I agree. As fuel cost rise I believe you will see more cats being built. I also agree after being involved in the build of the 45' that they are more costly to build. However, this 45' X 20' cat has as much room as a much larger monohull . Also, the range and the comfort of the ride has to count for something. Due to the materials and methods needed to build a proper multihull , they do cost more and have a longer construction time, however, a long range , live aboard boat, be it mono hull or multi hull, is a more expensive to build than a coastal cruiser. It is all in what you desire to do. A factory built motoryacht is fine for coastwise cruising and living aboard, or even doing alittle island hopping, but crossing an ocean, be it in a mono hull or a cat, requires a different animal. Long range cruising and long term live aboard is where I believe the power catamaran shines. One with a high wing height, proper windows and ports, proper support systems, and the design and construction to be self sufficient with back up systems in case of failure in a major system. In the case of a power failure in a cat, a good sea speed can be maintained on one engine. A single engine long range trawler with backup power to drive the main shaft will still make headway but at a much reduced speed. And even at displacement speeds the cat is faster than the monohull of the same size at displacement speed, with the same or less fuel burn.