But the prices!!
I watched a show where the couple was adamant it had to have wheels, be no more than 250 square feet in size and, this is the clincher for me, be under $110K.
HUH?
They picked one. It was cute, about 210 square feet and cost a mere $119K - just a tad over budget.
My wife thought it was perfect. I had to give her a wake-up call. We own an RV. Yes, the driving kind. It is a 28 foot Allegro. Okay, a little older, it is a 1998 model but I've had it for 10 years and it suits our needs just fine. Our 28 x 8 traveling home has 224 square feet of living space, plus it has all the "basement" storage under it along the sides outside. I'll be honest - I spent $25K for our used RV.
We've considered upgrading to one with a slide or two and maybe a tad longer, but not over 32 feet, though. That would give us a lot more space - almost 300 square feet. Again, that does not include all the storage space underneath.
Even if a person considered a camping trailer or 5th wheel, they'd be further ahead and saving money rather than buying a tiny home. Better yet, buy a manufactured home aka a trailer.
Take a close look. A tiny home is nothing more than an over-glorified trailer that is too heavy for most vehicles to move. They need to hire a semi. That costs money.
An RV can be driven where you want it and it won't cost you $10K or more to move.
Have you seen some of the RVs?? They're stunning with full-sized stoves, dishwashers, refrigerators and washer and dryers. I mean, some even have ice-makers and wine-coolers. And don't forget the fireplaces, either. I looked at a used RV that offered 2 bathrooms and all the counters in it, that would be the bathrooms and kitchen, were solid granite. In fact, the 'master' bath had 2 sinks, a shower, AND a tub, not to mention a walk-in closet. The recessed lighting and the recessed 50-inch flat screen television was awesome. The place was magnificent with double slides n the living room. I should note the price was under $100K... in fact, it was under $75K and was only 2 years old.
No, I didn't buy it but I wanted it. My RV gets about 10-14 miles to the gallon and that is really, REALLY good mileage. I calculate my trip costs at 10 mpg and usually have excess cash when I finish the trip. That RV was heavy and only got ... as the salesman said, About 5mpg if you've got a good tailwind and going down the hill. If you don't know RV sales code, that means, don't expect to get 5mpg too often... more likely 2 or 3 miles per gallon. It had a 150-gallon tank. That would mean I'd get about 450 miles per fill-up. My current RV is 60 gallons and I can drive well over 600 miles on a fill-up.
But, I digress. After explaining all the above to my wife, she agreed. If we're going to downsize, we'll move into an RV and live full time that way. For $50K-75K I can have a mansion. So why put out so much money for a dinky tiny house?
I'm including pictures of an Allegro RV. Look at that spacious living space w/ one slide-out.
And a great bed and on the other side is a wall of closets with mirrors to get full-length looks. There is also a nice bathroom with a shower, sink, and toilet.
And here is the inside of a tiny home... looking at the entrance. Don't you love the blue "couch?"
If you look under the bed, the double doors are probably the pull-out potty.
Both of these are probably in the $60-$75K range. Which would you want to live in on a full-time basis?
Until next ramble on...
