Boat Clubs - Boating at Retirement Without the Hassles of Ownership

Although we will have more time on our hands at retirement, the last thing we want to deal with is maintenance and repairs. If you’re a boater, have you considered a membership based boat club instead of owning a boat? Established in 1989, Freedom Boat Club is the largest boat club in the country with locations in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee which are considered the best states to retire in the Southeast.

Here’s how boat club membership works: After you join the boat club in your area, call ahead and the boat of your choice, depending on membership level, will be fueled and waiting for you at the dock. Scoot off for a day on the water to discover new sandbars, tube with your kids or catch dinner. At the end of the day, bring the boat back, leave the keys with the Freedom Boat Club attendant and head home to cook your fresh catch of the day on the grill. No boat ramps to deal with and no washing the boat.

Too good to be true? Could boating be that easy? Boater owner’s chuckle and say “the best day to own a boat is the day you buy it and the second best day to own a boat is the day you sell it”. As a previous boater owner, I know first hand, boat maintenance is costly and can quickly ruin your day on the water, if you even leave the dock. Add to the maintenance cost, the initial investment and/or boat loan, insurance and storage costs and you will find the annual expense of owning a boat can quickly add up.

We enjoy 'people watching' at the ocean inlets along the coast, watching boats come and go. You can quickly lose the sense of a dollar, watching expensive boats head off shore, boats exceeding $1 million dollars. The cost to purchase a boat can make cars look cheap in comparison, when you start shopping around. Used boats can seem like a ‘steal’ initially and become a financial hole in the water stealing your retirement savings. Why spend this kind of money at retirement unless you’re rich?

Consider the concept of boat clubs. The cost savings, convenience and flexibility of membership boat clubs, is a good way to test the waters if you’re considering owning a boat. Ask any boat owner and you may discover, boat usage becomes less and less over time as the newness wears off.

You may not know, Freedom Boat Club’s flexibility allows boat usage at sister boat clubs, up to four times a year. For example, if you joined the Fort Lauderdale Freedom Boat Club, you could utilize boat club privileges at the Freedom Boat Club in Southport North Carolina, four times in the same year. There are 19 Freedom Boat Club’s in Florida, 2 in Georgia, 2 in North Carolina, 5 in South Carolina and 1 in Tennessee. Boat clubs in the best states to retire we find of particular interest are:

Lake Burton for boating in northern Georgia

Seabrook Island South Carolina for boating in Charleston

Knoxville Tennessee - Best Places in the U.S. to Boat & Live (Boating Life Magazine)

Southport North Carolina for boating in Wilmington

We plan to research more information about Florida boat clubs as we upload more best states to retire. Contact Freedom Boat Club direct for a quote on boat club membership and please tell them we sent you.

Enjoy boating made simple by Freedom Boat Club.