A 29-year-old woman has left her £37,500-a-year banking job to renovate and live on a £2,000 sailing yacht she found on Facebook Marketplace. Naomi Derbyshire, a former business analyst in London, now spends £1,225 less each month after moving aboard the 1974 boat, which she bought in March 2024 and spent 10 months renovating.
From corporate life to the water
Naomi, who grew up in Kent after moving from Nigeria at age 14, had worked for a bank in London for three years before quitting. She was tired of paying more than £1,500 a month on rent and bills, leaving little for savings. She had no previous sailing or renovation experience but loved the sea from her family's time in Mauritius.
In March 2024, she spotted the 1974 sailing yacht on Facebook Marketplace for £1,900 and bought it within days. Her London flat cost £1,075 in rent and £450 in bills each month; after moving onto the boat, she paid only a £270 monthly marina berthing fee, saving around £1,225 a month.
Renovation and learning to sail
Naomi, now a boatyard assistant in Chatham, Kent, spent 10 months renovating the boat, named Flame Mama, with help from YouTube videos and locals at the yacht club. She fixed rotten seacocks and replaced the fuel filter, keeping repair costs to roughly £2,000 by using cheap or borrowed materials.
In May 2024, about a month into the work, she quit her banking job and took a more flexible role as a pub chef. She also joined the crew of another boat to learn to sail. She said: "It's been such an amazing experience. When I started out, I had no idea how to sail or even use a drill."
Plans to sail to Europe
Naomi got the boat floating in February 2025 and is now adding finishing touches, mainly to the galley, before sailing to Europe. She plans to fix a new sink, update the cooker, replace the guard rail and fix the top of the mast, hoping to head to France in May. She said: "I'm so excited - it feels like my dreams are coming true."
