like a lot of the responses that have been posted to other answers, so I'm hoping for a little help with my purchase.

I'm in the Miami area, I've sailed periodically throughout my life and am finally in a situation where I'm financially comfortable enough, that I feel okay to buy my first sailboat. I'm pretty settled on the Hunter 280, and it seems like I can get one for the low to mid $20ks.

I plan on getting any boat I consider surveyed but I was taken aback a little the last few days reading a few articles. I've budgeted for docking, insurance, and financing, and have planned a modest amount for monthly/annual maintenance which I know could easily turn into being very unplanned. However I keep reading to expect to immediately invest like 20-50% of the boat value in repairs/upgrades when you first purchase a boat. I'm not planning on doing any crossing immediately, and I could see upgrading the electrical system etc if needed. But just for day sailing the first year, doees it still seem reasonable to expect to invest or budget this much?

Okay, so my question is sort of specific, but I'd love to hear any kind of experience or advice anyone may have about this. Like if I get a boat for sale at $25k the surveyor says X needs fixed and it'll cost X amount, I ask to drop the price of the boat X amount. If I buy should I still expect to drop another couple thousand on it? I also don't know if I should contact a broker to represent me (I'm considering it simply because of my lack of experience purchasing a boat. I'm okay with neogiating a price, closing the deal and doing the survey etc.

 

[rgranger]

I don't see you dropping $10K into a H280 right away. I paid $12K for my H26 and dropped $1K into a new main in year one... and another $1K for a new genoa in year two.... I also had to put in a new battery charger $120... and I added a solar panel. I also upgraded the VHF but that is more of a want than a need. My hand-held was adequate. I just placed an order for a companionway cover (also a want and not a need). I have flipped a lot of boats and normally would not buy a boat with bad sails, but the price of this H26 was right so I went for it. It also had a brand new Honda 9.9 so that sweetened the deal for me.

Make sure you buy a boat with a decent set of sails, no hull damage and a working auxiliary motor. Make sure the head works, the lights work, the VHF works, depth sounder works and the keel joint is in good shape. Then go sailing. Get a hand-held GPS if you start to get adventurous and by that time you will feel comfortable making your own judgment calls on what you really need and what is more of a "want". You can add stuff later as your range widens.

 

[tbh1234]

Thanks for the quick response! I was hoping that was the sentiment. They seem like reasonable boats, and most of the ones I look at appear to be in okay shape, I just didn't know if that was like an unspoken thing I needed to be aware of.