Anyone Live in an RV/Tiny House?

[Cd]

What is depreciation like on a tiny house ?
My parents fell in love with a plot of land that had a trailer house on it.
They bought - no ...are buying the trailer house because they like the land.
I knew that was a mistake from the start, and sure enough, that trailer 'house' is falling apart and worth probably 1/10 of what the are paying for it.
I used to think trailer houses had junk, plastic, crap parts for the weight savings, but i see that even the fittings are different for things like sinks. It's like they are made in such a way that you can install 'real' sinks.
Are tiny homes classed as glorified trailer houses ?

[Xist]

I think that video is pretty cool, I just kept wondering if the cameraman also had flannel and a knit cap. I remember reading some forum where a woman ranted that Americans were brainwashed into thinking that we needed box springs. I guess that really depends on the mattress, I have slept on mattresses without box springs and some were comfortable, while others were terrible. I trimmed the legs on my loft bed to fit my box spring and still put a four-inch mattress topper on it.

Unless he had some hidden clothing stash, I think that I have more clothes than him, too, and I have enough clothing for one full load of darks and small one of whites, but then I have all of my Army stuff and tools.

Roommates... I rent a 10x12-foot room and pay $318, including utilities and Internet. This is my current roommate drama:

The first roommate with whom I shared a bathroom asked me to upgrade our showerhead, which only required a minimum of crouching to bathe, but my brand-new one, who I have named Fifi, likes to randomly position it, and it is not holding up well to being moved all over, so I am going to epoxy it.

[vskid3]

Tiny houses are generally as well built as a regular house, so they should hold up much better than most trailer houses and RVs. From what I've seen, they hold their value (or at least the cost of materials), but the issue is finding a buyer. There's a very small market for them and most people would like theirs to be exactly how they want it.
I think an RV would be a much better choice for someone not completely sure they could live in such a small space because a used one could easily be sold a year or two later for just under the purchase price.

[freebeard]

What is depreciation like on a tiny house ?

That's why you buy 20-30" sections of old airliner fuselage.

I envy your parents situation—a little trailer on a big piece of land?

The first thing to do is get a geodesic dome over it. In this case it would be an electrical conduit and canvas shell, but you can make it big enough to tear down the trailer to it's frame and live in it at the same time, using the appliances that will go into the trailer when it's done.

Better yet, trade up to a 1950s Spartan and use the dome for a pool-house.

[Cobb]

Thats good to know. Im a little on the big side and hate to sleep walk into a wall and accidentally push the whole house over. Mistakenly lean against the sink and end up laying face up in the flower bed outside with the roof laying on my chest.

I think there is a place in Northern VA that sells them. I may go on a field trip and take a look at them for myself. My idea is incase of a fire its a quick place to live on your existing property while the home is rebuilt vs a camper.

No one has mentioned it but campers are full of VOCs and the trailers FEMA provider for disaster relief caused a lot of health problems due to the chemicals used in manufacturing.

[freebeard]

These folk are just down I-5 from here:

Pacific Dome, in Ashland
Pacific Domes International - Home - Pacific Domes, Inc

Pacific Yurts in Cottage Grove
Pacific Yurts

We're all pacific here.

[IamIan]

Originally Posted by Cobb

IamIan, I find what runs my laundry bill up is the hot water and heat needed. Me, I have a small hot water heater and run it once a week for an hour and Im good. With a load of laundry I need it on for a few hours for each load.

I wash everything in cold water anyway , so I don't expect that it make much difference for my future hot water usage... I used to line dry clothes a few years ago .. if it costs too much for machine dry I can just go back to that again.

Originally Posted by vskid3

I believe at least one tiny house builder has their's certified as RVs, so one could even take out an RV loan to buy one.

If it's a certified RV build you can use a bank RV loan to buy it .. just walk in to bank of your choice and ask about their RV loans .. and you can park it anywhere an RV can go.

I know of these two who offer RV certified builds.

Tumbleweed Link
($760 for DYI plans .. about ~$60k prebuilt and RV certified)
They are also one of the few who offer financing. 10% down 6% APR means about ~$500/month. If you aren't using your own bank RV loan.
I'm going to their 2 day 'work shop' / show in Boston this month.

TinyHappyHomes Link
Prebuilt and RV certified range from $16k to $60k depending on size and features... The RV certified ones you can get a bank RV loan for .. TinyHappyHomes require 25% down.
I'm going to their 'open house' this month.

Originally Posted by Cd

I'd love to chip away at that rent payment, but wonder what additional cost that there is with a tiny house.
What about property taxes or whatever ? What are the hidden costs ?

Depends on where you park it ... if you park it in an RV or Trailer park you'll have their fees ... but no land taxes , and those fees sometimes include other things ... if you park it on a regular lot of land you'll have property taxes + utilities ... no matter where you park it you'll have insurance costs ... call up the insurance company of your choice and ask them for a quote for a $60k RV insurance policy.

Some locations in the US have zoning issue if you park it on a lot and declare it as your 'full time' residence... others don't care .. and none care if your parked in a RV park type space.

[Xist]

Originally Posted by Cobb

No one has mentioned it but campers are full of VOCs and the trailers FEMA provider for disaster relief caused a lot of health problems due to the chemicals used in manufacturing.

Is that completely independent of the stereotypical education level?

[vskid3]

Found a 2006 24' KZ Sportster toy hauler that we're really interested in. Its in great shape and the bed is in the rear "garage" area on a lift, so that space can be used during the day with the bed lifted to the ceiling. Also found a 2003 GMC 2500HD that should pull it nicely. If everything works out, we should have both purchased by the end of this week.

[slowmover]

I live alone in a 35' travel trailer. Third generation owner of this design type. Bought cheaply with plenty to spend as I go along. But I bought an earlier version in signature link knowing exactly what I was getting into. The truck in sig bought at same time to make a matched pair.

Truck is worth six thousand less than I paid for it eight years ago. Trailer is worth more. Bought both for a hair under $30k. Expect to have another $20k into them as time goes on.

Electricity costs are high due to local climate. But more than offset by income from oil field job. May be moving west and north for a better job, but ground rent will likely go up. Etc

My usual all in monthly cost of living is sub$500 for fixed expenses. Utilities covered.

An aero aluminum trailer will outlast your life. Other types will not. And cN be pulled by other than trucks. Which in any case is a matter of cutting repetitive miles and then driving the rest at a higher skill level.

No trailer is great in climate extremes. Or tornadoes, hurricanes or hail storms. This is the trade off for mobility. That part a important to me. I can move my complete household for 25-cpm fuel at $4/gl diesel. Opportunity.

Had I a piece of land then wise old man freebeard nailed it earlier with sea cans under a large covered area. Conditioned air space is important but covered space is right up there for actually mKing it work. See old style Texas dog run houses.