American man buys a house on a cruise ship, saying it’s cheaper than buying a house

MV Narrative is a residential cruise ship consisting of 500 private rooms and apartments.

With the cost of living and house prices rising, an American man has bought an apartment on a cruise ship, claiming it is more affordable than buying a house.according to subwayAustin Wells from San Diego purchased a condo aboard the MV Narratives boat so he could travel the world and work remotely.

Mr Wells revealed that he paid $300,000 (Rs 250 million) to rent a studio apartment on board the giant cruise ship for a period of 12 years. His 237-square-foot room comes with a rollaway bed, pantry, desk and separate shower.

Mr Wells believes it will be less expensive than living in a city apartment. An apartment in San Diego, California would cost him around $2,500 (Rs 2,08,984), while a cruise ship room would cost him $2,000 (Rs 1,67,187). Therefore, he will end up saving $500 (Rs. 41,796) per month. There is also the option of renting out his apartment if he wants to travel home, or he can invite friends or family to travel with him for a month.

“What excites me the most is that I don’t have to change my daily routine to see the world,” Mr Wells earlier told CNBC.

“I’m going to start with this model: You want to go somewhere, you pack your bags, get on a plane, rent a room, and now I have my apartment, my gym, my doctor and dentist, all my grocery stores and I traveled the world together,” he added.

He works entirely remotely at Reality Labs, Meta’s augmented and virtual reality division.

“My working hours will shift to evenings, nights and early mornings, but it does allow me to observe a city from noon to afternoon. It’s probably the first time I’ve had the ability to have a standard job or even consider working in a floating apartment complex and life,” he further said.

Mr Wells said he hoped to make many friends on board as he would “travel around the world with them”.

It is worth noting that MV Narrative, part of Miami-based shipbuilding company Storylines, is a residential cruise ship consisting of 500 private rooms and apartments. The ship features 20 restaurants and bars, a microbrewery, a 10,000-volume library, a cinema, three swimming pools, a gym, an art studio and even an onboard doctor. The cruise is expected to set sail in 2025 and will visit Rome, Naples, Venice, Slovenia, Croatia, Greece and Turkey.