Life just took one of those unexpected but exciting new turns: I bought a tiny home on wheels!
My boyfriend and I have been looking at options for moving in together for a while now, and decided that buying was more cost effective than renting. When he found a tiny home listed for sale on line, advertised as move-in ready, we were hopeful but cautious (see A Tiny Home?). We arranged a visit to the building with the owner/builder and proceeded to speculate wildly about what living in it would be like if it did turn out to be what we wanted. We invited Mom to come with us as someone with more experience buying a house. Her insights and knowledge of where to look for problems was much appreciated.
Aly’s new tiny house, “Das Hütte” (Photo: Sarah A. Zeiger).
The house was just as cute as the photos had promised. It smelled clean, which was a major point on the checklist, as either mold or cigarette smell would be an automatic “no” in my book. There were no water stains, although the Tyvek™ exterior needs some repair and eventual siding. The stove and water heating system were both propane instead of electric, another point in its favor.
We need to find a place to put it. Again, the plan is to buy rather than rent, although if I need to rent temporarily when time comes to move it I will. I’m corresponding with our favorite realtor about small cheap properties where I can put a tiny house and a large garden. Fortunately the seller gave us a generous timeline for getting it off his property, though of course we’d like to work well within that time.
It certainly lives up to the description of “tiny home”, being only 8 ft by 16ft. One hundred and twenty eight square feet is not a lot, but it is a good start. I need to pare down my personal belongings to the bare essentials, which is no bad thing. The whole family is happily planning tiny storage solutions and methods of adapting it to off-grid living. Our homestead treasury of live-aboard-boat books is going to be very useful in adding my own stamp to this cozy little home.
Aly inspects her new home, seen from the kitchen (Photo: Michelle L. Zeiger).
Right now, it’s still sinking in that this adorable little hidey-hole is actually mine! We’re going to live in this fort-on-wheels in just a few months time.
I am full of plans both practical and impractical. It’s an exciting new adventure in a life full of exiting adventures, both large and small. Adventure is coming now in a tiny form—on wheels!
Stay tuned . . . .