House boats are becoming a popular, more affordable way to live in cities — 26 photos show what they're like inside

Hannah Widders, who has a houseboat docked in Gloucestershire in England, decided to look into the idea after graduating from the Navy.

Widders was in pursuit of a bohemian living situation and considered van life first before settling on her boat.

While the lifestyle that accompanies the houseboat is enticing, it helped that living on a boat was a much more economical way to afford living in Gloucestershire.

"As long as you keep it up to date, houseboats don't tend to lose value," Widders said.

Widders also debated a sublet-type situation in the city, but she estimated she would be paying around $630 a month. After purchasing her boat, she now only has to pay a monthly docking fee of a little over $200, which also comes with a free water tap.

Her other large cost is a yearly fee of just under $900, which covers her boat insurance and canal license. Every four years, Widders has to get the bottom of the boat sprayed and sealed, but it is only a small maintenance fee.

One aspect that attracts people to van life and tiny homes is the mobility, and houseboats share a similar level of flexibility.

"I can relocate easily for a job as long as there is a canal, and England has plenty," said Widders, who is now a landscape architect.

Houseboats make it easy to travel on your own and take weekend trips with very little planning. When traveling in the winter, Widders says the engine effectively heats her entire boat.

The 58-foot-long houseboat in Regents Canal has one bedroom with a double bed, one bathroom, and a galley kitchen, according to the listing.

In London, the number of people living on houseboats has doubled since 2012, becoming a popular alternative to renting or buying real estate in the city. Now there are estimated to be around 5,000 houseboats. According to the Canal River Trust and the Inland Waterways Association, the houseboat lifestyle is so popular, that growth is expected to hit 35-52% by 2022.

The owners of this boat "have carefully [curated] the space, collecting reclaimed furniture and retro pieces that fit perfectly," the listing reads.

As for Widders, when she first bought her boat, "It was dark wood and full of spiders, so I painted the entire thing white so that I could see the spiders," she said.

Finding furniture and equipment that fits through the narrow door can get tricky.

The houseboat community is strong, and there are plenty of online resources that offer advice and tips to moving into living in a small space.

Similar to tiny house living and van life, houseboat owners often find unconventional ways to store their belongings.

Widders has eight drawers for her clothing, which she rolls very tightly to make sure the dresser can shut. She said, "I like to keep everything in order because it's such a small space, it's so easy for it to feel cluttered."

The home is in Gosport, England.

There's also a bathroom on the top deck, according to the listing.

It has a master bedroom and two others.

Using the bathroom in a houseboat is worry-free once you sort out the logistics. One method to waste management is to hook your boat up to a pump-out station, where waste is sucked out and discharged. If you are cruising on the water, a holding tank needs to be installed.

It has high ceilings, too.

Widders, who is 5 ft 9 inches, said her ceilings are 6 feet high. Whenever she returns to the boat after spending a fair amount of time on land, she said she always feels hunched over for a few days before readjusting.

During a storm or bad weather, boat owners may feel the waves and currents underneath their feet, but generally, boat owners adapt to living on the water and don't feel its effects.

The number of people a houseboat can support depends on the size of the boat, so the smaller the boat you have, the less likely you will be able to entertain in big groups.

In Widders' case, friends are always curious about her boat and requesting to stop by. During one visit, ten friends came over, and when she peeked outside, the water level had risen significantly up her boat and everyone had to rush off.

As a result, it provides a tranquil escape from crowds and city life.

This modern boat has a washing machine and dish washer, as well as solar panels.

Widders also has solar panels, which means she only has to pay a small electricity bill through the winter, usually about $25 a month.

Similar to tiny homes, houseboats have plenty of hidden features that secretly keep the space livable.

The home owned by the Afonin family is on the Zhdanovka River in Petrogradsky District of St. Petersburg, Russia.

While houseboats have a motor, floating homes are actual homes, just built on floats and anchored to a dock.

For those unconcerned with the nomadic, flexible lifestyle that comes with owning a houseboat, a floating home is a great option.

This floating home is docked in a residential mooring.

The New York Times reported that living alongside other houseboats on a dock offers "vibrant social communities."

Widders envisions herself eventually making an exit from the dock — but not from the water.

"I eventually want to learn to sail ... buy a sailboat and travel more," she said.

• Read more:
• Inside the unregulated tiny house movement, where some people say builders do shoddy work or don't deliver at all: 'It turned into the Wild West'
• 25 disappointing photos that show the ugly truth of living in a tiny house
• 17 photos that show the ingenious ways tiny house owners store their belongings
• Rent in cities like NYC and San Francisco is so expensive that it's pricing people out of the real-estate market, and some of them are turning to houseboats instead