‘We live on a 57ft narrowboat to save on rent and bills – we have to move every TWO weeks, but it’s worth it’

A couple living on a 57ft narrowboat in a bid to save on rent and bills has revealed they have to move every two weeks – but says it’s worth it.

Tish and Josh made the decision to leave their traditional abode for a home on the water due to rising living costs in the UK.

The pair, aged 36 and 35, now move locations every two weeks, which they say feels a bit like a “holiday”.

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Even though the lifestyle looks – and sounds – appealing, it doesn’t come without its issues.

Despite dealing with mounting rubbish, plus less time on their hands, they wouldn’t trade it for anything, including at Christmas.

Especially as the holiday is set to be a scorcher for them, even though it’ll be just 14 degrees outside.

“Christmas will be hot,” the photographer, from Staffordshire, told What’s The Jam.

“Everyone assumes a boat will be cold in winter, but it’s [currently] 24 degrees inside.

“We don’t have the space for a tree in our boat, so we decorate our ceiling instead, and I have a friend who made us custom-made door bows to fit our tiny doors.

“It’s an incredibly cosy festive place to be.”

The pair moved onto their boat in early 2024 after rising rent costs and the housing market left them rethinking things.

She said: “It was always part of our long-term plan to move onto a boat.

“We planned to retire to one, and then one day we asked ourselves why we were having the mindset that we needed to wait until our 60s to have the life we dreamed of.

“Our rent was continually going up, and the goal posts for the housing market kept moving.

“We’d been saving for years and never stopped to think about whether we even really wanted to buy a house or if it was just something we were taught was the next thing you do.

“When we really asked ourselves what we wanted out of a house, they were all things that a boat could provide us, with the added bonus of an adventure.”

And often, it feels like they’re on a never-ending holiday.

Josh said: “Food shopping is a bit like being on holiday because every few weeks you’re in a new supermarket.

“Sometimes you forget where you left your home and auto-drive to the previous place you left it.

“Because of moving regularly, we’ve visited local areas we’d never thought to go into.

“We support local businesses more because now we know better places to buy things.

“But sometimes it’ll be six months until we’re back near those places, so we have to stock and plan around travelling.”

Even though they’ve been saving themselves a fortune each month, the costs do fluctuate per season, with winter the most costly.

Tish said: “Every boat is different to how the running costs are.

“Our fire is connected to our diesel tank, so we spend a lot more on diesel than others, but we spend zero on coal.

“For us personally, when we moved out of renting, our outgoings went down by roughly £1,000 a month.

“But we have different costs to save for, like batteries, solar panels and blacking.

“Our costs are determined by the weather; summer is much cheaper because of sunlight.

“Winter is roughly £200 a month more for us because of the increase in diesel for running the fire and charging our batteries for electricity.

“But when we lived in a house, we paid £190 a month in gas and electric.

“Now we have about eight months of electricity powered by sunlight.”

Their main costs include £10 a month on gas, which lasts them four months at £40 a bottle.

Their license fee is £122 per month, which they say would be the equivalent of council tax for a house.

And as their boat measures a whopping 57ft, the prices aren’t set, as they vary based on size and if it’s docked in a marina.

Outside of winter, they’re forking out around £400 in fuel, and luckily, electric is free.

Tish added: “I’m asked a lot by people what it’s like to live on a boat, and it’s hard to put into words to someone because it’s a feeling more than anything, of peace.

“It’s not just a place to live but an entirely different mindset to life.

“We felt quite held down by our belongings, and it was very liberating getting rid of 90% of the things we own.

“What we hold value to now has changed; sunlight, water, nature and our loved ones are the most valuable things in our lives.

“Some things are harder – it’s a more time-consuming way of life – and I can’t pop my rubbish into my wheelie bin.

“If I’m lucky, I’ll find a bin a mile walk away.

“But, until then, it’s storing it until you pass a bin.

“If a fuel boat isn’t passing where I am, then we have to fetch fuel.

“We don’t have room for a washing machine, so we have to leave our home to wash clothing.

“And it takes five hours to sail a 12-minute car journey.”

“It’s all things that take up more time – but, for me, the benefits far outweigh any negatives.

“I’ve been a long-time sufferer of mental health, and the changes were day and night, living on water just agrees with me.

“I have seen things some people will never see with their own eyes, and the closeness to nature gives you a totally new respect for it.

“I’ve rescued a squirrel out of the canal, I’ve had ducklings asleep next to my front door, we saw a mole digging next to our window once, ducks and swans regularly knock on our boat asking for food, and I once came home to a horse escaped on the towpath

“I know that sounds very appealing, and in a world where everything costs too much, it looks like a wonderful solution to a cost-of-living crisis.

“But batteries don’t last forever, blacking is done every few years, and there are lots of other costs to factor into.

“So if it’s something you’d be considering, money is the wrong reason to do it; it’s a way of life, and that’s the main reason to do it.”

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