New boat help. Is t worth it for the extra foot

I got the nickname "Northwind" when fishing Lake Erie.

Seemed like everytime we went out the wind blew the opposite direction they said it would.

(Canada always trying to push it's cold miserable weather our way)?

I hated when those big waves came in and you were looking straight up into the sky and then straight down into the lake with the water crashing over top of the deck and the bilge pump screaming to give it a break. 

Those Erie winds can pick up in a hurry.

If I was buying specifically for Erie I'd buy a bigger used boat than a smaller new one.