Every once in awhile a reader drops me a line with a good deal he's seen on a boat and yesterday it was an Irwin up in New Haven...
... that was going for less than $3000 and, from the looks of the picture, a pretty good deal.
Of course, there's a catch. Every boat in the world that's for sale at any price has some lurking problem, issue, or something that needs to be fixed. It's just the nature of things that float.
In this case, I doubt seriously that if done right, any needful fixes or repairs could be done for a couple of thousand dollars. Done wrong, on the other hand, it would be a black hole for you to throw money into.
If you need help on the Right/Wrong thang I highly recommend Dan Spurr's "Spurr's Guide to Upgrading Your Cruising Sailboat" which I still find to be the best source for information on how to best fix up an old plastic boat...
Meanwhile, in my own backyard, there's a clean Hunter 30 with an engine (outboard) that works, wind generator and solar panel for $8K...
Lots of good boats for sale for not a lot of money these days.