Hello!
Our dream is to build our very own tiny home. This tiny home will be our full time residence and we hope eventually will become the seed of a new tiny co-housing community in Oregon.
We want to build a tiny house for many reasons, but primarily we wanted to simplify our lives by minimizing our possessions, limiting our footprint on the environment, and getting out of debt.
Living in a tiny house will be far more affordable and sustainable than the house we currently rent. We will have much lower utilities, pay less rent for a space to “park”, and have a much smaller footprint.
The tiny house will also allow us the freedom and flexibility not allowed by a traditional stationary home.
The first step in our ambitious project is to actually build our tiny house. Engineering estimates bring the cost to built at approximately $22,000. Not including appliances.
We plan on earning as much of the funds ourselves as possible, but with your help we could get there faster and start to empower others to do the same. We intend to source and use as many recycled, reclaimed, and surplus materials as possible.
One of the reasons we liked the idea of building our own house is that we get to pick our materials, thus knowing exactly what was is in it. This way we can ensure that we aren’t using toxic or harmful materials whenever we can.
Our biggest inspiration has been http://www.tinyhousebuild.com. They have engineered a great house design that feels very modern and spacious, while still allowing for a low cost build that does not require any special permit to tow.
Here is a link to their blog that includes a very compelling infographic that compares a tiny house to an average house: http://tinyhousebuild.com/tiny-houses-infographic/
Once our tiny house is built we can then focus on acquiring land. The money we saved in rent and utilities would allow us to pay for the land. That land will hopefully become the start of a co-housing community of tiny houses and common spaces which would pay for itself over time.
Although the larger idea of a community is lofty, our focus now is to just build ourselves a happy little home. We will be sharing our experience every step of the way on our blog.
We are excited to be making the move to a simpler and more sustainable lifestyle. Please follow our progress and reach out if you have something you would like to contribute or share.
Thanks for taking the time to read our story!
About us:
He lived and worked in an eco-village in the mountains of central Oregon for nearly 5 years and has been studying sustainability, eco-villages, intentional communities, and architecture for over a decade. He thinks moving to a tiny house just makes sense to him. Fortunately he is already a minimalist.
She is an artist and student that is passionate about our impact on society and the environment. For her living simply is not a fashionable statement or a trend, it is a conscious effort. As an art therapy major she hopes that we will eventually have a dedicated art studio and a garden that she can incorporate into her practice as well. She is excited to be building a home of her own with ethically sourced materials.
tinyportland 