Guest Post by Debra Jordan of How to Live in 320 Square Feet
This is when to buck conventional wisdom. There are a lot of great books on being mortgage free. “Buy the best land possible with the least amount of money” is some advice often given. If you search the phrase “When NOT to buy land” or something similar, your effort would result fruitless. So I am writing the first article on the web EVER about when NOT to buy land. *disclaimer….I often exaggerate.
When we decided to get our tiny house, the first question asked was “Where ya gonna put it”?”. Good question. I thought I wanted land. My own land. You are supposed to own land. So off we went to look. Here I what I found:
In our area, where I WANT TO LIVE, land is going for $15,000 to $30,000 an acre! Thank you, Wal-Mart. 20 years ago my parents bought land for $500 an acre, 10 acres total. That land just sold for $15,000 an acre.
Our county requires a minimum of three acres per house if you want to build in the country.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
[continue reading…]
{ }
I had some questions related to tiny houses and trailers for Andrew Odom over at Tiny r(E)volution and he was kind enough to share his advice with us.
If you’re considering building a tiny house on wheels this post will give you perspective as to what it’s like to prepare a used trailer for your future tiny house.
Alex: Before you got your trailer, what options were Crystal and considering?
Andrew: Our path to getting to where we are now started back in mid-2010. As a couple Crystal and I were bouncing back from our lives as single folk which included living all over the map, investing in only the day’s expenses, and trying to merge two very independent lives. We knew we wanted to find a place of our own to live but we weren’t sure we wanted to take on a mortgage….well, we weren’t even sure where we wanted to live. Since we met as missionaries on a cross-country tour it seemed perfectly normal and perfectly logical for us to find a small RV (even to this day we dream of a Mini Winne) and take to the open road until we found we belonged. Alas, I realized I needed to get a job (I had been self-employed) that offered a bit more stability for us. In finding that job we realized that perhaps the RV should give way to a house.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
An Interview on Tiny House Trailers w/ Andrew Odom
[continue reading…]
{ }
A few days ago Anderson Cooper featured a family who is living in a tiny house.
They’re still young with two small children who are getting to share a sleeping loft with each other.
But don’t worry- the plan is to save up for a ‘small’ house in the very near future. They plan on paying for it in cash.
When you take the tour I think some of you will agree with me that the home is tiny yet still luxurious with its tongue and groove pine walls and elegant simplicity.
The family moved into this tiny house from a 1,500 square foot 3 bedroom home. A drastic change, but with pleasing results. Mom is able to save her entire paychecks.
They used Craigslist to find salvaged/reclaimed materials to keep construction costs low and did most of the work themselves.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
Photo Credit YouTube/Anderson Cooper
Their utility bill is just $40 a month. Most of their other costs have been drastically reduced too. This is allowing them to save up incredibly fast.
Video Tour of Family in a Tiny House
Length: 1:57
[continue reading…]
{ }
I don’t think you have actually seen Christopher & Malissa’s tiny house before and we’ve got a couple of great pictures to share with you below.
You can get more details and pics over at Apartment Therapy, too, where you can also vote for their tiny house.
It’s a part of the Small Cool 2012 contest over at Apartment Therapy and it would be awesome if you’d be willing to vote because I think we can help them win.
Malissa lives in her tiny house with her husband and since they custom designed the house for themselves, it suits them just right.
It’s 170 square feet total with an upstairs sleeping loft. There’s also a fully featured kitchen, built-in couch, desk, and bathroom.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
Photos Courtesy of Christopher Tack/Apartment Therapy
[continue reading…]
{ }
Most of you have heard of TINY: A Story About Living Small.
On this post you’ll get to see a video episode where they interview Derek “DEEK” Diedricksen.
Deek is the author of “Humble Homes, Simple Shacks” and he blogs over at Relaxshacks.com.
‘TINY” is a not only a documentary about one man’s journey building a tiny house on a trailer from scratch, but it’s also about other families around America who are living in less than 400 square feet.
In this episode, Deek will not only talk to you about micro architecture but he’ll show you around one of his very own micro houses made out of reclaimed materials.
He’ll also talk to you about his early inspirations and show you a few of his other tiny house projects.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
Photo Credit YouTube/TINYtheMovie
Watch the video below: [continue reading…]
{ }
This tiny house is called the Tiny HaHa House.
The owner built it for just $3,000 in materials and did nearly all of the work himself.
It’s Jay Shafer‘s XS tiny house design except it has a covered porch modification.
And they added two roof windows which I really like.
I think it has a little bit of a modern look to it too, don’t you think?
The XS is just 65-square-feet without including the upstairs sleeping loft.
The siding and roofing is corrugated aluminum, kinda like the one Jay showcases in his book.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
Photo Credits Andrew Cauthen
Carpeting was used on the interior and the interior walls seem like painted plywood panels, but I think it looks good. Modern, even.
[continue reading…]
{ }
Choosing to live in a small or tiny house often means going against mainstream expectations. While the benefits—less clutter, more freedom, greater financial flexibility—are compelling, navigating relationships with those who don’t understand these choices requires mental preparation.
3 Foundational Beliefs for Simple Living
These mindset shifts help maintain clarity when pursuing an unconventional lifestyle.
[continue reading…]
{ }
Here’s a video walk around with Travis and his tiny house on a trailer.
The house is 8′ wide and 24′ long. Right above the hitch is where the LP tanks are stored along with the hot water heater.
Right next to the water heater is where the water inlet is located so you can hook a hose up to there just like you would with an RV and have access to water.
Then just below that area is where the power supply is, and again- just like an RV- you can plug this into an RV park or a generator and power many of the appliances inside.
This tiny house weighs approximately 6,740 lbs and it’s supported by two 5,500 lbs brake axles. The front porch is large enough to sit and relax in and keep you covered during rain.
Once you walk inside the kitchen is to the right with the dining table to the left. In between the entrance door are two storage compartments on both sides. This is where Travis keeps his food and other supplies.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
Photo Credit YouTube/travis162002 [continue reading…]
{ }
In this post Ron Barth, President of Resource Furniture shows you his space saving furniture.
The furniture is made in Italy and Resource Furniture is the United States importer and distributor for the company.
The company offers:
- Wall beds
- Murphy beds
- Desks
- Coffee tables
And much more. Everything operates very easily and most pieces of furniture are completely convertible- meaning, they serve more than one function.
Please don’t miss other exciting tiny homes – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter!
This means furniture that makes it easy for you to create a multifunctional room in your house.
Whether you want your living room or office to turn into a bedroom, or you just want to make your 200 square foot studio work for you.
This furniture allows you to double your space and the usability of your home. Resource Furniture also offers a bunk bed system where the beds fold into the wall for storage.
I encourage to go ahead and watch the entire product video presentation with Ron Barth below: [continue reading…]
{ }
