Living afloat....How much?

[andy b]

You are certainly knowledgable on this subject, too much detail for my liking though.

 

For my own experience I am planning on a 7 year forecast, then my forces pension will increase substantially. The next point of interest after that is pension age 65 for yet another cash injection. Should I still be "aboard" I guess I have my finances sorted even with inflatiion.

 

All this is well and good but, I could get run over or move back on land or many other things, too numerous to dwell on. So I think one should really consider short term implications of the thing and not get too caught up in the future.

 

Ask yourself where you expected to be now from the point of view of 5 or 10 years ago, I suspect you would be a country mile out, I know I would.

 

I have moved approx every 2 years since I was 20 and lived in countless locations, I have a serious case of wanderlust which is the reason I am now going to liveaboard 300 miles from my current home. Mostly my moving was due to the nature of military life but I still continue the tradition having moved 3 times in the last 4 years. My hope is that having a boat I can satisfy this by just upping sticks every time I feel the urge.

 

Factor in my other land based expenses:-

 

Cost of setting up and closing down letting agents fees plus a silly fee every 6 months.

Moving furniture

Selling furniture that wont fit in

Buying it back when the next place doesnt have it

Redirection of mail

Mid term adjustments to car insurance

Cost to inform all relevant utility suppliers

 

Having to front 6 months rent because I have retired early and dont have a job as security (therefore loss of earnings on savings)

 

Dare I say TV licence and Council tax.sticky subject!!!!

 

I just hope I have got it right but concede that it doesnt really matter, its all just a path on the road of life, another adventure to behold.

 

To sum up, dont put it off JUST DO IT, worry about it later, if you aint got enough wedge, get another job, ebay your assetts meet a rich person, the options are endless,

 

I am rabbitting on

 

Keep it real.

I see that Anhar is being very realistic, but I kinda like the JUST DO IT option. I suppose lifes short and surely if you didnt GIVE IT A GO you may always regret it.

Thanks for all the posts.

It will be 5or 6 years before we take the plunge,I will monitor price increases and see if the 10% rise materialises.

Meanwhile, as I go to work every day, I just cant wait to be a CCer

[Bones]

it never crossed my mind to work out whether I could afford to live on a boat - but then it was better than the option I had at the time!!!

 

As with all things, one makes it work. I have certainly found that boating does lend itself to constant monitoring of finance rather than land dwelling. If I don't have money to fill the diesl, then I don't. Same with the heating etc. One is a lot more conscious about spending as you can see where your money goes as you go along. The only thing people may not really have control over is maintenance on the boat itself - but even that is something you can account for.

 

I am pleased I acted now and thought later, otherwise I would be living in a bus shelter somewhere.

[bottle]

'Affording' to own and run a boat is not an exact science, it is like many things if you sat down (advisable) and worked out the cost of having a child, running a car etc.

 

You cannot afford it but the majority of us do, somehow.

 

Yes it is sensible not to go into it blindly but sometimes it is better just to go for it.

 

A lot of platitude there but I think you will understand, my heart is ruling my brain as to boating (with some common sense)

[anhar]

I see that Anhar is being very realistic, but I kinda like the JUST DO IT option. I suppose lifes short and surely if you didnt GIVE IT A GO you may always regret it.

 

Andy you started this thread by asking about costs. When I and other readers give you some figures you then come back by agreeing with the advice to "just do it". If costs don't matter to you then why ask? Another reader said the figures I laid out showed too much detail! Either people want an idea of costs or they don't. How can you have too much detail if you want to know? That sounds exactly like someone who doesn't want to know. In which case why contribute to this thread. "Just do it" might apply to a venture that costs little money but as you know buying and running a boat is a pretty major outlay. They cost more to run than small houses.

 

My figures were aimed primarily at the retired types used to living in property who are the great majority of those becoming liveaboards. These people live on pension and investment income and mostly cannot increase that income by getting work etc. It is critical in my view for anyone in that situation to analyse present costs and estimate future cost and income rises. I don't see any attraction whatsoever in merely hoping that it will all be okay without doing a bit of calculation to see if you will still comfortably be able to afford it all a few years later. Running short of money to the extent that you become desperate to find ways to save costs, and having no possibility to do much about it, is not my personal idea of heaven. More like hell. The boating dream would quickly fade if you're too hard up to turn on the heating or whatever.

 

I guess there are a lot of "just do it" retired romantics out there. Perhaps that explains the high number of recent second hand quality boats for sale under three years old, very likely all owned by retired types who "just did it" and now have to take a big loss.

 

For younger people still in work, a small minority of those becoming liveaboards, then "just do it" might be more applicable. These people still have a whole range of possibilities in their lives to earn more money or change their lives in other ways. But the farties amongst us don't have all those options. Hard cash assumes a much greater presence in our lives in most cases I'd say.

 

regards

Steve

Edited September 29, 2006 by anhar

[Bones]

Steve is absolutely right. It is better to know what it all costs before entering into a new way of life - especially if you have a particular way of life. My approach to boating/life/whatever is perhaps a little more rustic than most people would live with. I wouldn't recommend anyone 'just does it' unless they live a simple life and don't mind a certain lack of standards. People often think they can cope, but in actual fact even for me several months in the heart of winter without heating or lighting or water does get a bit trying. If you are wealthy, then you don't need to consider the costs because you can dip into your pot of gold to sort it out. If you aren't rich, it is better to know what your limits are before entering into a new way of life - especially one where your home is resting in a pond of icy cold water!

[Hairy-Neil]

 

 

........ but the maximum amount they would pay (for any property) was only 80% of the market value.

 

 

 

How much were you expecting to get?

 

The bottom line of this sort of deal is the company are in effect buying your house and renting it back to you. The 20% is to cover in advance, all the rent that would have been paid till your death terminates the agreement.

 

They are in effect guessing/gambling on your life expectancy. Profit is involved, they are not offering this as a charitable public service. Were you to live to 117 like the lady in the paper last week you would win hands down......

[Crazy Scheme]

I agree with Steve - if you've been used to living in a house with the heating whacked up for most of your life, washing machine and dishwasher to hand, then you are really going to have to think how you'll manage.

 

Most of the liveaboards on our moorings are used to the simple life. No one (to my knowledge) runs anything more than a stove for heating or uses more electricity than would need a small genny or a few solar panels to power. My partner spent years living in an unheated shed whilst he worked on a farm, and a large amount of our neighbours are from travelling families, so it's a standard of living that everyone is well used to and content with, but others might regard as 'roughing it'. Most of our neighbours are 20's - 40's, no retired people and the majority have lived aboard for four years plus. The cost of living is generally cheap, but that's because of the hard graft everyone puts in, doing their own repairs, swapping favours (as so many are involved in boat building/renovating anyway and have the relevant skills) , collecting wood and generally being tight. I think you have to ask yourself if you will be happy living like this, do you have any skills to live like this, would you have the energy to live like this, (it can be hard work chopping pallets up for firewood!) and if not, can you afford to get through £££ gas bottles like nobodys business and keep up with £££ maintenance of various gadgets, just to approach the kind of standard of living you are used to.

 

I agree you really do think about every single penny on a boat. It does kind of force you to think about stuff more than a house does and there is always something that needs fixing.

 

I'm in my 30's and we made the decision to liveaboard now, moving into a house will be something we do when we retire! Our next task being to find a buy to let property- so we are kind of doing things the opposite way round to others I guess!

Edited September 29, 2006 by Crazy Scheme

[bottle]

 

How much were you expecting to get?

 

The bottom line of this sort of deal is the company are in effect buying your house and renting it back to you. The 20% is to cover in advance, all the rent that would have been paid till your death terminates the agreement.

 

They are in effect guessing/gambling on your life expectancy. Profit is involved, they are not offering this as a charitable public service. Were you to live to 117 like the lady in the paper last week you would win hands down......

 

Hi Hairy

 

This was a sell and walk away deal, I did expect a reduced amount but 20% less, no.

 

I will bide my time and hope the house sells on the open market.

 

I only looked at it because my boat build is booked for the spring and it would have been used as an emergency fund raiser if the house has not sold.

[Noah]

........................moving into a house will be something we do when we retire..............

Why?

 

If love your lifestyle like it seems you do, do you not wish to end your days happily on a boat? At 43 I'm hoping to live aboard my boat permanently ASAP and only return to land if serious illness or infirmity strikes. I sometimes see an old chap in his late 70's chopping wood on the towpath beside his boat. He tells me it's the activity and the lifestyle in general that keeps him going. He could afford to buy a house if he wanted but he is very contented. I hope to be just like him!

 

Noah

[Crazy Scheme]

Why?

 

If love your lifestyle like it seems you do, do you not wish to end your days happily on a boat? At 43 I'm hoping to live aboard my boat permanently ASAP and only return to land if serious illness or infirmity strikes. I sometimes see an old chap in his late 70's chopping wood on the towpath beside his boat. He tells me it's the activity and the lifestyle in general that keeps him going. He could afford to buy a house if he wanted but he is very contented. I hope to be just like him!

 

Noah

 

We 'might' stay on a boat forever, but I can't forecast what the future holds. If we get ill or infirm, I like to think that it's a good thing to have a property to fall back on. But you are right, it does keep you fit, I cycle everywhere now, due to the lack of public transport around our marsh, plus theres all the other physical stuff to keep us fit.

 

I'm pleased that we are doing the boating thing while we are younger, anyway, couldn't wait the thirty years or so to retire, anyway!

Edited September 29, 2006 by Crazy Scheme

[Hairy-Neil]

Hi Hairy

 

This was a sell and walk away deal, I did expect a reduced amount but 20% less, no.

 

My mistake, I took it in the context that it was a reply to Noah's comment on "one of those companies who let you still live in it and profit only after you're dead".

[steaming floater]

I see that Anhar is being very realistic, but I kinda like the JUST DO IT option. I suppose lifes short and surely if you didnt GIVE IT A GO you may always regret it.

 

Andy you started this thread by asking about costs. When I and other readers give you some figures you then come back by agreeing with the advice to "just do it". If costs don't matter to you then why ask? Another reader said the figures I laid out showed too much detail! Either people want an idea of costs or they don't. How can you have too much detail if you want to know? That sounds exactly like someone who doesn't want to know. In which case why contribute to this thread. "Just do it" might apply to a venture that costs little money but as you know buying and running a boat is a pretty major outlay. They cost more to run than small houses.

 

My figures were aimed primarily at the retired types used to living in property who are the great majority of those becoming liveaboards. These people live on pension and investment income and mostly cannot increase that income by getting work etc. It is critical in my view for anyone in that situation to analyse present costs and estimate future cost and income rises. I don't see any attraction whatsoever in merely hoping that it will all be okay without doing a bit of calculation to see if you will still comfortably be able to afford it all a few years later. Running short of money to the extent that you become desperate to find ways to save costs, and having no possibility to do much about it, is not my personal idea of heaven. More like hell. The boating dream would quickly fade if you're too hard up to turn on the heating or whatever.

 

I guess there are a lot of "just do it" retired romantics out there. Perhaps that explains the high number of recent second hand quality boats for sale under three years old, very likely all owned by retired types who "just did it" and now have to take a big loss.

 

For younger people still in work, a small minority of those becoming liveaboards, then "just do it" might be more applicable. These people still have a whole range of possibilities in their lives to earn more money or change their lives in other ways. But the farties amongst us don't have all those options. Hard cash assumes a much greater presence in our lives in most cases I'd say.

 

regards

Steve

 

 

I think I get your drift, but as to my own circumstances, I cannot afford to live on land, I dont own a property, my ex saw to that, so its never clear cut who wants what from life aboard.

 

No amount of future planning will detract from my last 3 years worth of expenditure on rent of £500 a month, all from savings. The remainder of my savings have bought a boat and even doing some simple sums about 5 years worth of boat life is equivalent to the future rent outlay. Hopefully my boat will still be worth something then, or I can capitalize by still living on it rent free.

 

JUST DO IT

[andy b]

I see that Anhar is being very realistic, but I kinda like the JUST DO IT option. I suppose lifes short and surely if you didnt GIVE IT A GO you may always regret it.

 

Andy you started this thread by asking about costs. When I and other readers give you some figures you then come back by agreeing with the advice to "just do it". If costs don't matter to you then why ask? Another reader said the figures I laid out showed too much detail! Either people want an idea of costs or they don't. How can you have too much detail if you want to know? That sounds exactly like someone who doesn't want to know. In which case why contribute to this thread. "Just do it" might apply to a venture that costs little money but as you know buying and running a boat is a pretty major outlay. They cost more to run than small houses.

 

My figures were aimed primarily at the retired types used to living in property who are the great majority of those becoming liveaboards. These people live on pension and investment income and mostly cannot increase that income by getting work etc. It is critical in my view for anyone in that situation to analyse present costs and estimate future cost and income rises. I don't see any attraction whatsoever in merely hoping that it will all be okay without doing a bit of calculation to see if you will still comfortably be able to afford it all a few years later. Running short of money to the extent that you become desperate to find ways to save costs, and having no possibility to do much about it, is not my personal idea of heaven. More like hell. The boating dream would quickly fade if you're too hard up to turn on the heating or whatever.

 

I guess there are a lot of "just do it" retired romantics out there. Perhaps that explains the high number of recent second hand quality boats for sale under three years old, very likely all owned by retired types who "just did it" and now have to take a big loss.

 

For younger people still in work, a small minority of those becoming liveaboards, then "just do it" might be more applicable. These people still have a whole range of possibilities in their lives to earn more money or change their lives in other ways. But the farties amongst us don't have all those options. Hard cash assumes a much greater presence in our lives in most cases I'd say.

 

regards

Steve

Hi Steve.

Sorry to seem so flippant, Your data backed up the information already received.

 

I suppose all our circumstances are a little bit different. The JUST DO IT option was more a notion of saying life is short and if you really want to do something then sometimes you must throw caution to the wind! To live a dream, for however long has its own rewards.....

 

My own circumstances would have built in backups, the worst scenario being a return to life on land. As I said I would be trying early retirement (50 or so) so working if necessary is an option.

The information I requested is for my use, how other people use the information is up to them.

 

If your 10% scenario came to pass then I think a great many CCers may get into difficulty, I appreciate the warning but if the figure is more like 5% then maybe people who see your figure and decide not to JUST DO IT will miss out on THEIR dream

 

By the way, I have lived through mortgage interest rates of 15%, now thats something to worry about for all those with large houses on large mortgages. . A return to rates like that would make life as a CCer seem like a dream.

[Scotty]

I've looked into this and here are some rough figures. Obviously it will vary according to the way you use your boat such as whether you have cassette or pump out toilet, how much you cruise, how frequently you black it, the kind of heating you have etc. My figures are for a comfortably centrally heated, well maintained boat.

 

The fixed costs of licence, insurance, annualised cost safety cert. £850

 

Engine fuel depends on hours cruised, say 600hpa at 1.5l/h at 60p/l £540

 

Central heating, if diesel, consumes 06l/h. Depends on hours used. For retired liveaboards it is likely to be on almost 24 hours a day in the coldest months. Say eight months at 24h/d with a duty cycle of 50% for the boiler makes about 2,900h. Cost 2,900 at 0.6l/h at 60p/l £1,044. Gas c/h would cost at least as much and possibly quite a bit more.

 

Maintenance: Annualised cost of blacking £250. Pump outs every two weeks at £12 a pop, £312. Other sundry maintenance say £250pa. Total annualised maintenance £812

 

Total of the above £3,246.

 

What for many will be the single largest payment of all, mooring, must be added. Costs for this vary a lot. If you have a permanent marina berth then this might cost £2,500 pa including shoreline electricity. A canalside slot will be a lot less. If you are a continuous cruiser you avoid it completely. In your case with a winter mooring only, add in say £1,000 for that. I am ignoring council tax because this applies principally to those with residential moorings which are a minority.

 

Grand annual total £5,746 to include a permanent marina mooring at £2,500. Someone paying a mooring at £1,000pa would total £4,246 and the figures can be adjusted similarly for any particular mooring costs.

 

Clearly, it is possible to get away with less than this. Some costs cannot be reduced but those that can are heating if you are prepared to rough it with just a solid fuel stove without ch and burn free wood in it if you can find enough. Similarly if you don't cruise much you'll save on engine fuel. But I'm assuming you wish to live in comfort comparable to a heated house and travel the system a bit. Pump out charges can be avoided by having a cassette toilet.

 

I would add that these costs are very likely to rise a lot faster than general inflation. A guide I would suggest is 10% pa, which doubles the total every seven years.

 

On top of all that of course comes the normal living expenses that you'd have anywhere such as food and the rest of it according to your lifestyle.

 

My conclusion is that is is certainly possible at present to live on a boat comfortably on a net income after tax of £14,000pa. However, and this is very important, is that income likely to rise at the same rate as boat costs by say 10%pa as I suggest? Probably not I'd guess and if not, the safety margin between your income and your expenses will gradually erode. You need to try and ensure that there doesn't come a point in the rest of your boating lifetime where you can no longer afford to live on the boat in the style you wish.

 

A further point is that giving up property to live on a boat could be a risky move if you find at some stage for any reason that you need to return to a land property. Given the way that property prices tend to rise long term, you could be in the difficult position of not being able to afford to do so if you haven't got sufficient capital. You can't rely on the appreciation of the boat value which may not happen at all. For the first few years it will likely lose value.

 

regards

Steve

Forgive me for digging up an old thread, but it's a year on and the price of boating is rising faster than ever.

How close were Steve's calculations?

How many that 'just did it' still are?

[honey ryder]

im still "just doing it"

its nearly a year for us, we started in december, and now we are rapidly approaching that time again, i can take stock of a year of boating for us and try to average it out

 

i think our annual costs if we divide it out as an average and assume hull blacking is roughly each 3 years then our costs of running our boat is around £2500

 

not accounting for the loan we (I) have of course, which would more than double that above number

 

that is us living pretty much comfortably with decent heating ( free wood as much as we want) running the gas boiler occasionally, running a gas oven for sunday roasts, running the engine everyday for around 2 hours (upto 8 when cruising which is frequently as we CC), etc etc.

 

I definitely dont feel like im slumming it or having to put up with anything I wouldnt have to if I lived in a house/flat/hobbit hole, ive got far nicer views than most marina dwellers, ive got good neighbours too at the moment.

 

I hope one day in the future ( not too distant ) that I can move away from the canals/rivers and find a coastal spot and a boat with a rag n stick. The costs are not dissimilar to living on the canals except theres rarely an option for free mooring.

[StoneHenge]

We are still 'just doing it' it too after 15 months. I haven't done a calculation on our first year exactly as this will be an inflated figure as we did loads of re-fitting on the boat, but at a rough guess we have spent £8,000 on our first year, but I expect that to drop a little for our second year as we won't have all the huge refitting to do.

 

I always calculate a monthly cost for everything. So I take blacking for example as £450 (to have someone do the job) at £450 divided by 24 (2 years), and that's my monthly cost to put away. I do the same for license costs (plus 10%), safety cert, insurance, RCR cover etc, insurance for car, MOT, Service (boat and car) etc. Anything that carries a yearly charge, or something that only needs doing every year/six months, I allow for each month in my salary, then put that away in a savings account, so it earns interest over the year.

 

Then we have the emergency money (tyre burst, fan belt goes, anything like that) just in case something happens and we need it.

 

The rest is then split into a weekly amount which is to spend on food and stuff throughout the month.

 

That way I don't get a big shock when the license renewal comes through as we already factored it in, and can just pay it.

 

We also keep a book, so anything we buy that is to do with maintenance or improvements (new flooring, kitchen, new lights etc, paint, brushes etc), we put down everything in a book, so we know when the work was done, what the paint cost, where we got it from, so if we need to find anything again, we have an idea what it cost, where to get it, when the work was done.

 

So then we have the running costs of the boat, the car and can see where and if we can make cuts. This is just based on one salary.

[bottle]

Angela ?

 

Absolutely brilliant, if only a few more people did that then there would not be so much uncontrolled debt in this country.

[Travis]

Oh Dear.

[debbifiggy]

My Wife and I are thinking of retiring early, selling the house and cruising for 8-9 months per year, marina for the rest. We have only had a narrowboat for 1 year (short breaks) and would like to get some idea of the total cost of income required for living afloat. The live aboard will be 58ft.

A friend of mine and his wife have an income of around £14,000 and say that they live comfortably off this amount. (Everything is included, mooring, maintenance, housekeeping, occasional pub meals, etc)

 

Any advice would be helpfull!

If you haven't already please check out the BW licence fee rise consultation document. Think licence fees are going to up effectively 40 or more per cent over the next three years, moorings similar or more, and then we've lost red diesel too so do your sums carefully before committing.

 

Best of luck. Hope you have enough to live the dream 'cause that's what I want to do too.

D

[colin1325]

I've looked into this and here are some rough figures. Obviously it will vary according to the way you use your boat such as whether you have cassette or pump out toilet, how much you cruise, how frequently you black it, the kind of heating you have etc. My figures are for a comfortably centrally heated, well maintained boat.

 

The fixed costs of licence, insurance, annualised cost safety cert. £850

 

Engine fuel depends on hours cruised, say 600hpa at 1.5l/h at 60p/l £540

 

Central heating, if diesel, consumes 06l/h. Depends on hours used. For retired liveaboards it is likely to be on almost 24 hours a day in the coldest months. Say eight months at 24h/d with a duty cycle of 50% for the boiler makes about 2,900h. Cost 2,900 at 0.6l/h at 60p/l £1,044. Gas c/h would cost at least as much and possibly quite a bit more.

 

Maintenance: Annualised cost of blacking £250. Pump outs every two weeks at £12 a pop, £312. Other sundry maintenance say £250pa. Total annualised maintenance £812

 

Total of the above £3,246.

 

What for many will be the single largest payment of all, mooring, must be added. Costs for this vary a lot. If you have a permanent marina berth then this might cost £2,500 pa including shoreline electricity. A canalside slot will be a lot less. If you are a continuous cruiser you avoid it completely. In your case with a winter mooring only, add in say £1,000 for that. I am ignoring council tax because this applies principally to those with residential moorings which are a minority.

 

Grand annual total £5,746 to include a permanent marina mooring at £2,500. Someone paying a mooring at £1,000pa would total £4,246 and the figures can be adjusted similarly for any particular mooring costs.

 

Clearly, it is possible to get away with less than this. Some costs cannot be reduced but those that can are heating if you are prepared to rough it with just a solid fuel stove without ch and burn free wood in it if you can find enough. Similarly if you don't cruise much you'll save on engine fuel. But I'm assuming you wish to live in comfort comparable to a heated house and travel the system a bit. Pump out charges can be avoided by having a cassette toilet.

 

I would add that these costs are very likely to rise a lot faster than general inflation. A guide I would suggest is 10% pa, which doubles the total every seven years.

 

On top of all that of course comes the normal living expenses that you'd have anywhere such as food and the rest of it according to your lifestyle.

 

My conclusion is that is is certainly possible at present to live on a boat comfortably on a net income after tax of £14,000pa. However, and this is very important, is that income likely to rise at the same rate as boat costs by say 10%pa as I suggest? Probably not I'd guess and if not, the safety margin between your income and your expenses will gradually erode. You need to try and ensure that there doesn't come a point in the rest of your boating lifetime where you can no longer afford to live on the boat in the style you wish.

 

A further point is that giving up property to live on a boat could be a risky move if you find at some stage for any reason that you need to return to a land property. Given the way that property prices tend to rise long term, you could be in the difficult position of not being able to afford to do so if you haven't got sufficient capital. You can't rely on the appreciation of the boat value which may not happen at all. For the first few years it will likely lose value.

 

regards

Steve

hi steve good imformative answer

dont forget if there are stoppages you could moor for free in winter would the solid fuel burner not provide much heat for the boat i watched a p[rogram on the good old box and matey on there was living on and was just leaving solid fuel on for as long as pos and reckoned he has to open the hatch to let the heat out . i suppose it will depend how big the boat is though . if you r cc. it logically means that you have to cruice 26 day s of the year someone said that you can cruise for an hour for a litre of fuel ? dont know but if thats right say £1.00 lite = 208 a year ie 208 hours crusing . does that make any sence

[colin1325]

hiat present im in cornwall yearly i reckon i must pay leci 1200 = gas 650 = water 550 = insu 400= fuel 2000 - tv 120 rates 1100 car cost -maint 400

i think thats about it so 6500 roughly probably left a few thing s out

too much i think

[bottle]

Will, probably, not be any cheaper on a boat.

 

Just spent in a different way.

 

Many years ago a figure of £5,000 was often quoted as the running cost of a boat, now, with all the increases announced, licence and diesel being just two, I suspect it will be getting nearer to the £6,500 mark.

 

I am sure that some can do it cheaper but there will also be those that it costs more.

 

For instance in London it will probably cost that just for the mooring.

[colin1325]

hiat present im in cornwall yearly i reckon i must pay leci 1200 = gas 650 = water 550 = insu 400= fuel 2000 - tv 120 rates 1100 car cost -maint 400

i think thats about it so 6500 roughly probably left a few thing s out

too much i think

oh car tax insurnce well no car tax in my case now but loads of tings maan

[wrigglefingers]

We're now eighteen months in and my expense acount shows that we continue to spend a lot on maintenance - but then we did have the boat painted this year.

 

Running costs are -

 

Gas £80/year (cooking only)

Coal £250/year

Wood about £50/year but in truth nearly free from a friend

Diesel £375/year but we've not been out much this summer.

Electricity £460/year

Licence c£600/year

Insurance c£440/year

Marina c£1800/year

 

Maintenance so far (not including painting and refurbishment) has been £872. Painting and refurbishment has added a further £3223 to the bill.

 

So, not including refurb and painting I make that £4927 or so plus the painting and refurbishment costs coming to £8150 this year. I sould also add some depreciation costs into that figure as well to make it more realistic.

 

Overall, I don't think that living on a boat is a cheaper option, but it wasn't why I chose to do this. I could find cheaper insurance, do less maintenance and leave the marina but I chose not to do those things so there's a cost attached. I do generally consume less though and consume it more thoughtfully and that makes a big difference to my life.

 

Regards, Jill

[honey ryder]

compare and contrast folks. we live on ours, theres 2 people and a small dog.

 

Gas £75 ( used for cooking and a gas boiler - we have to use 6 kg bottles which are more expensive than bigger ones)

Coal £0 so far we have only used up what coal was on the boat when we bought it, which was one bucket full

Wood about £0 we get all ours free

Diesel £390 - we constantly cruise, but we dont like cruising far

Electricity £0 its included in the diesel price above

Licence £540 (2007-2008)

Insurance £165

Marina £0 we cruise

 

maintenance: £ 2500

this includes around 1000 for hull blacking, and the rest is general maintenance like gettingthe boiler repaired, replacing the curtains, servicing the engine, servicing the stove, new fridge and new sofa

 

Now, if we add on the enforced costs when we bought the boat because we were stuck in a marina... for 3 months, plus the buying of the boat and surveying

 

survey £500

lift out for survey £350

BSC £100

moorings £1000

electricity £35

 

I havent included my car and food i eat and the extra £200 each it costs us to commute to work. plus the extra 3-4 hours each per day we commute. (it used to be 10 mins for me and 60 mins for him)