Buy a sailboat without breaking the bank

Q: Hi Gear Guy,

I want to buy a sailboat but don’t want to break the bank. What is an affordable 35 to 40-foot boat with a nice cabin I can sleep in?

— Captain Theodore, Trenton, New Jersey

A: Wow, a 40-foot sailboat with a cabin? Theodore, I want your allowance!

O.K., just for kicks, here’s an answer for you: One of the most affordable starter sailboats with a cabin is the Catalina 22 (catalinayachts.com). You can find them on the Internet used and ready to sail for as low as $1,000-$3,000. It’s not 40-feet long but a Catalina 22 is 22 feet long, has a pretty big cabin, and is probably plenty of sailboat for you.

For those readers who are just looking for a small boat to learn how to sail, the classic 14-foot Laser Performance Sunfish ($4,265; laserperformance.com) is a stable, easy-to-sail boat. And you can find a used Sunfish for as little as $500.