Floating fortress turns heads off Miami Beach

75-foot-long home costs whopping $5.9 million

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – A floating fortress is turning heads off Miami Beach, and the moving mansion is so much more than just a houseboat. 

The 75-foot-long, over 4,300-square-foot floating home created by the avante-garde company Arkup is the first of its kind.

"The foundation of this floating home is actually a barge with a jack-up system," Arkup managing director Nicolas Derouin said. "It is a hydraulic system with four legs that provide stability and enables the vessel to be lifted out of the water."

That's right. It is a waterfront mansion on the move.

"The home is portable," Waterstudio CEO and architect Koen Olthuis said. "You can bring it wherever you want. You can choose your neighbors."

While Local 10 News reporter Todd Tongen was visiting the portable home, the home inspector -- aka the Coast Guard -- showed up.

The floating home has high ceilings and open views with floor-to-ceiling windows. 

The master bath boasts two rain showers, two vanities and lots of natural light.

The floating fortress is, for the most part, self-sustaining. It collects and filters rainwater and it uses renewable energy.

"The full roof is completely solar cells," Olthuis said. "So if you fly over them with your drone, you would see completely, only solar cells."

A remote control device can lower a hydraulic swimming platform right into the water, but the biggest selling point of the $5.9 million livable yacht is the view in your backyard. 

Finally, when you are ready to pull up anchor, a deck retracts back into the home and then you are good to go. 
 


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