Niel

I have found over the 10 years, 2 boats (Dragonfly 920 prior to the Dazcat) and 2 different co-owners that boat shares are a great idea, for many perhaps surprising reasons.  The obvious benefit is the splitting of costs, but probably even more beneficial than this is the splitting of work. It’s great to be always be able to call upon someone to help with all those tasks that go so much more easily with more than one person…especially the beginning and end of season such as getting sails on and off, anti-fouling etc etc.  Jobs that one’s crew or significant other may not be that keen to help with.

I’ve also found that despite the additional wear and tear the boat gets; as it’s almost certainly used more than a boat in single ownership, it seems to keep in as good or maybe even better condition. Nothing deteriorates quite as quickly as a boat that isn’t being regularly used and maintained.  One reason being that there is nothing worse than feeling one has handed the boat over in a suboptimal condition. So, all those little jobs that you may put off if the boat was in sole ownership as it’s only oneself that has to put up with them, you tend to get done before handing over.

There is also the benefit of nearly always, work and holidays permitting, having a like-minded person to sail with, if you want.  All this being said one has to choose one’s co-owners carefully; most importantly all parties have to have similar ideas as to what you are going to do with the boat and what/how much to spend on it. For example, type and number of sails and how often to replace them amongst other things.  A die-hard racer and dedicated cruiser probably wouldn’t be a good fit, though I imagine they wouldn’t be attracted to the same sort of boat in any case.   Neither would a retiree who wants to do long cruises fit with someone who primarily wants to weekend.  I’ve been lucky to have always got on well with my co-owners and have shared similar ambitions for the boat. A bit of racing; that the partners have frequently done together, a bit of cruising, usually about 2 weeks max at a stint, then mostly weekends.  Despite the good relationships it’s still important to have clear written agreements in place for ownership, costs at the very least and maybe if more than 2 partners a usage agreement /rota.

Julian

For me, the first key thing about shared ownership is that I get access to a boat that would otherwise be beyond my means. For me this means a pedigree performance cruising catamaran, something that’s huge fun to sail, yet practical and comfortable too. And it’s not just the initial cost – I can afford to keep the boat well-appointed and in top condition, because the running costs are shared. The second big benefit to sharing for me is that if you choose your boat carefully, then the chances are that the other owner has very compatible tastes and sailing objectives to your own, so it’s easy to get along. This makes both sailing together and working on the boat a pleasure.

A Continental Partnership

One of our French Dazcats, an 1195, is co-owned. Having found the perfect syndicate partnership some 10 years ago this pair have stuck together through their first boat and onto their Dazcat boat share. Although they clearly work well together, they still advise to plan for contingencies.