Boat Club or Buy a Boat? Why Most People Moving to the Treasure Coast Should Join First (2026)

Oct 9

Quick answer: For most people moving to the Treasure Coast, joining a boat club beats buying a boat, at least for the first year or two. You pay a one-time entry fee and monthly dues, and the club owns, insures, stores, cleans, fixes and hurricane-preps a fleet of 18 to 28 foot boats at marinas in Port St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, Stuart and Vero Beach. Owning the same boat means a purchase that loses 20 to 30 percent of its value in the first year, plus a slip or dry storage, insurance, maintenance, registration and a plan for every named storm. The one real caution: two Treasure Coast clubs shut down without notice in September 2026 and members lost their entry fees, so join a club with a real parent company, read the contract, and pay by credit card.

Somewhere around the second showing, a lot of my buyers from up north say the same thing: "And we're going to get a boat." I understand. You can see the water from half the neighborhoods I show, and the whole point of moving here was to use it. But I've watched enough people buy a boat in their first month in Florida and sell it, at a loss, eighteen months later that I now give everyone the same advice. Join a boat club first. Buy later, if you still want to. Here's the math, the local clubs, the thing that went wrong this fall, and the cases where buying is still the right call.

What a boat actually costs here

The boat is the cheap part. Florida has more registered boats than any state in the country, more than a million of them, and every one of those owners is paying for a place to keep it, a policy to cover it and someone to fix it. Here's what that looks like for a typical first boat, a 22 to 25 foot center console or deck boat.

Cost	What to expect
Purchase	Roughly $50,000 to $75,000 new for a 22 foot center console. Florida charges 6 percent sales tax on boats, capped at $18,000, and the county surtax only applies to the first $5,000
Depreciation	The big one nobody budgets for. Boats lose about 20 to 30 percent of their value in the first year and half or more by year five, depending on who's counting. On a $60,000 boat that's $12,000 to $18,000 gone before the first anniversary
Dockage or storage	Wet slips on this coast run roughly $15 to $30 per foot per month, dry stack about $10 to $15. For a 25 foot boat, call it $300 to $750 a month, if you can find a space; slips are tight on this coast
Insurance	Small boats with basic coverage can be a few hundred a year. Florida's average is among the highest in the country, about $839 a year by one large insurer's 2023 to 2024 numbers, and bigger boats run $1,000 to $2,000 and up. Read the named storm deductible; it's usually not the same as the regular one
Maintenance	Budget about 10 percent of the boat's value a year. Salt water, sun and a four stroke outboard that wants its 100 hour service add up fast. A $50,000 boat means about $5,000 a year, not counting the thing that breaks
Fuel	Yours either way, but owners tend to run bigger engines. A weekend out on a twin outboard can be $200 or more
Registration and extras	Florida registration is $11.25 to $195.50 a year by length. Then the trailer tag, bottom paint, electronics, safety gear, the tow vehicle you now need, and the storm haul-out when a hurricane turns toward us

Boat Trader's 2025 ownership budget put the annual cost of running a $50,000 boat at roughly $15,000 to $45,000 a year before any loan payment, and a marina in Jupiter that does both slips and club memberships figures the club saves a typical Florida boater $6,000 to $10,000 a year. Those are industry numbers and they vary, but I've never seen an honest version of the math where a 25 foot boat you use twice a month costs less to own than to borrow.

What a boat club is, and what it costs

A boat club owns a fleet of boats at one or more marinas. You pay a one-time entry fee and monthly dues, then book boats online, show up, and the dock staff has the boat fueled, cleaned and loaded with your cooler. When you get back you hand them the keys and go to dinner. The club carries the insurance, pays the slip, does the maintenance and deals with the hurricane. You pay for the fuel you burn and nothing else.

Clubs don't publish prices, which annoys everyone, but the ranges are not a secret. Industry guides and the marinas that host clubs put entry fees at about $2,000 to $5,000 and monthly dues at about $300 to $500, with cheaper weekday-only plans and pricier unlimited ones. The clubs themselves say membership runs about a third of what owning costs. Get a written quote from the location you'd actually use; prices differ by marina, by plan and by season.

The rules that matter: how many boats you can hold reservations on at once (four rolling reservations, booked up to six months ahead, is the standard at the biggest club), whether weekends count the same as weekdays, how far you can take a boat (most clubs limit range and ban overnights and the Bahamas), and whether your membership works at other locations. The largest operator, Freedom Boat Club, has more than 450 locations in 35 states and several countries, and members can book at the others when they travel, subject to the host club's rules. That reciprocity is worth real money if you have family on the Gulf Coast or in the Northeast.

Why the club wins for most people in their first year here

You don't know the water yet. The St. Lucie Inlet shoals and shifts, and locals treat it with respect. The Fort Pierce Inlet is the one people call the all-weather inlet on this coast. The Indian River Lagoon is shallow outside the channel and the sandbars move. Every club includes training with licensed captains, unlimited at the big ones, and you get a few dozen trips of local knowledge before you ever risk your own lower unit.
Your HOA probably won't let you keep it at home. Most of the gated communities on this coast ban boats and trailers you can see from the street. Florida's 2024 law (HB 1203) stopped associations from policing what's hidden behind your house, but a boat in the driveway is still fair game. So the choice isn't "slip or driveway," it's "slip or storage lot," and both cost money every month.
Hurricane season is the club's problem. June through November, every owner on this coast watches the cone and plans a haul-out, a double tie-up or a trailer run inland. Club members watch the weather and go to the pool.
You get to find out what kind of boater you are. People move here certain they want a center console, then discover they spend every Saturday on a sandbar in the Indian River with a cooler, which is pontoon work. Or the reverse. A club lets you take the pontoon to the sandbar, the center console to the reef and the bowrider up the North Fork, all in the same month, before you spend $60,000 finding out.
Your weekends go to boating, not boat work. Owners spend a surprising share of their water time washing, flushing, charging and fixing. The club version is drive, boat, hand over the keys.
Snowbirds get the best deal of all. If you're here November through April, ask about seasonal or part-year plans. Paying for a slip, insurance and storage twelve months a year on a boat you use six is where a lot of ownership math falls apart.
It fits the lock-and-leave lifestyle. The same buyers who want a gate, a maintained yard and the freedom to leave for a cruise or a month up north are the ones who should not own a 25 foot boat sitting in salt water while they're gone. (My cruise port guide covers the other half of that lifestyle.)

Where the clubs are on the Treasure Coast

As of this fall there's one club with real footprint from Vero Beach to Stuart, and a couple of other ways to get on the water without owning. Marinas and franchise owners change, so confirm every location before you sign anything.

Option	Where	What to know
Freedom Boat Club, Port St. Lucie	Sandpiper Bay Marina, on the St. Lucie River	Run by the local St. Lucie County franchisee. River, lagoon and the ocean through the St. Lucie Inlet
Freedom Boat Club, Fort Pierce	Fort Pierce City Marina, downtown	Same franchisee. Minutes to the Fort Pierce Inlet, the spoil islands and the reef. Pump-out, fuel and showers at the marina
Freedom Boat Club, Vero Beach	Vero Beach	A separate local franchisee covering Indian River County. Indian River Lagoon access, with the Sebastian Inlet to the north and the Fort Pierce Inlet to the south
Freedom Boat Club, Stuart and Hutchinson Island	Club directory lists Riverwatch Marina and Harborage Yacht Center in Stuart, Pirate's Cove Marina in Port Salerno and a Hutchinson Island location	Since September 2024 the Martin County locations are run by the company itself, not a franchisee, as part of a corporate territory that runs from Stuart to Pompano Beach
Peer-to-peer rentals and charters	Apps like Boatsetter, plus local captains out of Stuart, Fort Pierce and Vero	If you'll boat five or six times a year, renting by the day or hiring a captain can beat even a club. No commitment, and someone else drives the inlet

If you're deciding between towns and boating is a big part of the decision, my Port St. Lucie versus Stuart guide and the fishing guide cover the inlets and the water in more detail.

What went wrong in September 2026, and how to protect yourself

I'd be doing you a disservice if I left this out. In early September 2026 two boat clubs on the Treasure Coast closed within days of each other. Carefree Boat Club Treasure Coast, which had locations in Fort Pierce, Stuart and Vero Beach, told members it was ceasing operations on September 9; its Fort Pierce office had already gone dark weeks earlier, with members showing up to an empty building and phones that rang to full mailboxes. JetRide Boat Club closed its Stuart location on September 1 along with its Gulf Coast clubs. Members told WPTV and CW34 they'd paid $3,000 to $4,000 in entry fees and deposits, some were billed after the clubs stopped operating, and neither company committed to refunds. Carefree's parent company said each club is independently owned and pointed members back to the local licensee, which wasn't answering the phone. A smaller Stuart club at Pirate's Cove, Premier Boat Club, closed its office in 2024 the same way, according to member reviews.

Carefree blamed inflation, the cost of boats, financing, insurance, dockage and labor, softer demand, storm disruptions and falling boat values. All of that is real, and it's the same list of costs you'd be carrying yourself as an owner. The lesson isn't that boat clubs are a bad idea. It's that a boat club is a business, and you want to join one that will still be there next spring. So:

Ask who actually owns the location. A club run by the parent company, or by a franchisee with years in the market, is a different risk than a two year old licensee. Freedom is owned by Brunswick, the publicly traded company that builds Boston Whaler and Sea Ray and Mercury outboards, and it has been around since 1989. That's not a guarantee, but it's a balance sheet.
Read the contract for the exit, both ways. What happens to your entry fee if the club closes or sells? What's your notice period? Is there an annual commitment, and does it auto-renew? If the answer to the first question is "nothing," price that in.
Pay the entry fee with a credit card, not a check or a wire. Federal law gives you the right to dispute a charge for services you never received, and a card company will fight that fight for you. The members who lost the most this fall were the ones who had no one to call.
Prefer monthly dues over prepaying a year, even if the discount is tempting.
Drive to the dock before you join. Count the boats, look at their age, ask how many members share them and whether the weekend you want is bookable. Call the dock line on a Saturday and see if a human answers.
Keep a copy of everything, including the booking screenshots. If a club does fold, the paper trail is what a dispute or a small claims case runs on.

I'm a REALTOR, not a lawyer, and I'm not affiliated with any club. But I've had clients on both sides of this, and the ones who paid by card and read the contract came out fine.

When buying is still the right call

Some people should own a boat, and I'll be the first to say so. Buy if you'll be on the water 50 or 60 days a year, because at that point dues plus the reservation limits start to pinch. Buy if you want to cross to the Bahamas, anchor out overnight or run a tournament, because clubs generally won't allow any of that. Buy if you need a specific boat, a flats skiff for the lagoon or a 32 foot offshore rig, that no fleet carries. And buy if the real goal is a dock behind your house, because at that point the boat is part of a real estate decision, and that's my department.

If that's you, the questions change: fixed bridges between the dock and the inlet, depth at low tide, the age of the seawall and the lift, the flood zone and what it does to insurance, and whether the community allows the size of boat you want. Deepwater communities on this coast include Sailfish Point at the St. Lucie Inlet, Harbour Ridge and Piper's Landing on the St. Lucie River, Loblolly in Hobe Sound with its own marina and a boat to the beach, Grand Harbor and The Moorings in Vero Beach, and Harbour Isle for a marina condo near the Fort Pierce Inlet. Each guide covers the dockage situation.

One more thing from the owner side. If you buy, buy used. Someone else already paid the first year's depreciation, and a two or three year old boat from a dealer who serviced it is the best value on the water.

The plan I give buyers

Join a club the month you close. Use it hard for a season and keep a list of what you actually do out there: sandbar, reef, river cruise, fishing, sunset with a drink. By month six you'll know what kind of boat you'd really use and how often. In year two, decide. Most of my clients renew the club. The ones who buy do it knowing exactly what they want and where it will live, and if "where it will live" is a dock behind the house, we go shopping for that house together, with the boat in mind from the first showing. Either way you've been on the water the whole time, which was the point.

Questions buyers ask about boat clubs

How much does a boat club cost on the Treasure Coast?

Clubs don't publish prices, but industry guides and host marinas put typical entry fees at about $2,000 to $5,000 and monthly dues at about $300 to $500, depending on the plan. Weekday-only plans cost less and unlimited plans cost more. Fuel is extra. Get a written quote from the exact location you'd use; prices differ by marina and by season.

Which boat clubs are on the Treasure Coast in 2026?

Freedom Boat Club is the main one, with locations at Sandpiper Bay Marina in Port St. Lucie, the Fort Pierce City Marina, Vero Beach, and several Stuart-area marinas including Riverwatch Marina, Harborage Yacht Center, Pirate's Cove in Port Salerno and Hutchinson Island. Carefree Boat Club's Fort Pierce, Stuart and Vero Beach locations and JetRide's Stuart location closed in September 2026. Confirm any location directly with the club before joining.

Is it cheaper to join a boat club or buy a boat?

For most people who boat two to four times a month, the club is cheaper by a wide margin once you count depreciation, a slip or storage, insurance, maintenance and registration. Boat Trader's budget for a $50,000 boat runs roughly $15,000 to $45,000 a year before loan payments. Ownership starts to make sense at 50 or more days a year, or if you need a boat type or a range that clubs don't offer.

Can I take a club boat offshore or to the Bahamas?

Offshore, usually yes within a set distance in good weather; the Fort Pierce and St. Lucie inlets both lead to reefs a few miles out. The Bahamas, overnights and anchoring out are generally not allowed. Every club has a range and weather policy, so read it before you join if offshore fishing is the goal.

What happened to Carefree Boat Club on the Treasure Coast?

Carefree Boat Club Treasure Coast told members it was ceasing operations at its Fort Pierce, Stuart and Vero Beach locations effective September 9, 2026, after the Fort Pierce office had already closed without notice. JetRide Boat Club closed its Stuart location on September 1, 2026. Members reported losing entry fees and deposits of $3,000 to $4,000 and being billed after the closures. If you were affected, dispute any post-closure charges with your card company and keep every document.

Can my HOA stop me from keeping a boat at my house?

In most gated communities, yes, if the boat or trailer is visible from the street or a neighbor's lot. Florida's HB 1203, effective July 1, 2024, bars associations from restricting items that can't be seen from the parcel's frontage, adjacent lots, common areas or a golf course, but a boat in the driveway is still enforceable. Check the covenants for the specific community before you buy either the house or the boat.

Do I need a license to drive a boat in Florida?

Florida doesn't issue a boating license, but anyone born on or after January 1, 1988 must carry a Boating Safety Education ID card to operate a boat of 10 horsepower or more. The course is online and inexpensive. Boat clubs also require their own orientation and offer on-water training with licensed captains, which is the part that actually keeps you off the sandbar.

Talk with William. If boating is part of your move, tell me how you want to use the water and I'll point you to the right town, the right community and, if you want one, the right dock. Call or text (772) 800-2274 or send a message.

General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Club prices, locations and rules change often; confirm current details in writing with the club. William Merchant is not affiliated with any boat club. William Merchant, REALTOR®, RE/MAX Gold. Each RE/MAX office is independently owned and operated.

Sources

William Merchant