Let’s hypothetically assume we can deposit CHF 300 monthly into a savings account and earn CHF 2,000 annually from a side activity. Sure, these are modest figures, but it’s better to make a “conservative” estimate rather than exaggerate and later realize we’re not reaching our goal.

Let’s take the savings calculated previously and look at the forecast over 10 and 15 years:

Clearly, with these figures we’ll have to settle for a modest boat, but if we look at the 10-year savings, we could get a boat around CHF 60,000, fix it up with another CHF 15,000, and travel for 3 years – not bad, right?

Or alternatively, we could settle for a boat around CHF 40,000, do a refit with CHF 10,000, and use the remaining CHF 100,000 to travel for 4 years.

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Last update: Aug 11, 2015 @ 19:14

L'articolo Savings Forecast – Preparing Finances for Departure (Part 4) proviene da Yamana - Sailing Life.

Thanks to my great passion for sailing and the contacts I’ve made with some operators, I started a side business organizing cruises and sailing courses through my portal www.free-time-activities.com.
In addition to sea activities, I also handle the sale of nautical clothing and accessories, helping new boat owners outfit their boats. These activities allow me to increase my monthly income.

This portal also serves another purpose: to make myself known so that when I set off, I can promote my project. My budget won’t allow me to buy a new boat, but the idea is to get one (like the Moody 376) with nice, comfortable, and spacious cabins to host one or two couples on board. I don’t want it to become a business, as I still want to enjoy this life on the boat without too many people on board, but hosting a couple on board for one week a month would mean having an income of about 1,000 Euros, halving the estimated monthly expenses. If I manage to take two couples on board in one week, the monthly expenses would be fully covered.

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Last update: Aug 10, 2015 @ 09:20

L'articolo Increase Revenue – Prepare Finances for Departure (Part 3) proviene da Yamana - Sailing Life.

We live in a society where people are increasingly in debt: if once there was mainly just the mortgage, today there’s car leasing, installments for the television, installments for the microwave and for every smallest and most trivial thing. Personally I don’t like having debts, in fact the only one I have at the moment is the car lease. In less than a year the contract will end and I’ll have to evaluate what to do.

On one hand, leasing allows you to always have a new car and this avoids having repair costs and various surprises that you would have with an older used car. It’s true though that at the end of the contract I’ll still have to put a certain initial sum on the table to get a new car on lease, I would always have the monthly payment to make (currently CHF 330/month) and I would have to continue paying comprehensive insurance mandatorily (currently CHF 1,350/year). And this just for a car that I use to make at most 12 Locarno-Menton trips per year (when I go sailing) and some small evening trips around Locarno.

Buying a good used car, or taking over the current leased car (in this case I would also know that it’s in excellent condition), would allow me to:

• eliminate comprehensive insurance, probably lowering car insurance by CHF 600
• eliminate monthly lease payments (CHF 330 x 12 = CHF 3,960)

Overall I could save CHF 4,560 per year and would no longer have debts.

Another very common debt is the mortgage on the house. A few years ago I was looking to buy an apartment, but then I didn’t conclude anything.
For those who have this debt, there are two paths to take: if you intend to take only a few sabbatical years, the option of renting out the house during your absence is probably the most sensible one. You would have a monthly income and upon return there would still be the house. Clearly this option implies a certain financial responsibility, because non-payment of rent can become a problem.

The other possibility is to sell the house, thus extinguishing the debt and also getting something for the cruise.

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Last update: Aug 9, 2015 @ 06:00

L'articolo Eliminating Debt – Preparing Finances for Departure (Part 2) proviene da Yamana - Sailing Life.

Many people think that to undertake such a project, you need to be wealthy, but that’s not necessarily the case. It’s more important to know how to save, and there are many ways to do so, here are a few:

• opening a savings account
• life insurance (third pillar)
• purchasing stocks and funds
• changing lifestyle, avoiding unnecessary expenses

The savings account: is the first place people think of depositing their savings. Unfortunately, the interest these accounts yield nowadays is really negligible, we’re talking about 0.15% or less. However, it’s still worth setting a monthly amount (according to one’s possibilities) which will be automatically transferred from the checking account to the savings account.

Life insurance (third pillar): is another interesting and fairly safe savings method, allowing you to pay a set monthly amount agreed with the insurer for a certain period. There are variants with higher returns based on secure funds that still guarantee a minimum return in case something goes wrong.

Stocks and funds: is certainly riskier compared to a savings account, but if purchases are made wisely, choosing, for example, stocks of solid companies that may pay dividends annually, these can yield several percentage points over the years. It’s definitely an option to consider for diversifying the various ways of saving.

Lending: is an investment system that is also emerging in Switzerland. Basically, there are companies that evaluate and issue loans for businesses and individuals, but at the same time, it’s the individuals and businesses that fund these loans, earning up to 10% of the amount invested in the loan (clearly depending on the risk taken).

Lifestyle change: when we are on the boat, we will inevitably have to change our lifestyle (unless we have a nice bank account), control costs, and avoid unnecessary expenses. Why not start right away? It’s very interesting to see how it’s easier to save than to find ways to earn more! And this without too many sacrifices…

Personally, I started setting up a list of monthly expenses and, for example, I realized that:

• I watch TV very little and can do without the Italian “trash” channels. I canceled the TV subscription, purchasing the satellite system with the RSI card (a one-time payment).
• I can get the internet from my office downstairs, so I canceled the home connection.
• the company “flat” mobile subscription allows me to use the phone privately as well, thus eliminating the private phone.
• I pay some membership fees to associations I haven’t participated in for years, eliminated those too.
• if I were to quit smoking, I would first gain in health, but I would also save a lot.

In short, if I just take these detailed points, we see that the savings are substantial:

• TV and internet subscription: CHF 74.- x 12 = CHF 888.- / year
• mobile phone: CHF 99.- x 12 = CHF 1,188.- / year
• membership fees: CHF 300 / year
• cigarettes: CHF 8.- x 365 days = CHF 2,920.- (minimum!)

With just these 4 points, I can save CHF 5,300.- a year!

Then there are those expenses resulting from impulsive purchases, often related to electronic “gadgets” that I love so much, but after a brief enthusiasm, they end up forgotten in some corner of the house collecting dust. Before buying something, I’ve made it a habit not to take it immediately and to reflect on whether there is a need, saving me money here too!

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Last update: Aug 8, 2015 @ 18:09

L'articolo Saving – Preparing Finances for Departure (Part 1) proviene da Yamana - Sailing Life.