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IPFS News Link • Housing

Flood of Londoners take to boats to escape rising housing costs

• yahoo.com

The picturesque lifestyle of sleeping in a colourfully painted narrowboat or barge can seem tempting, especially when buying one can cost a fraction of the price of bricks and mortar.

"It's become more common for people to do it who don't know what they are getting into, or even because they have no choice," said education worker Jim Bryden, 39, who has lived aboard the "Violet Mae" with his girlfriend, a dog and a cat for two years.

"I've met people who have ended up on a boat because they had two weeks' notice to leave their flat and were able to buy a boat for £10,000 (14,000 euros, $16,000)."

Everyone has a story of spotting newcomers struggling with engine failure, steering ineptly along a crowded canal or developing regrets once facing a damp, cold winter on boats often heated by stove and just 2.1 metres wide.

Maintenance costs can mount quickly and boaters dryly refer to their vessels as "black holes" for cash, constantly in need of repair.


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