Yes, living on a houseboat is often significantly cheaper than a traditional home…
More and more people, especially retirees and cash-rich divorcees, students looking for a different kind of “accommodation”, single parents, are opting for a peaceful riverside existence.
You’ve got some pros and cons of living on a #houseboat. The freedom to explore Britain’s waterways at a moment’s notice, fresh air, an outdoorsy lifestyle and the chance to bond with nature, a strong community spirit, unrivalled waterside views, no stamp duty, no council tax for continuous cruisers, and also an opportunity to live in city centres or exclusive postcodes at a fraction of local bricks and mortar prices.
Many people mistakenly believe living on a boat will be a lot cheaper than in a house. But the cost of living varies considerably depending on the vessel size, type, how often it’s used and where you moor it. Craft related costs include waterway and boat licencing, mooring fees (to be able to live on a houseboat in London, of which there are two kinds: short-stay and long-stay. Both vary in price and depend on the length of your boat, as well as the duration of your stay), insurance, a boat safety certificate and ongoing maintenance expenses.
So, boat living can be a fantastic way of life but it comes with its own challenges such as having to fill up with water, empty your toilets, do lots of hands-on maintenance and, if you don’t have a home mooring, moving your boat every 14 days to somewhere new. Sometimes people can get a bit of a shock, especially in winter, when they realise it’s not just a floating house. So, we advise that you should only move aboard if you really love the lifestyle….
There are things you have to consider that you wouldn’t when living in a house on the land. These range from having to physically take your boat out of the water every few years for repainting to getting used to having “boat legs” when you’re back on land.
Most of the boats you see on London’s canals have what’s known as a Continuous Cruiser Licence, which costs between around £500 and £1,100 per year depending on boat size, and means they have to move along every two weeks or risk ‘eviction’. This is a much tougher lifestyle than it may seem. Cruisers are required to move between 16 and 20 miles per year, meaning often they’re in remote parts of London that they don’t know well….
If in a modern marina you are likely to be paying for electric hook-up (in the past, those meters could wiz round very fast, but I understand that regulations are now in place to prevent that from happening unfairly). Out on the cut, if continuously cruising, you will need to run your engine to charge batteries and heat water, so there is the cost of diesel (the cost per litre depends on where you buy it – we have noticed differences of more than 30p per litre between marinas situated less than 10 miles from each other). Heating bills, well some coal perhaps. Approximately you will need about two 25kg bags of coal per week (approx £10) in winter.
According to some research into the cost of living in a narrowboat in London versus renting a flat, it’s cheaper than living in a flat.
The cost of buying a flat in London will depend a great deal on the location. The average price of a one-bedroom flat in London is now around £480,000 but it is worth bearing in mind that, as a general rule, the further away from the city centre the property is, the cheaper it will be. There are a number of schemes in place to help first-time buyers onto the property ladder, including the shared ownership scheme.
The price of buying a narrowboat depends on the amount of space you want and the amount of work you are willing to do. It is possible to pick up a 'project' for as little as £15,000 or you could spend around £150,000 on a high-spec new boat. When choosing a boat, it is worth noting that the size of the vessel can affect mooring costs as fees are typically charged per foot. The average narrowboat is around 57ft due to the size of UK locks and as a rule of thumb the cost of a narrowboat is around £1,000/ft, however, this can vary greatly.
Anyway, living on a narrowboat can be a more affordable way to live in London, particularly if you are looking to buy as the boats tend to be far cheaper than a flat or house. However, you must keep in mind that this is a lifestyle choice and requires a great deal of thought. Living on the water gets you closer to nature, the music of birds and splashing, the swaying of the boat in the wind, the patter of rain in a thunderstorm. You will share your neighbourhood with noisy otters, and seabirds, fish for your dinner, and feel the seasons roll around and the world change. Still interested????
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