Finding a Long Term Boat Rental

[Amy K]

Hello,

 

I'm a young professional looking to rent and liveaboard for a 1yr minimum stay, possibly longer.

My grandfather owned a canal boat and I often spent time on it, which is the only boating experience I have but I love the whole process of living aboard, the work and the peace of it.

I'm moving to London soon, and I am desperate to find somewhere to live on the water. I've tried Gumtree, and ApolloDuck, but I feel I'm just scratching the surface. In your experience, what's the best way for me to go about finding somewhere? As I don't have the largest budget in the world, I might have to find a housemate but there don't tend to be many 2 bedroom narrowboats, let alone ones that cost under £900pcm. Perhaps I'm more likely to find somewhere living with a landlord/lady?

 

Any advice on this matter would be hugely appreciated.

 

Kind Regards,

Amy

[Lady Muck]

Hi Amy,

 

Canal boats are seldom rented to people the owner doesn't know.

They are rarely advertised, it tends to be a word of mouth thing. This is because-

 

There is more risk than a house, more to go wrong so anyone renting prefers to rent to someone they know and trust, usually someone with boating experience.

Although many 'boat landlords' do not realise it, most boat rentals of this nature are illegal. Why?

One needs a commercial license, insurance, a different boat safety certificate and a proper hire base (needs to have it's own parking, refuse disposal, elsan, water etc) in order to rent a boat out legally. Seeing as all CRT moorings do not allow this and probably most marinas and private moorings it can be a non starter.

If anything goes wrong and the insurers find out the boat was rented out, they won't pay.

If you don't know much about boats then this can be very dodgy indeed, seen an onboard fire and a sinking on rented boats in London.

Of course some people do it and get on fine, but I think you need to know the risks.

 

What can you do? Well some people do a share boat contract instead. You buy a small share in the boat and 'rent' the rest of it. The only 'legit' boat 'hire' place I can think of that does this is http://etrr.co.uk/ I did know a couple who rented from them, I have to say the boat was expensive (£900pcm) and in poor condition with knackered batteries. Yes expensive but they can't do cheaper and make a profit due to the insurance etc.

 

Sharing is a non starter on a canal boat due to space. Great majority of narrowboats don't have two bedrooms, but if they did, it's such a small space they tend to be suitable only for families and couples. You would find you have to walk through the other bed cabin to get to the bathroom or kitchen.

 

Why not consider renting a room on a Thames houseboat share instead? Very different, but legal and a good deal cheaper. Got friends who have done this and it is a great introduction to the water.

 

Here's a Google to start you off.....

 

http://bit.ly/QSrbGR

Edited September 25, 2012 by Lady Muck

[Amy K]

Hi Lady Muck,

 

Thank you for the info, I am still going to keep an eye out for rentals - though I believe sure your advice is sound and sensible. I shall have a look into shared boat contracts and Thames houseboats as alternatives though - thank you for those tips!

 

Kind Regards,

Amy K

[Wanted]

Hi Lady Muck,

 

Thank you for the info, I am still going to keep an eye out for rentals - though I believe sure your advice is sound and sensible. I shall have a look into shared boat contracts and Thames houseboats as alternatives though - thank you for those tips!

 

Kind Regards,

Amy K

 

Hello Amy, I rented, Illegally for four years, I understood the risks that LM has mentioned and took the gamble. I'm not prepared to either recommend or dismiss it because there are some compromises that you will have to make which challenges the standard landlord / tenancy relationship. First off, you don't have security of tenure on a boat, less so if it's illegally rented on a leisure moorings or a cc license. Secondly, things go wrong on boats more than they do in a home. Most of us have excepted that as the way it is, keep a load of tools and perversely enjoy tinkering with things. However, don't expect a landlord who will come around every time a fuse pops or pump starts making noises in the night. This forum helps with that stuff! Finally, it won't take long before you realise how much you are spending on a boat that isn't yours, yet you have developed an attachment to because of the work you have done on it.

 

If, like us you can get over these things then you will have a great time and probably end up falling in love with your neighbours boat and buying it....

 

As LM has said, just understand the ins and outs.

 

Good luck

[alan_fincher]

That's very sensible advice from both Lady Muck and Wanted, that has most of the bases covered, I think.

 

They have given pretty balanced views, and I don't think anybody else is likely to say it better.

[Athy]

Probably not, Alan, but the forum often receives this kind of enquiry and usually this alternative suggestion is made:

- Buy a boat. Live on it for a year. Then sell it. Amy, as a professional person you're obviously earning a regular salary, if you do not have enough capital to buy a boat (think £10,000 for a small oldish one, £20,000 for something larger and quite nice), you can get a "marine mortgage". (Some people are in a position to apply to the Bank Of Dad in such situations, obviously we don't know your circumstances.) Depreciation on older second-hand boats is not usually significant, so at the end of your year you would not lose much if you sold your boat.

 

If you decide to investigate that route and want to know what to look for (and what to avoid!), don't be afraid to ask questions on here.

[Lady Muck]

And on that note, just be very careful if you decide to do,'rent to buy.' This is another common way of buying a boat in London, especially with the skint, but again its not legal so if anything goes wrong you could lose your boat, as we've seen happen, in London when a boat owner died and his family took the boat and sold it rendering the renter homeless.

He had no legal recourse to claim the boat.

[dor]

And then there is the question of finding a mooring. In London.

[alan_fincher]

And then there is the question of finding a mooring. In London.

Well, I suppose if you don't want absolutely central London, and are prepared to pay enough it is not impossible to get a fully residential mooring.

 

Quite by chance another Engineers Wharf vacany turned up in my inbox this moring.

 

But it does have a reserve price of £5,189, (so effectively £100 per week), even if nobody else actually bids to put the price up......

[Amy K]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions,

 

I'm not quite in a position to think about buying just yet but it's certainly a future consideration. As for having to maintain the boat, I'm happy to get my hands dirty and do what I can, and this forum seems like a wonderful place to aid in that!

The legality of it and landlord-tenant relationship is certainly something to consider, though I've known friends of mine go into perfectly legit flat-shares in London where the landlords have absolutely screwed them over, and I'm pretty sure the boating community is less likely to produce sharks such as these.

 

Many Many thanks for all your help,

Amy

[Wanted]

Sounds like you know the score, gpod luck and shout if you need help.

[Lady Muck]

I'm pretty sure the boating community is less likely to produce sharks such as these.

 

Don't assume that boaters are all lovely and fluffy. We come in all flavours. We've seen the same scams as you'd get with land-based landlords. As long as you've got a finely tuned bullsh*t detector you'll be fine.