posted 8 years ago
Hi all,
For a long time now I've been interested in housing alternatives to the standard societal trap of renting and giving somebody else your hard-earned cash, or getting an expensive mortgage you'd be enslaved to, for a stereotypical western home which could require a lot of maintenance, i.e. that it could be a money pit. My former landlord advised me to stay renting as long as possible due to the maintenance they had to do on their large house, and I intend to not get caught in that trap.
In the past few days I've discovered that yurts are a fairly inexpensive option, which can be durable enough for most environments. However, since they're fabric, they're not up to code. If I lived somewhere like Hawaii's big island, I might consider a fabric yurt. But I'm currently in the Pacific Northwest and due to building codes etc., I feel that if I were to go this route I'd opt for a wooden yurt which would meet the code, even though they're more expensive. I also like the idea of solid walls for sound attenuation for more privacy.
I remembered though that there are a lot of lesser known building options out there like superadobe etc., and earthbags filled with scoria for this rainy climate, provided scoria could be sourced here cost effectively.
Anyway, long story short, I'm trying to figure out what the most cost effective way to have my own quality-built house in the PNW would be. Off the top of my head, I'm thinking that if I could keep the cost to around $75,000 when it's all said and done for a 500 square foot space (not including the cost of land), then that might be good.
I've thought about tiny homes (generally too expensive for the kind of space you'd get), sheds used as small homes (not sure how feasible this is. Would I have to fight with the powers that be, and worry about meeting code? Or spend a lot of money on insulation, etc?), durable aluminum RVs used as a cheaper "tiny home" option (maybe this for the kitchen and bath along with a yurt for the living space would be feasible, but the cost for both together would add up. And how would I go about dealing with blackwater on a regular basis, since the RV would be in use full-time, etc.?).
I was looking at a portable wooden yurt from Freedom Yurt Cabins. It has a 25 foot diameter, so would be 490 square feet for $25,900 not including extras or shipping. The platform is included and the entire thing can be dismantled and moved, so those are some selling points. However, I was communicating with somebody online, and based on what he was saying it may be better to just build a studio cabin. But he's a carpenter. I'd need help with this since I have a spinal cord injury and am currently disabled, although I would rather do things on my own.
Also, I'd have to find land. I was thinking maybe I could rent land and utilities from somebody until I find my own land. But if I were to do this it would require a special building, like this portable wooden yurt cabin. Or I could just try to find land quickly, and setup some housing on it, and rent it out, or sell it if I wanted to move in the future.
I guess the last thing I'll mention is that there are new technologies on the way to make housing cheaper like prefabbed and modular homes from companies like Factory OS, and 3D printed houses by companies like Apis Cor ($10,000 for a 400 square foot space built in 24 hours!). So I also need to figure out if I should wait on this new stuff and do something else for the time being, or go for something currently available like a wooden yurt, or whatever else would be best.
It seems like there's a ton to figuring all this out, and it can certainly be overwhelming with the research needed to determine the ideal balance of the right building method, for the best price, for your particular climate, etc.
Let me know what you think based on what I've typed, and if you have any ideas or additional info for me, thanks.