Well folks, I am trying to convince my wife that I "need" a boat. But first I need to make a realistic view on how much it will cost to buy and own. But I need to figure out how much should I expect to spend for a basic fish/play boat in the used market (looking at something that doesn't need more than 25-40hp max). And also what other costs should I consider, mainly storage since I don't have a real place to put it at home. Btw, the boat will be used for lakes only (e.g. Castaic, Perris, DVL, etc)

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Sonny

2004 - 6 Bass 2 Trout $219.20 in Gear

Because of the lakes you are going to fish (espically DVL) you are gojng to need somthing with a Four Stroke on the back which is going to up the cost a bit.

I look all the time on boattraderonline.com even though I am about a year away from buying (and I have been looking ever week for two years) You may find a boat for around 5 grand if you are lucky (I have found some great deals that I would have bought if I had had the money) most of the boats you could find in the 8 to 10 grand range like this one (I picked one randomly not pushing any ones boat)

http://www.boattraderonline.com/caddetail.html?/ad-cache/6/3/4/68600834.htm

Lotta ins, lotta outs, lotta what have-yous

I agree with john. socal lakes will be severely frowning on 2-strokes within 5 years. tahoe has already banned them. the 4-strokes are environmentally friendly and get great gas mileage (good selling point to the wife)
bass tracker makes a great bass boat. aluminum boats are easy to trailer and require very little maintenance. and they're priced reasonably.
A used 16' (or 18') would probably work very well for you, if this is your first boat. Dont sweat a boat if it dosen't have a bow-mount electric. electric motors don't cost a lot and are relatively easy to install.
when it comes time to retire my Gregor, I will probably look at the BassTracker first.

Maintenance? Maybe $150 per year for motor & trailer check-up.
NO WAXING REQUIRED :)

Storage? a 16' will fit in the garage. :o

EDIT: Try to find a boat with a motor that matches the maximum rating for the hull - it won't have to work as hard as an underpowered boat. and used, it should be about the same price.