Marinus
(Picture: Unique Property Company)A Dutch sailing barge moored near Tower Bridge is for sale for £975,000 after an epic retrofit that took three years — and cost more than its current asking price.
The 1797sq ft barge was gutted and transformed into a three-bedroom home for its current owners, "an older couple" who used to work in the financial sector but have since moved out of London to Devon.
Bespoke cabinetry was fitted in the three cabins, two bathrooms and reception areas over a period of 18 months.
A wood-burning heater, mains electricity, a high-spec Stern kitchen with Gaggenau appliances and post box on the mooring were also added — details not often found on a typical houseboat listing.
“You do get that occasionally, someone creates a home specifically for their own requirements and they know they’re not going to get it all back when the time comes to sell,” said Madelaine Cooper of Unique Property Company.
The work was done at SRF shipbuilders in the Netherlands before the historic 31-metre-long barge was sailed across the North Sea to her permanent mooring at community-run Hermitage Moorings in Wapping.
“The community at Hermitage Moorings is extraordinary, set up by the residents for the residents as a place to moor their boats,” said Ms Cooper.
“The river is beginning to be owned by large property developers, who own and sell homes along the water — rents therefore increase — and the bohemian culture loved by those that live on these boats is being squeezed out.”
The home’s sought-after permanent mooring costs £511 a month including some utilities, according to Cooper, plus a daytime concierge, which proves useful for the community of largely professional workers.
“It’s a very lovely place to live. A real mix of retired people, young couples and people with families.”
Buyers of property such as this tend to be a mix of cash buyers and those using mortgages, although there are a limited number of marine mortgage lenders and legal experts so it can prove difficult to get a loan. There is no stamp duty to pay on boats.
