How much does it cost to live aboard a boat?

[{186113}]

Hi I am learning about sailing and boats right now and wondered is it expensive to live aboard a boat or is it pretty much minimal outgoings please? Thanks, Holly x

 

[nortada]

Hi I am learning about sailing and boats right now and wondered is it expensive to live aboard a boat or is it pretty much minimal outgoings please? Thanks, Holly x

Hi Holly,

Welcome to the forum. Simple answer is, how long is a bit of string

Might sound flippant but without more detail you are asking an impossible question to answer.

All I would offer, it is not buying a boat is the most expensive, it is the subsequent running and maintenance. Life style (marinas/at anchor) is another big factor. Then there is location - South of France costs more than say, Morocco.

To get a specific answer, you need to ask a specific question.

All the best in your adventure.

ps Where are you now and do you plan to venture overseas or remain in the UK.

 

[{186113}]

Hi Holly,

Welcome to the forum. Simple answer is, how long is a bit of string

Might sound flippant but without more detail you are asking an impossible question to answer.

All I would offer, it is not buying a boat is the most expensive, it is the subsequent running and maintenance. Life style (marinas/at anchor) is another big factor. Then there is location - South of France costs more than say, Morocco.

To get a specific answer, you need to ask a specific question.

All the best in your adventure.

ps Where are you now and do you plan to venture overseas or remain in the UK.

Hi thanks for the reply. I am really interested to learn more as my dad is about to live aboard and I want to learn about it all. I'm only 21 and live in Derbyshire which is not near a coast but may move down to Devon where he will be so am researching it all. I will get more details and ask more then thanks for your response its really appreciated. Holly x

 

[Tranona]

There are potentially so many ways of living on board boats that it is impossible to give a simple answer. Just as some people live on limited budgets on land and others live in luxury, the same applies, although the choices are far more limited because of the limited number of places available to moor a boat where you are allowed to live aboard, particularly if you wish to combine that lifestyle with conventional work and socialising.

However given that this is a forum dedicated to people who do (or aspire to) live on boats it is obvious it is possible. However most contributors live abroad and are either retired or are cruising on their boats. So not really representative of the wider boat dwelling population in the UK.

 

[Ningaloo]

Is your father planning to cruise from place to place or stay on one place? All year round or just the summer? UK or elsewhere?
These are the major variables.
Personally I live on my boat during the warmer months, up to 5 months a year. My costs for cruising with an 11m boat are between £500-1000 / per month. This covers moorings and fuel, but not other living expenses (food). Winter storage and liftout costs about £1500. Insurance about £500.
Living this way is significantly less than paying rent and council tax for a house!
I am mostly based in EU. South Coast (especially Solent) likely to be more expensive.
One summer I was based in Haslar, Portsmouth and my neighbours were year round live aboard, with regular jobs.
It can be done but I wouldn't like to cope with the winter, although if you look at my profile you'll realise I do all I can to escape winter completely!

 

[syvictoria]

Is your father planning to cruise from place to place or stay on one place? All year round or just the summer? UK or elsewhere?
These are the major variables.
Personally I live on my boat during the warmer months, up to 5 months a year. My costs for cruising with an 11m boat are between £500-1000 / per month. This covers moorings and fuel, but not other living expenses (food). Winter storage and liftout costs about £1500. Insurance about £500.
Living this way is significantly less than paying rent and council tax for a house!
I am mostly based in EU. South Coast (especially Solent) likely to be more expensive.
One summer I was based in Haslar, Portsmouth and my neighbours were year round live aboard, with regular jobs.
It can be done but I wouldn't like to cope with the winter, although if you look at my profile you'll realise I do all I can to escape winter completely!

(My bold.) I'm sorry, but I either misunderstand your figures or I have to disagree. It can in no way be said that £500-1000 pm is significantly less than rent and council tax almost anywhere in the UK outside of London. £750 pm would generally see you in a comfortable 1 bed flat (arguably equivalent to a boat!), and in a three bed house in many areas!

 

[Sandy]

Hi thanks for the reply. I am really interested to learn more as my dad is about to live aboard and I want to learn about it all. I'm only 21 and live in Derbyshire which is not near a coast but may move down to Devon where he will be so am researching it all. I will get more details and ask more then thanks for your response its really appreciated. Holly x

Hello Holly

I'm based in Devon and might have some local knowledge.

Different marinas, moorings charge different amounts depending where they are. Overwintering on a boat can be "challenging" especially if your dad's health is not tip top. I have a couple of pals who live aboard and spend the summer on a mooring and winter in a marina.

 

[{186113}]

Is your father planning to cruise from place to place or stay on one place? All year round or just the summer? UK or elsewhere?
These are the major variables.
Personally I live on my boat during the warmer months, up to 5 months a year. My costs for cruising with an 11m boat are between £500-1000 / per month. This covers moorings and fuel, but not other living expenses (food). Winter storage and liftout costs about £1500. Insurance about £500.
Living this way is significantly less than paying rent and council tax for a house!
I am mostly based in EU. South Coast (especially Solent) likely to be more expensive.
One summer I was based in Haslar, Portsmouth and my neighbours were year round live aboard, with regular jobs.
It can be done but I wouldn't like to cope with the winter, although if you look at my profile you'll realise I do all I can to escape winter completely!

Hi thanks he wants to live aboard and find a place to stay I think but he is talking about moving around to escape the winter but he's not made his mind up I don't think fully yet. Wow the costs are still a lot I guess but for sure not as much as a house hmm I'm thinking he is right doing what he is doing. Thanks, Holly x

 

[{186113}]

Hello Holly

I'm based in Devon and might have some local knowledge.

Different marinas, moorings charge different amounts depending where they are. Overwintering on a boat can be "challenging" especially if your dad's health is not tip top. I have a couple of pals who live aboard and spend the summer on a mooring and winter in a marina.

Hi oh wow that's fab he is looking round the marinas as we speak is there any ones that you would recommend as I don't think he is set on any specific area just as long as the marina is nice. Thank, Holly x

 

[V1701]

A lot depends on whether he needs to work - if so a 12 month marina berth is really the only viable option, I pay about £5k per year for a 34' boat. Mains electricity is not included but water and access to good showers are. If he doesn't need to work, or can work wherever there's internet access then many more possibilities become feasible. I'd say if you choose your boat well and do pretty much all your own maintenence & fixing it can be a more economical alternative to renting but it is not for everyone. You should recommend this forum to your Dad it's a great place for advice, just avoid the lounge...

 

[PlanB]

There are so many aspects to living aboard - just one thing to think about - does your chosen marina permit liveaboards, turn a blind eye or actively prohibit it.

Size comes into it to, as does whether it's motor or sail. It's quite difficult to go off to work smart from a small sailboat.

 

[Fiddlesticks]

This video attempts to answer the question from the point of view of a single American guy on a low-tech engine-less boat.

 

[Fiddlesticks]

Slightly different take here :

 

[laika]

One issue is that there are very few places where you can "officially" live aboard and obtaining a legitimate residential mooring can take forever. Most "liveaboards" in south coast marinas are living aboard "unofficially", usually in breach of the terms of their marina contract, although some marinas turn a blind eye to it. As an unofficial liveaboard it can be hard to do stuff which requires a proper address like register with a doctor, use the library or vote. There are past threads in this subforum discussing those issues.

Per previous posts, "living aboard" means different things to different people. Living on an opulently fitted out dutch barge is an entirely different proposition to what others do which is more akin to camping. 150m walk to the toilet in all weathers, rubbish oven with two burners, constant battle with damp and mould in winter, cold, motion and noise inhibiting sleep during winter storms...

For those with a full time job there are additional challenges such as:
* Sailing boats are an ergonomic nightmare for computer users. You're not going to get a Herman Miller Aeron into a modestly proportioned sailing boat so think again about that "home working with a laptop" gig if you value your back and neck.
* Need to wear a suit and tie for work? trying to iron your shirts on the saloon table is no fun, nor is keeping the mould from your favourite Armani or Paul Smith. You'd at least have thought Hugo Boss would have developed a boat-proof suit but no....
* Marinas are frequently not best placed for commuting
* Smart work footwear is often incompatible with snow and ice on a pontoon at 5:30am in winter (see "inconvenient for commuting" above)

Costs? A finger in the air for my 12m boat would suggest maybe £9k/pa for marina mooring, maintenance (with jobs mostly done by me, your costs sky rocket if you employ others) including haul-outs and spreading big costs across multiple years, power and heating (note: I was a skinflint eco warrior trying to save the planet with thermals and hot water bottles rather than burning fossils as much as possible in winter: the less hardy person may burn *a lot* more diesel to keep warm) but not including depreciation and, a real killer, storage. Despite never having accumulated more than a transit van's worth of possessions, there's very little storage space on a boat. I should have sold everything when moving aboard: I reckon it would have been cheaper to rent winter sports equipment every year than to pay for storing my snowboarding gear for example.

Official residential moorings, if you can find them, add to this cost and council tax would be on top of that too.

The marginal cost of moving aboard the boat you were already paying to moor and maintain is obviously *much* cheaper than the cost of buying and moving aboard a boat you buy as a residential lifestyle choice.

 

[Yngmar]

One piece of advice to add is to have a rainy day fund. Living on a boat adds more insecurity compared to landlife. You might have to suddenly haul out no matter the cost of the nearest yard because something under the waterline went sproing, have an expensive yet important piece break (engine, sails, rig), or be paying for a place to stay because your boat has become uninhabitable for some reason or other. While that's generally a good idea in any lifestyle, it's even more important for liveaboards. I've met several who got trapped in a bad place with little hope of ever recovering because their funds were drained from a single thing going wrong.

Out of the UK things get mostly cheaper and better, the heating costs drop (going south) and there's plenty of marinas that are seeing liveaboards as welcome customers rather than as pests to tolerate for a while. You always have to be ready to relocate though, as these things are prone to change sometimes.

 

[Tranona]

One issue is that there are very few places where you can "officially" live aboard and obtaining a legitimate residential mooring can take forever. Most "liveaboards" in south coast marinas are living aboard "unofficially", usually in breach of the terms of their marina contract, although some marinas turn a blind eye to it. As an unofficial liveaboard it can be hard to do stuff which requires a proper address like register with a doctor, use the library or vote. There are past threads in this subforum discussing those issues.

The marginal cost of moving aboard the boat you were already paying to moor and maintain is obviously *much* cheaper than the cost of buying and moving aboard a boat you buy as a residential lifestyle choice.

These two issues perhaps sum up thee challenges posed by the Holly's question.

The chosen area is the second most expensive in the country to moor a boat in a marina - and also the highest for demand, so actually finding a space is the first challenge. Also if work is essential it is an area of low wages and relatively high unemployment outside the tourist season. While there are liveaboards in west country marinas, most have got there by stealth as already described. So, owning a boat already and gradually moving aboard is a viable strategy. Rocking up and asking for a berth to liveaboard is unlikely to get a warm welcome!

Starting from scratch and buying a boat to liveaboard is an extra challenge compared with moving on board after being a boat owner. Boats, particularly sailing boats are simply not designed for long term static living for all the reasons others have articulated, nor are moorings, even marinas conducive to living a conventional work and social life. In my younger days I lived for a year on board a 26' boat - but only in the working week as I worked in a boat yard but my family lived elsewhere. Marginally better than camping but cheaper than renting or B&B. Have also spent longish periods living on board a 37' - but in the nice warm Med more in holiday mode. At that size it becomes tolerable provided you don't have too many possessions.

Another thing is that boats are meant to be sailed and can require a high level of maintenance if used as a home. Much of the domestic equipment is not designed for continuous use and the fabric of the boat can deteriorate rapidly if not constantly maintained. DIY is therefore almost essential. This leads to budget. A decent 35-40' boat that gives a tolerable level of comfort, space and facilities that is not a project is not cheap and as already suggested is likely to cost £5k to £10k in annual fixed costs of mooring, insurance and basic maintenance. As laika says if you already own a suitable boat for which you are paying the annual fees, selling a house or stopping renting and moving on board is financially viable. Equally if you are currently renting and have the capital to buy a suitable boat , can find a suitable berth, and live with the limitations it can be financially better than renting on an annual basis.

 

[Graham376]

Hi thanks he wants to live aboard and find a place to stay I think but he is talking about moving around to escape the winter but he's not made his mind up I don't think fully yet. Wow the costs are still a lot I guess but for sure not as much as a house hmm I'm thinking he is right doing what he is doing. Thanks, Holly x

Escaping for the winter not so easy now we're time limited in EU. I'm not sure costs are less than for a small house, a decent boat could be more than a house deposit and marina + insurance + maintenance maybe about the same as mortgage, depending on size of loan. Houses generally appreciate whereas boats depreciate in value.

 

[RAI]

Annie Hill wrote a book called Voyaging on a small income. Worth a read but it's a minimalist life philosophy for young people sailing aground the world. She is still doing it, last I heard, but in greater luxury.

 

[Kelpie]

Personal opinion, this forum is biased a bit towards the more affluent end of the spectrum, with bigger more expensive boats and expectations of higher living standards. Nothing wrong with that, and all the advice on this thread is good and valid, but the liveaboard community is a very broad church and not completely represented on here.
I've met people living on all sorts of boats, on all sorts of budgets. Smallest was 23ft, several more in the sub-30ft range. Key thing they had in common was that they were all single men, and none holding down a 9-5 office job that required a suit and tie or a long commute. On boats this size it can be massively helpful to have additional space off the boat- a transit van could quadruple your storage space. Having good friends nearby can be good for showers, laundry, and the odd night ashore when the weather turns wild.

You can split the costs down in to three categories: normal domestic costs like food, cooking gas, diesel for heating (probably about the same whether you live in a boat or a house); mooring costs (mostly free if at anchor, or £100+ a month for a marina berth depending on location, south coast likely a lot more); boat maintenance. The last one can be a bit of a killer but it really depends. If you buy a good boat, don't abuse it, and are fairly practical, then you can keep this quite reasonable. You can also slowly run a boat in to the ground so that you don't see the true cost until a few years down the line. A fair bit of what people spend is discretionary. Do you really need to upgrade the instruments? Will the sails do another couple of seasons? Can you live with the 1970s upholstery? Etc etc.

 

[Kelpie]

Annie Hill wrote a book called Voyaging on a small income. Worth a read but it's a minimalist life philosophy for young people sailing aground the world. She is still doing it, last I heard, but in greater luxury.

Good book but starting to show its age now. I find some of her ideas a bit odd- I'd hate to disagree with her. E.g. she extols the virtue of teak decks, which we all know are an absolute money pit. She is generally very risk averse and avoids any post 1950s technology where possible, but prefers a saildrive to a shaft, which I find very odd. Developments in solar, battery, and LED technology have completely changed life aboard and her preference of candles and paraffin lamps is now no longer the sensible choice, let alone the cheapest. But much of the core thinking is still valid.

An updated take on the same topic is 'Get Real, Get Gone', highly recommended.

Several of the Youtube channels have revealed their costs- lowest I can recall was Kittiwake at £500pcm. I also read a great blog by a couple whose first year of cruising cost them £8000, of which £1k was their Panama transit. They expected future years to cost less. But on average, the Youtubers report costs of around £1500pcm for a couple. Some of these channels are clearly more well heeled than this and do not share their costs, perhaps it would adversely affect their Patreon income...