Is Owning a Boat a Good Investment?

Written by Kim Koditek

March 11, 2022

Table of Contents

Answer: It is with Boatsetter.

If you love being out on the water—or you just had an incredible experience on a Boatsetter boat rental—then the idea of buying and owning your own boat may have crossed your mind.

Generally speaking, there are a lot of stigmas, or what may seem like intimidating barriers to entry, that often scare off prospective boat buyers. Similarly, many of the same hesitations come into plan when someone is considering buying a new car or even an RV. Those who often argue about why buying a boat is a bad idea tend to raise concerns with factors like:

Initial purchase price and upfront cost;
Lack of training or confidence in operating the boat;
Maintenance and storage expenses;
Or, the fear that they won’t use the boat enough.

Luckily, today’s sharing economy (think the Airbnbs and Turos of the world) have sparked a new evolution in the way consumers think about these larger purchases and how to utilize them to their full advantage—including ways to financially supplement or even drive someone’s income and monetary success.

To support both the national and international boating community, as well as anyone with a true entrepreneurial spirit, Boatsetter has set out to change the way people think about boat ownership.

So, is buying a boat worth it? With Boatsetter, we sure think so.

Let’s dive into some of the top reasons you might want to join the thousands of boat owners across the world who are listing their boats with Boatsetter.

1. Pay Off Your Boat’s Purchase Price, and Offset Your Ownership Costs

If you have a dream of one day buying a boat, we’re here to help you get one step closer to that dream.

Boatsetter owners make an average of $20,000 or more annually by listing and renting out their boat.
It’s 100% free to join and list.
Getting started takes less than 15 minutes.

Gone are the days that your boat sits lonely in your driveway, garage, or in the marina. You can now put your boat to work, generating extra money to pay off your monthly boat loan payments, or other ownership expenses like fuel and maintenance.

Not to mention, getting paid is easy! Boatsetter handles the entire transaction from start to finish. Owners are paid securely via direct deposit within three days after each completed booking. No invoicing, no bill collecting, no hassle.

And the best part is…

2. You’re in Control

It’s your boat, so you’re at the helm (figuratively and literally, if you prefer). So you can rent your boat out on the days you aren’t using it. You have total control over:

Scheduling and availability
Booking price
Start times
Durations
Who is allowed to operate your boat

boatsetter how it works for owners

Don’t have time to manage your rentals yourself? Not a problem! You can leverage Boat Managers, who can respond to booking requests and messages, update your calendar and boat availability, and edit listings.

Additionally, boat owners can set their own qualifications to verify a renter’s experience—giving you full control over who rents your boat.

You can outline required licenses or boat operating experience in your listing description, or during your conversations with renters.

As a Boatsetter owner, you can also leverage our expansive Captains Network of U.S. Coast Guard-certified captains, or captain your boat yourself (with proper licenses).

3. Empowering Entrepreneurship on the Water

When you rent out your boat through Boatsetter, you earn up to 90 percent of the total booking price. Like we said before, you’re in control—and our team is here to support you in every way we can, offering:

1v1 coaching sessions to improve your listings
Access to online training modules and Owner Tips videos
Regularly scheduled webinars tailored specifically for our owner community

While making $20,000 a year is an average across our platform, we like to say that the ‘Sea’s the limit.’ Some of our top owners have brought home more than $200,000 in a single year.

Ready to take things a step further? Boatsetter also works with commercial boat owners and operators. You can join the hundreds of boat rental companies, yacht charter agents, fishing captains, and boat clubs across the U.S. receiving leads from Boatsetter, regardless of being an established operator or starting your boat rental business.

4. Compliance & Legitimacy of Business

Yes, we’re legit.

Following the law is our priority, and our team will be there every step of the way to ensure your success as you get started. We’ll work with you directly to make sure your rentals are compliant with all local and federal U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) regulations.

5. Peace of Mind & Insurance

Did we mention that Boatsetter is the only boat rental marketplace in the U.S. that provides peer-to-peer boat rental insurance? Meaning, no other boat rental platform offers you, as a boat owner, the peace of mind you need to embark on this kind of venture.

This is made possible through our exclusive partnership with Geico/BoatUS, which also includes on-water assistance and towing within the peer-to-peer policy. This policy is designed to protect both the owner and renter during a rental, and provides separate protection not covered with an owner’s personal insurance policy.