How We Bought Our CATAMARAN - Our Fountaine Pajot Boat Buying Journey // Sailing Coco #62

[@SailingCoco]

HiGuys! It's a slightly different video this week with more of an informative one on the journey we took whilst buying our catamaran, things we may have done differently, things we had wished we had known beforehand etc! We will be back to our weekly vlogs from next week if you prefer that!! Have a great weekend!

[@pjm9859]

Hi to you both , I know it is a personal thing but I think what people want to know is how do you buy a boat , is it save up or is it sell your house or is it finance ?? With respect anyone can go to a boat show and buy a boat (finance permitting) but most would be buying a second hand boat. As I said it is personal to you but we are in the position of wanting to buy a boat and cruise med or further , can we buy new …. Can we only afford used …. Then I think the actual buying process kicks in … how big a deposit … how contracts are drawn up etc. You said you wished you knew the terms and conditions …. Or do you mean (like me) you wish you had read them ?? I am sure they weren’t hidden from you (or where they?) these are the questions I hoped you would have answered. I must finally say I have followed from the start and your videos are getting better. Phill

[@SailingCoco]

Hi Phil, Wow I think you are right, we actually didn’t answer a lot after reading your message and missed out quite a lot!! So great to hear that you are interested in buying a boat and we will happily answer your questions to make it a lot more clearer!! Once we had chosen the boat we wanted and had a figure to aim for we bought our first property which was a repossessed house in a very bad way. We spent 7 months gutting and renovating it and got it revalued. As it had increased so much we remortgaged it and used that money to purchase another property and did the same thing again. We rented both properties out and used the money we remortgaged to purchase the boat. We also ran a business and worked for a company at the time which helped with saving! For us at the time the hull with not many options was approx £230,000, however buying used was almost double as people had all the options on there. As we could do most of the work ourselves we spent another £70,000 on the extras we needed afterwards. This still worked out cheaper than buying used for us. Some people like to buy used as all parts would have been tested and fixed, however we are used to having to fix things on a boat so buying new did not worry us plus a lot is still under warranty for 2 years after which was a bonus for us. At the boat show we put a small deposit down on whatever we could afford to secure the boat. A month after we had to top it up to 10% and then 20% 6 months before getting the boat and then the total balance 2 months before receiving the boat. Our broker was helpful and would have let us postpone our boat to a later one if we didn’t have the funds in time as we were waiting for a remortgage to go through for the last amount which took some time. We could have also taken finance out on the boat, however the interest was much higher. We found buying a new boat was quite relaxed and very different to buying a house so the terms and conditions regarding the mooring fee’s when warranty work takes place were not included but maybe it was a wrong assumption on our end for that to be covered. Sorry for the essay, I hope that helped a bit more and please feel free to message us whenever if you have any more questions or if we missed something out!! Thank you so much for watching all our vids!! So glad to hear our videos are getting better! We do cringe a little when we look back at the old ones!! ☺️

[@pjm9859]

@@SailingCoco thanks for the reply , well done for that hard work and good luck to you both …. Congratulations on your wedding as well. Could you answer another thing …. VAT. !!! How to deal with that plus Schengen !! Two of the most talked about subjects that never seem to have a definitive answer. Lastly thanks for replying and being so up front and explaining. Lovely couple and I only wish we had done this ages ago (we are living in Cyprus (south) ) we plan to go to Croatia and Greece very soon to look at yachts to do the same. Cheers

[@benadams6818]

@@SailingCoco Brilliant "essay" Honnest and open.

[@SailingCoco]

@@pjm9859 Thank you so much!! We had one more last wedding celebration on Sunday for the people who couldn't attend so sorry for the late reply! We actually just came back from Cyprus and got married in Limassol!! With regards to the VAT, we did our handover in Gibraltar and are crossing straight to the Caribbean to avoid needing to pay it. Once you're out of the EU for either 3 or 5 years you do not need to pay it when you return! We always wanted to stay in the Caribbean and then go further so this worked perfectly for us! With the Schengen, we have had to go back and forth a few times this year anyway because of lockdowns and weddings but what we will do is check out when we leave Cartagena Spain when we go back in a couple days so that our Schengen clock is stopped and not running while we are travelling straight to the Canaries. We will then check in again once we get to a Marina in Las Palmas, so that in effect the clock is only ticking when we are in a Marina and on land. We mostly anchor or do long passages so it's not been too bad for us but we know others who have gone to non Schengen countries such as Croatia to avoid this!

[@SailingCoco]

@Ben Adams Thank you so much Ben! 💜

[@benadams6818]

ALSO Huge Congratulations on finally getting married!

[@SailingCoco]

Thank you!!!! We are sooo happy!! 😀😊

[@andrewmoore1579]

I enjoy all your videos guys… just keep them coming 👍🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@SailingCoco]

Awww thank you sooo much!! We will def keep them coming! 😊

[@BarracudaHawk]

Just stumbled across your video guys, congrats on the 42! Yet again the riggers leave cables hanging in the mast… Sailing Nohma, sailing Joy and now you have to drop the mast to fix the banging… can’t believe they never learn. Looking forward to more vids.

[@SailingCoco]

Whoa we didn't realise that was a common thing! Drives us crazy!! Thank you so much for your congrats! We are soo happy we managed to get the boat!! 😊

[@LivinLaVidaGypsea]

The hair buns = awesome Oh yea, and the episode was good as always 🤗 Happy Sunday guys!

[@SailingCoco]

Ahhh thank you so much!! We will make sure to watch your vids too!! We saw your clip this morning on insta! Congrats on getting your boat!!!!! 😀

[@benadams6818]

Hi Guys! Thanks for putting this out there! We have been following you recently, our 4.7 year old son Xavier loves the vids! We just put deposit down on a 2024 Feb build ISLA 40 with Carl and Mark at Southampton show. Must admit we had imposter syndrome, it felt surreal sat on the boat with Carl with a glass of bubbles. Ordinary people like us dont go and buy brand new boats at boatshows. like you guys explained we are also not sure where the rest of the money will come from but it always works out! Im sure we will be asking some questions nearer the time. Will be watching closely now guys... are you heading west across Atlantic soon or carry on in the Med? Be keen to see COCO in bigger seas, Biscay looked fun! We will be heading off once we get delivery on a extended trip! cant wait! Stay safe.

[@SailingCoco]

Woohoooo!! Congratualtions!!!! Such a shame we missed you at the boat show, we came back from our wedding last Saturday night so we made it there on the last day! Hahaha we can definitely relate with the imposter syndrome!! We sort of believed we could get it and then it actually happened! We have no regrets and it is so nice to be in a place where that was the last thing we wanted to work for and now there is nothing else to save for and we can now start working less and enjoying life more. It also took us 3 years from first meeting Carl to getting the boat and it flew by! It's a nice time to knuckle down and plan your extras etc! So glad you enjoy the vids! We love everything about being on the boat and still can't believe we are able to do this so we love documenting and sharing our journey! Yesss we are crossing the Atlantic very soon!! We are heading back to the boat next week and sailing from Cartagena Spain to Las Palmas, ready for the Arc + crossing on the 7th November!! Can't believe how soon it is coming round now and we are soo excited!! If you have any questions feel free to message us anytime! We have a list of products we installed and love which has helped a few people for their FP's which we'll be happy to send! 😊

[@mattdavidson6155]

Cheers from Toronto Canada!!! Hooked and following you two now. Going to be in the BVI's end of November into December on a charter catamaran. Getting a taste of what it would be like living on the water before buying one.

[@SailingCoco]

Cheers Matt!! That's great to hear that you'll be in the BVI's!! We should be in Grenada then! So close yet so far 😊 Thank you for your lovely comment!!

[@jasonayala1571]

Matt! What’s up bro?? I’m from Toronto too and have been looking into the same type of excursion. Can we connect ? I’d like to see which operator you’re going with?

[@nickmalone3599]

Great insights.

[@SailingCoco]

Thank you!!

[@nedwphillips2126]

Firstly Woohoo Congrats on tying the knot lol... here's to many yrs of Bliss to you both!!! and secondly Loved the Video, am looking at purchasing in about 4+ yrs time depending on lots of stuff love your energy and positive thoughts etc, and your Video and the comments below have highlighted answers for me... Enjoy your Honeymoon xoxo Ned.

[@SailingCoco]

Thank you so much!! We are soo happy we got there in the end!! That's exciting that you're looking to purchase a boat!! Let us know if you need any info or would like us to put you in touch with anyone!! So glad the video helped 😊 xxx

[@jamieopulence]

Very beautiful boat - looks to be a very comfortable ride

[@SailingCoco]

Thank you!! We love it!! 😊

[@juans3728]

I enjoyed this very much, Thanks, Peace.

[@SailingCoco]

So glad you enjoyed it!!!! Thanks for the comment!!

[@colinlong560]

Informative video guys and enjoying your videos. My wife and I are planning a similar purchase in the not too distant future. It would be great to understand what savings can be expected from taking on the optional extras work yourselves vs purchasing these when ordering. Also, what did you guys decide to do with treatment of VAT? Keep up the great vids!

[@SailingCoco]

Hey Colin, thank you for the message!! We found that on the most part we found factory prices were at least double what they would have been aftermarket. The biggest mark up we found were the cushions were approximately £25000 for the cockpit and front, however we spent under £3500 doing them with a family business who also made our last cushions in Port Solent. There were only a few small things that did not cost much more than aftermarket such as turning the dining table into a bed, gas oven, additional cleats etc. It was a little overwhelming at the time but we got the price list, highlighted the extras we would need and then compared the prices of doing each item ourselves or getting it done by factory. If there wasn't much difference or if Alfie didn't feel like doing it, like the solar panels and 240 sockets throughout the boat we chose the factory. The only two things we wish we did get the factory to do was the bowsprit, as really it needed to be an FP mould and the bimini (as the shape is also specific to the boat) we ended up not saving in these areas as we still paid the full factory price, shipping (which was a lot as they were big items) and install it ourselves! But we didn't have the money beforehand to add them in so that was why we didn't get it then! Which boat are you thinking of purchasing? Are you guys based in the UK? We have a list of the models of the extras we installed which has helped some people which we are happy to send! We also did our handover in Gibraltar to save on the VAT but things are always changing in that department depending on where you're based! Hope that helps a little, so exciting that you guys are hoping to buy a boat soon!!

[@colinlong560]

@@SailingCoco that's great advice, thank you so much. The mark up on the cushions is insane, so we'll definitely take your advice and do privately. We are decided on the FP Isla 40, and now just need to decide whether to go secondhand or new. Most finance companies require the boat to be 3 years or less, so something we need to consider. Going new would mean no complications with finance, but depreciation would be fairly hefty in the first couple of years. VAT is a large expense, so will need to do a bit more homework on this. As we're based in Dublin, 23% VAT on top of the boat price isn't something we're keen on! Thanks again for the info and I might PM you guys on Insta to pick your brain a bit more on the VAT topic 😁

[@SailingCoco]

@@colinlong560 Yes no problem you can PM us anytime and we can go through it! Also may be good to put you in touch with the broker that helped us out on this issue! They also sell second hand FP's so he will probably be able to advise which may be best for you guys too!! The Isla 40 is a great boat, we just saw one last week and the new design is lovely and spacious!! But yes, message us anytime if you need a hand! 😊

[@toddthomas5661]

Thanks guys, got some extra things to watch out of it, appreciated. Ordered Isla 40 some months back and just finialising options, have taken same route and gone bare other than where better to install during construction. it fans etc which would be a pain to wire. Did you have to install additional thru hulls or is it possible to tee off existing ones? Thanks again, your one of ,your favourite channels.

[@SailingCoco]

Congrats on the boat!! So glad we could help a little with what to watch out for! We had additional thru hulls added for each item but I think you can tee off some, for instance when we install another air con unit we will tee off from the other one!! The additional cost for each thru hull was approx £100 so we didn't think it was too bad for the effort it would have saved us with a haul out! Thank you so much, so nice to hear we're one of your faves! We love making the vids 😊

[@barryholiday8998]

Can you discuss sail drive vs. shaft drive and the maintenance required for each? Thanks for this video.

[@SailingCoco]

Hey, Yeah sure. We will get a video on this recorded and published soon. If there is anything else you would like us to discuss let us know! 👍👍

[@dustylorft1728]

Hi, wondered if you had any advice regarding where you got your boat insurance from and any pointers about who else you got quotes from etc. How much of a factor was that it was a new boat and not (as likely in my case) second hand? I'm looking for a cat in the 40 -45ft range, probably production boat, say 5'sh years old. Thanks, really enjoy the honesty and genuine content of your videos....far too many that feel like family holiday vids.

[@SailingCoco]

Heya! We are with Pantaenius and it was about £210 a month and we just update them with what areas we are with and it gets adjusted accordingly. We have always been with them with our other boats so we didn’t really shop around but the price has more than doubled for the Caribbean so I think we may start shopping around when we have some time once we get there! They did ask about each persons experience for our Atlantic crossing so it’s hard to know what sort of price guide they go by! Sorry we’re unsure what the difference would be for new cat and not but we don’t think it would be too much as our old boat, which was a second hand Colvic Countess mono wasn’t substantially cheaper! Thank you so much for the comment, we’re happy to help in anyway and love sharing the experience 😊

[@imusuallycorrect]

Sorry, didn’t understand who you said in Southampton. What is the name of the company? 8:38. Marine engineering?

[@SailingCoco]

It was Keto Marine in Swanwick Marina! The guy's name is Toby 😊

[@cimota72]

Did you end up financing the boat?

[@teddyboysdontknit810]

Strange coincidence guys, our current boat is also called Coco. But we did things the reverse to you, We first looked at buying The Fontaine Pajot 42 and then decided the 40 was more suitable, but eventually settled on a Jeanneau Yachts 51 monohull. We purchased new in 2019 and frankly, have no regrets. We are pleased we didn’t go for the Cat, but each to his own.

[@SailingCoco]

Heya!! So sorry that we missed your message!! We haven’t sorted our boat WiFi since the crossing so are a bit hit and miss with messages! That is so crazy that you’re also called Coco and have a Jeanneau ☺️ what a crazy coincidence!! Glad you haven’t got any regrets!! You have a beautiful boat!! Happy sailing and hopefully we bump into you some day!!

[@stevesteel6066]

How did afford the boat?

[@SailingCoco]

Hey Steve!! Thanks for the message! Alf started work as an electrician and worked his way to become a Director and I worked in a photography studio since I was 16 and opened my own in 2013. In 2017 we managed to save for a repossessed house, after renovating it we remortgaged it and did the same thing a few more times. We rent our properties and still have the photography studio running which gives us enough income to live onboard!

[@stevesteel6066]

Well done! Hope your both enjoying your travels

[@SailingCoco]

@@stevesteel6066 thank you!! Hope you have a great Xmas!! 😊

[@steelem422]

New subscriber hello guys

[@SailingCoco]

Hellooo and thank you!! Welcome aboard 😊