By the sea, by the beautiful sea
Aside from the price, float homes offer a housing option that is hard to beat
If living near the water is your thing, nothing can beat the float home experience, says Tracy Leyden, a Vancouver native who recently traded her Toronto highrise lifestyle for a more buoyant one, purchasing one of the Spirit Trail Ocean Homes in North Vancouver’s Mosquito Creek Marina.
“I’ve always lived the condo life,” says Leyden, whether it’s a four storey or a highrise and I was tired of the joint box — people above you, people below you, shared common walls.”
The beauty of the Mosquito Creek development, says Leyden, is you have a million-dollar view and are only a few-minutes’ walk from Lonsdale Quay and the Sea Bus, along with the true sense of community among the float home residents.
“Because there’s only 20 of us down here, you really get to know the people,” says Leyden. “Having that sense of a little community, it’s really nice. Everyone is really friendly and looks out for each other.”
The Mosquito Creek float home development by the Squamish Nation began four years ago and includes the 20 float homes already built; 10 pre-sold and under construction and 17 in the planning stage. They range in price from around $525,000 to $750,000.
John Lovelace of John Lovelace Real Estate Team specializes in the sale of waterfront properties in B.C. and receives about three calls a day from buyers interested in float homes.
Buying a float home, he says, is buying into a lifestyle that is hard to argue with — ducks and swans going by etc. — but he cautions against looking at float homes as a way to save money.
On top of the price of the home, says Lovelace, top-grade concrete floats cost around $200,000, and water lots cost around $200,000 so buyers are looking at shelling out around $600,000 — and then there’s a monthly docking fee, which can cost around $1,000.
“If you like your neighbours, you love the outdoors, you’ve got the money and you’re not buying it to save money then it’s a great life,” says Lovelace.
European companies like Prague-based architecture, design and engineering firm Atelier SAD, have modernized the concept of float homes with its Port-X modular home design.
“Port-X is composed of individual modules which are easily dismountable and thus always ready for transport to a different location,” says Atelier SAD architect Adam Jirkal.
“The Port-X is a home built for both land and water. The final composition is very flexible.”
The Port-X differs from traditional float home design in that it is enclosed on the land-facing side for privacy, and open on the side facing the water, with large windows and a terrace.
“Everything is designed to be highly effective and economical, and, made of composite, it is very durable and easy to keep,” says Jirkal. “Our goal was to keep the floor level as close to the water level as possible and the house can be equipped with various kinds of technology according to the climate and other local needs, including water purifiers and solar cells (that convert light into electricity).”
The overarching goal with Port-X, says Jirkal, was to create an independent living space that could be used anywhere.
“You can live in it on the river, move it into the mountains near the slopes and we have already designed a few versions to be floating showrooms, offices and cafes.”