How To Inspect A Houseboat

Houseboats are often luxurious and always a peaceful way to spend the day. They tend to give you a life that gives you a feeling of being on a constant vacation. The sun rays that will come through your windows while you are sipping your morning coffee will just make you fall in love with your life and the houseboat as well. 

Houseboats are becoming more popular every day and are a lot of fun to rent but if you want to take the leap from renting to buying then you will want to do a very thorough inspection before you sign the contract.  

To inspect a houseboat you should hire a competent professional inspector just like when you buy a traditional house. If you do the inspection yourself you should carefully inspect the hull, motor, deck, and all the major systems such as plumbing and electrical. 

A houseboat is basically a tiny house floating on the water that will give you the love and joy of your life again. It has limited space but has the capability of offering you at least 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room and a beautiful deck with an even prettier view. You will not have to worry about the annoying neighbors and you can get fresh fish on a daily basis.

Some people may prefer living on a houseboat all year long but usually, they are preferred as summer homes and will give you the vibes of being on a vacation all the time. Most houseboats will come equipped with a motor that allows you to move around the lake or river at will and gives you the freedom to go wherever the fish are biting or the view is the best! 

A few houseboats will be stationary and won’t even have motors so they are more like a traditional home as you are stuck in one spot no matter what. 

Is an inspection of a houseboat necessary?

If it is your first time buying a houseboat, you should definitely not only inspect it but you should get a professional to inspect the houseboat. Houseboats are normally quite expensive so rather than throwing your money away paying for a competent inspector is a wise investment. 

Without inspecting the houseboat yourself or hiring a good inspector (if you are newer to boats) you are much more likely to get a houseboat with issues that you don’t know about.  To avoid any such situations, you should always inspect a houseboat before purchasing it. 

There are always going to be a lot of houseboats that you could purchase and it is your job to find one that is worth you putting in the effort, time and money. You need to select and inspect a houseboat very carefully and then buy it.

What specific things should you inspect on a houseboat?

So now that we have determined that you should inspect the houseboat or pay for an inspection the question becomes what should you inspect? 

The first thing that you should do is to look over the exterior of your houseboat very thoroughly. Carefully look at all of the areas that are the most vulnerable for getting damaged. The sun, weather and physical factors tend to damage houseboats the most and you need to buy a houseboat that has been well maintained and is not showing signs of any of that wear and tear.

The next thing you will want to inspect is the interior of the boat. 

You need to check the entire interior and carefully test and look over everything that you will be using. Turn on all the switches, faucets, etc. and make sure that everything works as it should. You will want to make sure that the houseboat you are looking at offers you enough space to do everything that you want to do on board and it should have decent storage space for all of your items. 

Pay careful attention to how things have been maintained inside the boat as often when an interior is not well maintained that does not bode well for the rest of the boat either.

The next thing that you need to inspect is the propulsion system and motor. The propulsion system is the heart and the major area that you should inspect before buying a houseboat. This would include all the aspects of the motor/motors, propellers, and all related systems. You should take the houseboat out on the water to make sure that everything runs properly as well as looks right. 

Next, you need to evaluate the age of the boat as well as the types of equipment on board that would need replaced over time. If the houseboat is too old, and nothing has ever been replaced then you might be buying a large headache. 

These are just a FEW of the things that you need to look at when buying a houseboat! This is why if you have never bought one before the money for an actual inspector is well worth it in the end. 

Check the insurance and the insurance companies that will help you get insurance and see what type of inspections they require.  Insurance is necessary because houseboats are at risk of being destroyed due to weather conditions or any other physical factors. 

Some insurance companies will require you to use their inspector while others don’t require an inspection at all. Just make sure that you know exactly what your insurance company requires so you can be sure and do it before you ever agree to buy the boat. The last thing you want to do is have your insurance say they will not insure the houseboat AFTER you have already bought it. 

Are houseboats less expensive than houses on land?

The cost factor is a troubling factor when buying a houseboat. Some people claim that houseboats are less expensive than houses while some claim that maintaining a houseboat is out of their budget. The truth is honestly somewhere in the middle of those two.  

Houseboats offer you a smaller area to live and that means it will be easier and cheaper for you to maintain the smaller area. You will have to maintain a motor which you don’t have with a traditional house but there are also things that can go wrong on a house that you don’t have to worry about on a houseboat so in regards to maintenance houseboats are normally cheaper than houses. 

The second reason why houseboats are less expensive than houses is that you don’t have to pay for a house loan or property taxes that you would have to pay if you bought a home on land. Houseboats do have some taxes imposed on them but are quite a bit less than a normal house in most areas. 

Because of these 2 major reasons, houseboats are certainly much cheaper to live in than a house on land. 

Final thoughts

After all the steps of the inspection, you can finally select a perfect houseboat for yourself and live your dream life in it. Not everyone gets an opportunity to fulfill their dream of living on a houseboat and if you get this opportunity, grab it at once. 

There are a lot of advantages of living on a houseboat but be careful, there are some serious disadvantages as well. You might not get much of a social life since houseboats are much smaller and the weather conditions on certain days will certainly make living on the water no fun. 

As long as you hire a good inspector or make sure to do a proper inspection yourself then buying a houseboat does not have to be a nightmare and it can be just another step on your journey to living the life of your dreams.