YOUR INCOME. YOUR CHOICES. YOUR NEXT CHAPTER.
Own a boat that earns charter income, with GRAMPA coordinating bookings and local support. Bookings help cover the costs. Eligible GST credits and business deductions can improve the numbers—and the boat and business decisions stay yours.
Commercial ownership, with GRAMPA’s proposed booking and local delivery network.A share of every paid charter contributes towards ownership.
Business interest, eligible costs and depreciation can reduce taxable income.
Your boat. Your decisions on availability, spending and when to sell.
A DIFFERENT WAY TO PUT YOUR MONEY TO WORK
Pay the tax you owe. Make full use of the deductions you qualify for. Put the difference towards a business—and a life—you actually want.
For people in the 37% or 45% income-tax brackets, a deductible business loss can make a meaningful difference. Where the whole deduction falls in one of those brackets, a $10,000 deductible business loss can reduce income tax by $3,700 or $4,500, plus a possible Medicare levy reduction.
A business loss may also reduce tax on your salary. To use this pathway, your Division 35 adjusted income must generally be below $250,000 and the business must meet an applicable test. Adjusted income includes more than salary; your ownership plan checks both requirements.
See how the ownership pathway worksFrom 1 July 2027, the new rules generally restrict using losses on established residential property against other income. They apply to properties acquired from 7:30 pm AEST on 12 May 2026. Earlier acquisitions are grandfathered and qualifying new builds retain their treatment. The legislation expressly excludes boats and other marine vessels from its residential-dwelling definition. Read the enacted changes ↗
The RBA’s August 2026 statement reported national house prices 1.6% below their March peak. That is a dated market observation; your GRAMPA plan is built around charter demand, operating costs and vessel value. RBA market context ↗
THREE PARTS OF THE OWNERSHIP EQUATION
Cash flow shows the money left after bills and loan repayments. The tax calculation also allows for depreciation. Here is how both can work in your favour.
A GST-registered commercial enterprise can claim the eligible business portion of purchase GST. In the fully commercial example below, a $168,300 GST-inclusive acquisition carries a potential $15,300 credit, bringing the net asset cost to $153,000.
Plan the payment and BAS timing before delivery. A GST credit is recovered through the tax system; domestic purchase invoices still include GST.
Under our proposed model, your business keeps $60 of each $100 in hire revenue, excluding GST, before ownership costs. The other $40 pays GRAMPA and local service providers. Bookings help cover your costs and loan repayments.
The parent’s 6% share sits within that $40. Final services and fees are agreed in your contract. Your accounts record the full hire income and the service expense.
Depreciation turns the boat’s cost into deductions over time, without another cash payment that year. Business interest can also be deductible. Loan principal reduces your debt but is not deductible. These differences can create a tax loss even when bookings cover repayments.
The worked example shows this year by year, including later tax on profits and an illustrative sale.
EXPLORE AN INDICATIVE CORSAIR 760 BUSINESS
Start with a Corsair 760 budgeted at $153,000 excluding GST, a seven-year loan and hires priced at $8,400 a fortnight including GST. Explore the first year, then the five-year picture. These are planning assumptions; demand and resale value are still to be established.
Your income changes the size of a possible tax saving. Eligibility also depends on the ATO’s adjusted-income calculation and business tests. The example includes the standard 2% Medicare levy.
After costs, loan payments and $3,000 set aside for repairs and replacements
Added to your cash result if eligible
What is left after the illustrated tax effect
Depreciation reduces taxable income without taking more cash from your account that year. Principal repayments and money set aside for future upkeep do not give an immediate deduction.
This assumes the owner can deduct the business loss from other income this year. Refund or payment timing depends on the owner’s tax return and PAYG arrangements.
These figures assume you keep the boat for all five years. The sale example follows below.
| Year / hires | Cash before tax | Depreciation | Tax profit / loss | Tax effect | Cash after tax | Loan remaining | Losses carried forward |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 / 10 | +$633 | $22,950 | −$4,524 | +$1,765 | +$2,397 | $122,907 | $0 |
| 2 / 10 | +$1,388 | $39,015 | −$18,446 | +$7,194 | +$8,582 | $106,726 | $0 |
| 3 / 10 | +$2,162 | $27,311 | −$4,450 | +$1,735 | +$3,898 | $89,028 | $0 |
| 4 / 10 | +$2,956 | $19,117 | +$6,197 | −$2,417 | +$539 | $69,669 | $0 |
| 5 / 10 | +$3,770 | $13,382 | +$14,562 | −$6,044 | −$2,275 | $48,495 | $0 |
$15,300 towards the boat, $5,000 for setup and $30,000 cash to support the business while bookings build. Allow another $15,300 to cover purchase GST until the assumed credit comes back: $65,600 before recovery, alongside the $137,700 loan.
The $30,000 starting cash covers the annual shortfalls shown here. Allow for extra cash needs between bookings and tax settlements.
AFTER FIVE YEARS, YOU STILL OWN THE ASSET
Loan repayments reduce debt. The boat’s sale value follows its condition and the market; tax depreciation is a separate calculation.
Assumptions to explore, without a resale valuation or buyback guarantee.
Tax is recalculated for a sale in year five, including the pool adjustment and loss carryforwards. Sale GST of $8,415 is collected from the buyer and remitted; it is excluded from the cash figures above.
The overall cash gain or loss, after the sale, loan repayment, tax and your initial contribution.
All trading cash stays in the business until the end; reserves are retained cash, not an extra expense. The result includes repayment of remaining debt and return of initial capital. It excludes personal use, the time value of money and any unbudgeted costs.
Acquisition & finance. $153,000 ex-GST completed-vessel planning budget. $137,700 loan at 9% nominal interest, monthly payments over seven years, no balloon. The payment is $2,215 a month. These are planning terms, not a lending offer. All acquisition items are assumed eligible for the small-business pool; the final asset register determines the treatment.
Trading. $8,400 including GST per 14-day self-tow hire; the customer supplies the tow vehicle. Rates and costs rise 2.5% each year. Costs start at $350 a hire plus $12,100 annually: $4,800 insurance, $3,600 storage, $2,500 scheduled maintenance and $1,200 tracking/compliance. All are allowances, with recoverable GST excluded. The 40% service share includes the parent’s 6%. Additional professional advice and separately scoped services need their own budget.
Depreciation. An eligible small business with aggregated turnover below $10 million elects the simplified rules. Short-term intermittent customer hires qualify under the assumed arrangements; GRAMPA acts as agent. A $153,000 pool addition is deducted at 15% in year one, then 30% of opening pool value in later holding years. This is tax depreciation, not a valuation. The example assumes the business is ready for use in the first illustrated income year. ATO short-term hire treatment ↗
Tax. Other taxable income stays constant. The 2026–27 resident schedule and ordinary 2% Medicare levy are held constant for comparison; tax is calculated across brackets. HELP, Medicare levy surcharge, offsets, superannuation consequences and other deductions are excluded. The selected income is not the Division 35 adjusted-income figure. The current-year scenario assumes the relevant boat-business requirements, adjusted-income requirement and assessable-income test are satisfied. The deferred scenario carries losses against later activity profits. A partnership needs a separate calculation for each partner.
Use & cash. Fully commercial use throughout, with no private-use allowance built into these results. There is no creator, affiliate or production income. Tax changes are shown in the year they relate to, not as a promised cash receipt date. A $3,000 annual reserve transfer remains cash until spent. No income-tax deduction or GST credit is assumed on the $5,000 setup allowance.
Sale. All selectable net sale proceeds exceed the $44,607 opening year-five pool. For that sale scenario, the excess is included in business income and no normal year-five pool depreciation is taken; the additional tax above the holding case is deducted from sale equity. Eligible selling costs reduce termination proceeds and are counted once. GST is treated separately. The owner’s actual sale, asset register and adviser determine the final outcome. ATO pool calculations ↗
BUILD THE BUSINESS FROM DAY ONE
Our starting point is a genuine, profit-seeking boat-hire business: a practical plan, market pricing, real availability, customers, records and commercial decisions you own.
Map out my pathwayChoose the owning entity, arrange ABN and GST registration, secure finance and insurance for the actual use, and agree the vessel’s operating and service arrangements before launch. Genuine enterprise preparation can start before the first booking.
For an individual, including a partner in a partnership, adjusted income must generally be below $250,000 and an applicable business test must be met. One route is at least $20,000 in annual business assessable income. The $100,000 other-assets test uses eligible written-down business values, so depreciation changes that calculation over time.
A registered tax adviser confirms the boat-business rules, loss access, depreciation method and business-use allocation. Each partner has their own tax position. A company’s loss stays with the company; the personal example here is for an individual owner business.
K’GARI FROM THE WATER · PART OF OUR GREAT SANDY VISIONMAKE ROOM FOR THE REASON YOU WANTED A BOAT
Your own island escape can be part of the ownership agreement. Our proposed owner-use allocation is up to 28 days a year, including up to seven peak days, agreed around the boat’s commercial calendar.
We price that time into your plan and record private use separately, with GST and expense claims apportioned to the actual business use. The fully commercial financial example above can then be tailored to your chosen balance.
Capture something worth sharing. Genuine filming work can support your boat’s marketing: a walkthrough, sailing guide or destination story. Agree a production brief and record the work and finished content. Keep private holiday time separate.
YOUR DAY JOB CAN STAY YOUR DAY JOB
You own the watercraft and retain decisions on pricing, available dates, budgets, borrowing, major work and future sale. GRAMPA prepares the work around those decisions.
National marketing, central bookings and a consistent customer experience connect your boat with people looking for their next sailing holiday.
Regional operations coordinate preparation, handovers, maintenance and local knowledge, under the agreed service scope. Practical support makes ownership work alongside a busy life.
THE PLATFORM WE’RE BUILDING
A private workspace to track your boat, organise the finances, upload footage and approve the next step.
AGENTIC AI ACCOUNTANT
Booking settlements, expenses, vessel assets and use logs brought together for reconciliation, workpapers and registered professional review.
BUSINESS MANAGER
A living business plan and cash forecast built around your actual boat, funding and customers. Review performance, compare options and approve the next step.
PRODUCTION STUDIO
Drone, GoPro or phone footage shaped into a main film, vertical shorts, thumbnails, captions and a publishing pack for your review.
CREATOR & MARKETING
Optional owner channels, walkthroughs and commissioned content can help the right customers discover your boat. You retain control of your media rights.
Owner enquiries and the private briefing workspace are open. Automated service engines are in development; scope, timing and any service fee will be agreed before work begins. Creator income is additional potential and is excluded from the financial example.
Our fleet vision spans Hobie Tandem Islands, the first planned Corsair 760 trailerable trimarans and eventual Seawind 1160 XL cruising catamarans.
Each has its own capital requirement, operating area and customer. We assess the vessel and region individually, then build a plan around how you want the business—and your time on the water—to work.
PUT YOUR OWN NUMBERS ON THE PAGE
Tell us about your boat, preferred region and goals. We’ll start mapping the commercial case, funding, services and owner time into one practical ownership plan.
Bring an existing boat or an ambition to acquire one. The first step is an owner conversation.
Existing partner? Open your workspaceGeneral information and indicative planning figures, checked 7 September 2026. Your adviser applies the rules to your circumstances before acquisition or a tax claim.
GRAMPA is being developed by Dobson Development Pty Ltd, with business-name registration being prepared. Richard Dobson uses your details to respond to your owner enquiry and plan onboarding. Access is limited to authorised administrators. We ask before sharing your information with a service provider.
Enquiries are reviewed after 12 months and deleted when no longer needed. For access, correction or deletion, contact Richard.
