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Old 08-16-2017, 11:08 AM   #21
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Buy ! Bye !

While so many companies are pushing the idea of a tiny but expen$ive houses, many cities are pushing back on allowing people to park in back yards, side yards, driveways, or anywhere. Many cities or Homeowners groups do not even allow parking of RVs in yards or driveways . . .even if NOT occupied. In investigating these tiny houses, I seldom see any mention of the difficulty of parking, water, power, SEWER. etc. It's like they want you to Buy, Buy, Buy . . . . THEN worry about how and where ( or if ) you can park it. ! ! Bye, bye, bye, David in Fresno and Sonora, CA
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:13 AM   #22
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I don't see the tiny house "movement" enduring, but I could be wrong.
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:17 AM   #23
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All the shows I've seen, the tiny house owners seem to have parents with acreage and they plant the thing there. A super-expensive build with no apparent services..

BTW, we've lived in an eight-hundred square foot house for more than 35 years. Three of us, with one bathroom ( and bushes in the back yard ).
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:17 AM   #24
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Tiny House

At $350+ a square foot i see a good profit margin IMO
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:51 AM   #25
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The extreme weight factor alone would make me run in the other direction, to a fiberglass trailer, muchless the type of construction to build these will not hold together well on the road at all with the vibration, bumps, etc. I just don't get it either, for the same money as a deluxe tiny home you can buy the best of the best travel trailers that are designed to pull down the road well.
They are not intended to be towed all over the country. Just to a lot where they can be set up permanently. More like a mobile home.
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:54 AM   #26
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Jon in AZ,
I took issue with one of your posts last week. So I wanted to take a moment to say I've read at least three of your posts today that are among the most well thought out posts I've read. Thank you. BTW, not all were on this thread.

No question some form of tiny(er) house movement will endure. They are a function of affordability in places like Denver, and both coasts. They are also an alternative to noisy party walls and ceilings. When they widened Interstate 25, some homes were taken out. The fractional lots remaining are owned by CDOT, and are overgrown with weeds. It may not be your cup of tea, But putting small/tiny homes on these lots could solve two problems, and Denver University is within blocks.

Noisy party walls. It reminds me of last night, when my neighbor started pounding on my door at 2:30 in the morning. Can you imagine how insensitive that was? Good thing for him I was still up, practicing my bagpipes.

Would I consider a relatively tiny home with some common area maintenance as I ponder near fulltiming. You bet. ...I might not go for a ladder to a loft bed.

Once national building codes are changed, and Fannie Mae guidelines permit loans on them. They will gain acceptance.
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:54 AM   #27
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While so many companies are pushing the idea of a tiny but expen$ive houses, many cities are pushing back on allowing people to park in back yards, side yards, driveways, or anywhere. Many cities or Homeowners groups do not even allow parking of RVs in yards or driveways . . .even if NOT occupied. In investigating these tiny houses, I seldom see any mention of the difficulty of parking, water, power, SEWER. etc. It's like they want you to Buy, Buy, Buy . . . . THEN worry about how and where ( or if ) you can park it. ! ! Bye, bye, bye, David in Fresno and Sonora, CA
We live in a rural community and even here there is pushback.
You can park a trailer or tiny house on a parcel of land as long as it is of 5 acres in size or greater .
We grew up in the 1950's in a neighborhood of 24' x 32 ft houses
Our neighbor raised 11 children in one of these 750 sq ft homes.
Maybe he was just ahead of his time and was one of the first in the tiny house movement.
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Old 08-16-2017, 11:57 AM   #28
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I don't see the tiny house "movement" enduring, but I could be wrong.
I know of a dozen young adults who are very keen, including a niece who is saving to build one. She has done a heck of a lot of research on it, has lots of good ideas. I actually enjoy discussing it with her, as she is keen to get my take on things seeing I build and renovate homes for a living.

As a society we are always quite to balk at, make fun of, and are just plain slow to adopt change. This is just another example. I see a much bigger movement towards change with our young adults than there was for generations ahead of them, with most of it good, and at least admirable.

I would love to build a small home for someone.
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Old 08-16-2017, 12:00 PM   #29
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At $350+ a square foot i see a good profit margin IMO
When it can cost that much per square foot for a custom home of on a lot bigger scale, I can see why this would cost that much for all that is put into something this size, especially since a business needs to make money. It costs a heck of a lot less than most kitchen renos we do.

The niece I mentioned above has been doing a budget, and I believe expects to spend about $25k on materials alone, which in my experience means 50% more.
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Old 08-16-2017, 12:24 PM   #30
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The tiny house that started this thread is the same price as a moderately upscale SUV. But the tiny house would be easier to live in as you can stand up in it The square foot price for a new Airstream is much higher but of course it is easier to tow which offsets that.
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Old 08-16-2017, 12:37 PM   #31
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One type of tiny house that has not been mentioned is a boat. I've lived part or full time on a fiberglass sailboat for about 30 years.

It's extremely practical, can be moved anytime, is fun to move, is remarkably cheap to live on, requires no tow vehicle, travels on a very small amount of fuel and offers endless opportunity for creative building.
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Old 08-16-2017, 01:21 PM   #32
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One type of tiny house that has not been mentioned is a boat. I've lived part or full time on a fiberglass sailboat for about 30 years...
Like tiny houses vs. travel trailers, there are floating houses that are not meant to travel about and live-aboard boats that are.
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Old 08-16-2017, 03:17 PM   #33
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as was said: "as I ponder near fulltiming"

not me but if one was considering....you do need an address. You could pay a service that does that (and I'm not sure if that satisfies authorities/legalities) or build a "tiny house" and park it on owned or leased (trailer park) land.....

you already have your bathroom and kitchen with you in your trailer...this tiny house could just be a living room with a washer/dryer and dishwasher maybe....big roof to cover both units ?? (a la Big Island container mentioned earlier)

I know a guy who built a tiny house...so he could park it RIGHT on the ocean, on his land in the summer (by-laws forbid construction within 100 feet of high tide line)....he built it on skids (I-beams) as a guest bedroom "suite" to his small house and used it himself now and then.....he ended up making very good money building two more for neighbours

I know two friends who live in fifth wheel trailers. In both cases they decided they did not want to rent, did not want to own a condo but could not afford/justify getting into a "house"....one is parked on a family member's acreage (both parties benefit from free babysitting, pet sitting and security services)...the other moves every six months taking advantage where he can find it (like caretaking a closed resort in the winter...for a fee...while he works his regular job)

lots of possibilities....just because we can't see ourselves going this route doesn't mean it's stupid
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Old 08-16-2017, 03:58 PM   #34
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There is room for all types of ideas. Tiny houses are bound to appeal to some, and could provide a way out from under a bridge for others.

A story on our local news last week showed a tiny house (probably twice or thrice the size of the one in post #1) which some folks got together and built. They were loading it onto a trailer for transport to its new location. The group said they were looking for 5 acres outside the city where they could set a bunch of these homes, to form a little community for veterans in need.

One can even buy tiny homes built out of steel-reinforced concrete... great for tornado alley. Search results | Monolithic Dome Institute

Of course, any such homes need plumbing hookups (water and sewer) to be comfortably livable. My personal feeling is that I'd likely choose a nice trailer over a more stationary option, and make an occasional run to the dump station if necessary. But to each his own. Not everyone would want to keep it mobile.
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Old 08-16-2017, 05:02 PM   #35
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Just saying

The reality for many people is that they now graduate from college with upto and over a hundred thousand dollars debt. They are looking for a place to live that is small, inexpensive, and can be moved if need be. These kids are often paying more than you or I paid as a mortgage and tiny houses fit the bill. Actually many of them are well constructed and have more room than a fiberglass trailer. To each his own according to one's own situation. Thanks, SJPeach
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Old 08-16-2017, 05:07 PM   #36
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People in tiny houses are smarter than you think. Houses in some areas are $600,000 + for a three bedroom. They have a 60 year mortgage. This prevents some people from retiring and with banks asking for a 20% down payment newlyweds from starting their lives.
They use cargo trailers to build the tiny house because, anything on cargo trailers is considered cargo and is not restricted to city codes and taxes and can even be parked behind a house.
The RV frames don't even come close to the carrying capacity of a cargo trailer frame, axle, and 16" wheels. They can carry a backhoe with no problem. Try that with an RV frame.
Tiny houses are built with 2X4s and are screwed together. They use 4" of spray foam insulation and not carpet in the walls. They use better quailty residential Insulated doors and double pane windows. 3/4 inch plywood floors and not 1/2 mdf board. They use plywood cabinets, drawers and metal slides for the drawers, not cheap mdf cabinets and cheap plastic slides. The appliances are residential appliances and not some cheap stamped out metal stove top and refrigerator. Tiny houses don't use cheap plastic faucets and plastic toilets but residential faucets and porcelain toilets. They have dry baths and have lofts for storage and bedrooms. The interiors are all wood. They have metal roofs. They have washer dryers. They're heavy because of the quality of the materials they use. Most of them are never moved like a park trailer. Some are used to travel to where people work and stay for months and sometimes for years. They're great starter homes. It's better than a hotel room and living out of a suitcase. Best of all, most are mortgage free. They're constructed like you home so they'll be around as long as your home.
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Old 08-16-2017, 05:18 PM   #37
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Well stated Marky.
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Old 08-16-2017, 05:32 PM   #38
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Well stated Marky.
Agreed.
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Old 08-16-2017, 05:59 PM   #39
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Really depends on location. That $600,000 house above is $150,000 here. Our duplex cost $105,000 with a half acre lot downtown (yes it needed work). You can get starter homes for around $80,000. Yet tiny houses here cost just about as much as in expensive areas. So the economics really don't work here.

And then you have "park" model RVs. Those have been available for decades, you see them all over Florida. As far as full timing, tiny houses and park models are best for people that stay put in one place. If you move every month or two, the transport becomes a problem,. That's when a traditional RV or a molded trailer can make sense. Whether a molded trailer is big enough is a personal question. I met a couple that was on year two full timing in a Trillium 1300. They loved it! I have too much stuff and interests to do it. Heck on long trips I'm mailing stuff home.

I have friends that live six months each year in an older 28 foot Argosy trailer. Found a cheap RV site that rents by the month. Works great for them. And it's really low cost living!
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Old 08-16-2017, 08:29 PM   #40
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Really depends on location. That $600,000 house above is $150,000 here. Our duplex cost $105,000 with a half acre lot downtown (yes it needed work). You can get starter homes for around $80,000. Yet tiny houses here cost just about as much as in expensive areas. So the economics really don't work here.

And then you have "park" model RVs. Those have been available for decades, you see them all over Florida. As far as full timing, tiny houses and park models are best for people that stay put in one place. If you move every month or two, the transport becomes a problem,. That's when a traditional RV or a molded trailer can make sense. Whether a molded trailer is big enough is a personal question. I met a couple that was on year two full timing in a Trillium 1300. They loved it! I have too much stuff and interests to do it. Heck on long trips I'm mailing stuff home.

I have friends that live six months each year in an older 28 foot Argosy trailer. Found a cheap RV site that rents by the month. Works great for them. And it's really low cost living!
Nope it wouldn't work in your area. My question is where in the world do they sell brand new houses for $80,000 or even $150,000 with a half acre downtown? How can they build a house for $80,000 including the land and a tiny house for $80,000? Seems to me that in an area like that a tiny house would cost $12,000. These builders need to come to downtown Austin, TX and build them here. They would be like the fiberglass camper industry with a two year+ waiting period!
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