[digita88]

I was in a similar situation but I was not living in a houseboat slum but was technically squatting for a short while. The reasons people do this is varied - they could be saving up to be able to pay down a deposit to live (and trying to find a decent place here is bad enough!), they could prefer to live 'in' London instead of outside due to the cost of transport and also more opportunities in London and so on. There are other factors as well - for example you had to have a NI and have a bank account to get paid, and to get an NI/bank account you needed a place to stay.

The thing here is that unless you are in the upper-middle income bracket then you are locked in the London rat race. London is good to live in for a few years but in terms of a lifetime here, it's not good or you find 'strategies' in evading council tax.