BoatCostReal ownership math

Wet slip vs trailer — which costs less?

Trailer storage is cheap until it is not. Wet slips win on convenience and lose on the invoice.

BoatCost uses three storage modes.

Trailer

A trailer at home is modeled as $250 a year in warm states and $500 in cold states (insurance, lights, a little maintenance, maybe a storage parking fee). It is the cheapest line on purpose. You still pay for a truck, a hitch, and your Saturday morning.

Wet slip

Annual wet-slip cost is length × slip per foot per month × months in the water. Coastal states with high demand (Florida, California, New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Washington, New Jersey) use higher per-foot rates. Gulf and Florida boats stay in the water 12 months.

Dry stack

Dry storage is length × dry rate × 12. It is often the middle path: less bottom paint, more forklift fees.

Winterization

Cold New England, Great Lakes, northern plains, and mountain states add 350 + 8 × length for winterization. Warm states add nothing.

If you are deciding between a slip and a trailer, change storage on the calculator and watch the fixed pile move. The boat did not get more expensive. The parking did.