The Fallacy Of A Cheap Tiny House

So over the years I have seen many people touting their tiny house as only being a few thousand dollars to build and many crying out in protest over how much some Tiny Houses cost.   While I do think there are many ways to save quite a bit of money during the building process, the fact is Tiny Houses cost money and a good bit of it.

Even though Tiny Houses pale in comparison to the cost of traditional homes, the price tag of a tumbleweed style house or similar often leaves people wondering how they can cost so much.  So I thought I’d break down some key factors that those who claim their house is only a few grand often neglect to mention.

 

Time is moneyYour Time:

One of the biggest places that people often don’t assign costs to is time spent on your house; Particularly if you time spent on building your house takes the place of working a normal job.   The fact is that many people don’t have the money to build a tiny house all at once, but they do have time.  So they build it themselves and many spend time sourcing reclaimed materials.  While there absolutely nothing wrong with this, I am taking this approach, you simply cannot say that your time is free.  You have value, your time is valuable, and you are giving it up to build/source in the place of something else.

When it comes to finding reclaimed materials, dumpster diving, checking craigslist every day to find all or some of the materials you need, it takes a huge amount of time.   For those of you who haven’t tried to source materials for an entire house, it can be very hard to understand how much time.  If I were to estimate a figure, I would guess you spend twice the hours spent on building.  Additionally, the ones that do reclaim their materials often have pre-existing social connections that facilitate this that the majority of us simply don’t have.

 

Their Time:

I get a lot of people asking me how to get a tiny house built for them and for many, this is how they want to get to their dream of living in a Tiny House.  For many they don’t have the skills to build a house (though I firmly believe almost anyone can learn)or they have the time to do it.  The fact is that regardless of it being a Tiny House or a McMansion, labor costs to build a home can be anywhere between 40% – 60%.

Now there are some that criticize tiny house builders of charging $50,000 when it costs $25,000 in materials, as building in huge profit margins.  The fact is, if you sit down and really crunch the numbers for what it takes to hire workers, insurance, rent a build site, tools, utilities, and a million other things, I’m surprised that they can eek out a modest living; in fact I don’t know for sure that anyone has been able to have it as their sole job.  Even Jay Schaffer had to expand into books, classes and plans when he first started.

 

Consumables:

Updates on a Tiny Home Take TimeSo I am going to cry foul on many people who claim they made their home for only $3-5,000 because at this point in building my Tiny House (only about 1/3 of the way built) I have spent almost $900 on nails, screws, bolts, glue, fasteners, brackets, etc.   There is no way you can get around buying these things because you can’t really reuse nails, screws or glue.  As for brackets and bolts for tie downs, you might be able to reclaim them, but in most examples (not all) I have seen, people simply were cutting corners and not adequately anchoring their houses to the trailers.

Tools:

For many of us, we have a basic set of tools, but it is a far cry from what you need to build a house.  Often the people who claim to build houses for a few thousand already have the tools they need, which isn’t representative of the vast majority of people.  Even if you have the tools, to be honest, you should amortize the cost of the tools.

Over the past two year I have been purchasing tools where I could get them for real bargains or used and so far I have spent around $1,900.  If you are going to be doing your own welding and metal cutting you will need the equipment which would add another $400-$800.

 

Trailer:

Use of TrailersI have seen several cases of where a used trailer worked out and just as many that didn’t.  I often hear people say “I got my trailer for free” but if you do a bit of digging many will fess up that they then had to reinforce it, get a new coat of paint, and a surprising number had to replace the axles and get new tires/wheels.  So about half the people I see going the used trailer route do pretty well, the other half seem to spend just as much as a new trailer.

My other real big hesitation with used trailers and those that strip on from an old RV/camper is they often look very flimsy.  People swear that they are rated at 5,000, 7,000, 10,000 lbs but you take one look and see 2-3 inch channel outriggers.  Compare that to the trailer I am using, mine is made from one of the largest trailer manufacturers in the US and is built from 5″ channel, half of which is double hung (two pieces stacked) and my cross members look larger than some of the main supports on some of these trailers.

 

Appliances:

Again many of the houses for pennies often neglect to factor in the cost of appliance or have really basic setups.   Many, but not all, of these houses often have basic kitchens that consist of a container of water and camp stop on top of a counter.  To compare that to a tumbleweed style kitchen that has a working sink, hot water tank, built in stove with concealed gas lines isn’t to say that one is better than the other, but it really is an apples vs. oranges comparison.

Another thing that many of the budget houses don’t have is heating and cooling systems.  They often later add a space heater and/or a window air conditioner, while tumbleweed houses include systems that do this.  My house has a built in mini split system that cost around $1400, while if you when the budget route you might be able to get away with a solution for $200-$300.

 

Build Site:

There are many of us who don’t have a location to build our home for free.  There have been many tiny houses built in rented space or land that they are paying for.  Sometimes that location doesn’t have power, so you need to either get a power hook up (expensive) or a generator that uses gas.

 

While I do think there are areas that you can get some great savings on, I really could go on for a while about the fallacy of a Tiny House for only a few thousand dollars, but I think I made my point.  If I do the math on the topics I covered here you are looking at around $4,500 minimum plus whatever your time is valued at.  For your time figure around 1000 hours if you buy the materials, 3000 hours if you reclaim most of it.


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163 Comments
  1. A BIG BEEF I have with MOST of the Tiny Houses I see is that they LACK ENOUGH INSULATION!!!

    Even if the house is well-built, almost none of them surpass R-13 in the walls, FLOORS or ROOF!!! In fact, the vast majority I have seen have NO insulation at all! Therefore, as a REAL HOUSE, that is lived in on a permanent basis, most Tiny Houses are ENERGY HOGS!

    Another factor is the extreme INFLATION of building materials over the past few years. Here in NY, in 2009-2010 an 8 ft. 2×4 cost $1.13 each; in 2014 they cost over $2.50 EACH. Also, in 2010 a package of R-13 insulation batts cost only $20, but in 2014 they cost a whopping $50! So, a house built in 2014 using new 2×4’s and insulation would cost MORE THAN TWICE the same house built back in 2009!

  2. Sorry for the typo. My first model is The Weekender

  3. I built an 8’x12′ tiny house in my back yard for $1,000. It’s on the ground, on patio blocks. It can be seen at jackgoldman1 on youtube. I used oriented strand board, and rolled roofing for roof. I heat this with a 1500 watt electric heater in Minnesota. This takes a zero degree outside temp to 50 degrees Fahrenheit inside. One 15 amp circuit provides heat. An Air conditioning Unit is $100 at Sam’s club if desired, but not needed in MN. An electric hot plate was $15. It’s not fancy or attractive but it can be lived in cheap. I built it my self when I was sixty years old with no other help from anyone. It’s not that hard to do.

    • A tiny house is indeed cheap, but it depends on what we’re talking about. We built tiny houses, not the fancy RVs some are talking about here! Like me, you forgot to count the cost of the time spent building the house. Thing is, I am actually spending time on this internet site: should I really calculate the cost of this time wasted on internet?… If you like building a tiny house, your time is hobby time. Many hobbies cost much more per hour…

      • Couldnt have said it better myself!

        I find it funny that tons of people have something to say about why others shouldn`t live in a Tinyhome, and yet I have never heard someone in a Tinyhome say you shouldnt live in a normal sized house.

        If you don`t like Tinyhouses…Don`t move in. 😉

    • thx so it can been done

  4. I like to think my 85 sq ft tinyhome, here in Alaska, is one of the cheaper designs based on is simplicity. But agree with you completely, my house so far [not finished, although we do live in it] has cost us $11,300, and probably wont be completely done until we reach the $20,000 mark, maybe even 25k.

    • Glad to see folks still talking about this. Fact is Tiny houses built right by professionals are going to be more expensive.

      As Tiny homes become more legal and accepted they will need to be built right so they can get certified for living in Tiny house villages and other more urban living situations.

      Even if you build it yourself there are expenses you can’t predict. Also are you really saving money if it takes a long time or you have to wait until you find all the reclaimed materials you need/want? The sooner you get into your TH the sooner you can maximize the savings of living in one. Ultimately that’s why I bought my TH used. Built by pros, with all the bells and whistles installed and under 30K. I’m saving over 12K not paying rent for my apartment for the year or more it would have taken me to build it.

      There are many ways to a tiny home. Pick the way the suits your budget but be sure to work the numbers without emotion.

      • You can live in it while finishing it and its a wonderful way for those without good credit to have the Tinyhouse as an affordable living option.

        I also save almost $12k per year by living in it while i build.

        I will point out how different the space is once you move in, and how your interior plans evolve with your needs. My Husband and I feel it is an advantage to have been living in the home as we build for this aspect.

        We don’t plan to live in a Tiny-village, although i understand the wonderful perks that would have. We are self sufficient and plan to own property. Justin served in the Army and has a VA Loan [Living in the Tinyhouse has allowed us to begin improving our credit to qualify for said loan]

        All this said, there is a great sense of connection with your home when you design and build it yourself. And I think its a wonderful option that nobody should be discouraged from.

  5. NO ONE MENTIONS the PEOPLE FACTOR!!! A family must be uber compatible to get along well in a small space! And small spaces put pressure on relationships!

  6. I am a carpenter and have built things for 30 years. I applaud you for breaking the fallacy of the cheap tiny home. Time is a valuable commodity, which is underestimated. And materials aren’t cheap. I figure $1000 every time I fill my truck with wood. I would love to see a share option for tools so people who want to invest the time can without such a large purchase of things they may only use once.

    • Agree with you on the tool sharing! My husband and i have had to buy quite a few tools building our Tiny Home and it would certainly save time and resources if those tools were available through some sort of community sharing program.

    • What an awesome thing to start, a tool share option or even an extremely cheap rental for ALL tools needed over the building process instead of paying $100’s on renting from shops.

  7. I do not understand the excitement level for the tiny house movement. These have existed for over 60 years. RV trailers, campers and more specially Manufactured homes in land lease communities. There is nothing new about small affordable homes and cost wise purchasing a existing efficiently designed used RV or manufactured home on leased land is money and time better spent than trying to reinvent the wheel. If the movement is serious spend less effort making a small shed look like a conventional home in appearance and concentrate on more practical, conventional affordable/existing solutions that have a broader appeal.

    • Why don’t the rv manufactures just make 8 ft wide rvs that look like houses for $20k since they are already making them at 13 ft wide???? DAHHH There is obviously a market. People want to feel happy coming home, not having to live in an ugly trailer. I can buy a house 2 acres of land, well and a septic installed for $50k this is ridiculous.

      • The RV community builds what is called a Park model, which is maybe 10 ft wide as opposed to a normal 8 foot wide travel trailer, they have lofts, and these units are up to 500 sq feet. You can live very comfortably with these units having full size appliances. These Park units look so nice

        • Park RV codes are American specific and you can’t actually build that wide on wheels in the majority of the world (nor are they available in most countries). As I understand it, as a non-American, these models are only legal for limited staying time, whereas where I live, it’s legal to live permanently in a road worthy trailer like a tiny home in certain regions (but not legal to build that small on foundation)

          I have no interest in living in a regular RV, they are nothing like homes. I’d certainly live in one of those park RVs, but there is nothing like it where I live. And I’d happily build the same thing on a foundation, if there weren’t minimum sizes.

          Apart from the problems with the global housing crisis, and the codes and laws that make tiny homes on wheels a common solution, there are also some other distinctions in the tiny house movement – space saving features drawn from a mixture of Japanese apartments, scandanavian cabins, offgrid hacks, and newer space saving designs. There’s a certain global fury for adopting and developing multi-use spaces, and not just in tiny homes on wheels, but also in smaller apartment spaces.

          What’s new, is the global housing crisis. That people with a mind to solutions, can turn that into an exciting passion is a beautiful thing.

    • Because manufactured homes are ugly and toxic – generally speaking.
      People are excited to have control over materials – mine is 100% hemlock – no particle or strand board – and insulated with sheep’s wool and hempcrete.
      They are excited to have some control over proportions. The form and proportions of a house contribute to it’s beauty.
      And finally – stereotypes. Unfortunately, there are negative stereotypes associated with trailers and manufactured homes and positive stereotypes associated with proportionate, traditional and architecturally beautiful homes made of fine materials.
      The fact is, that for a relatively cheap, that is, in relation to a normal-sized half million dollar + beautiful home, you can build a home that references that beauty and luxury for a fraction of that cost.
      Still $60,000-$100,000+ not including the land.

      But, if you are not in the market for that, I can understand your outrage. Because it is outrageous that there are people who can’t afford housing, never-mind beautiful housing.

  8. Thanks for painting the picture you did. For $50,000 I get a tiny house but for $70,000 I can get a much, much, much, larger mobile/modular home here around Smithfield NC with free delivery. I can buy a ten year old modular unit in great condition for $40,000. You helped me make my choice. I can’t imagine why the mobile home business hasn’t started getting into this. If they can deliver a mobile home cheaper than a tiny can be built then hopefully they will. You are the man. I almost shelled out a ton of money.

    • I think the reason it hasn’t taken off is that mobile/modular homes are much bigger and require expensive equipment to move. That plus cities and towns everywhere are closing and getting rid of the parks that people have these homes in. I’m not saying that THOW are better but that being able to hook it up to a pickup and move it yourself without having to pay $$$ is positive. Plus you can put a THOW in someones backyard if you want to. Bigger for the money is only one consideration.

  9. Regarding mobile homes, I have heard the mobile homes and RVs are built of more toxic, less natural and thus less healthy materials. The wood tiny homes can provide a less toxic environment. I personally prefer to live in a wood structure. Wood is also far more aesthetically pleasing to me.

  10. I’m surprised no one has mentioned whether a metal framed THOW would cost more or less than traditional 2’x4′.

    • Metal framing costs quite a bit more on a small scale like that. Also, labor tends to be more costly. It is much easier to find wood framers. Metal requires much more specialized tools and fasteners.

  11. I own, free and clear, about an acre of land in Southern CA. It is about a mile from the beach. A portion of the land has around a 60% incline, the remainder is primarily flat and in very good condition. Along with some other possible ideas, I plan to grow a modest sized, organic community garden, which would include several species of organic fruit trees, a variety of vegetables, some exotic types of fruits and possibly some medicinal spices, herbs and other types of healing plants. Those who participate will be welcome to join in the bounty. The remainder will be sold to the community at a reasonable rate to help recover expenses. I also plan to obtain 2 or 3 small sheds in which to store our tools and gardening supplies, and organic fertilizer, along with providing a discrete out-house and small sink to accommodate the sanitary and sewer needs of the gardening staff, along with a deep sink, and some type of kiosk with shelves from which to display and keep the organic produce clean and fresh. Is anybody interested in parking on the land (for free) in exchange for helping? If so, please call Jenah at 714-653-3160. Thank you!

  12. Back in December of 2013 I started the build on my 8’x16′ tiny shelter, I moved into it on March 1st of 2014. Actual cash spent was slightly less than $3,000.00. Seventy-five percent of the lumber used was cut and milled less than 3/4 of a mile from where I’m located, my neighbor has a porable sawmill and the cut down three sixty foot yellow poplar trees and milled them into 2″x4″ and 1″x6″s. I traded $330 of my labor for the lumber and then paid the Amish $50 to plane 280 of those boards. The trailer frame was free, it was a 1965 Yellowstone Cavalier travel trailer frame salvaged from one of my neighbors. Since I’ve been doing construction for almost 50 years now I had almost an unlimited supply of nails, screws and other types of hardware. My largest cash outlay was for the metal roofing materials — around $800.00. My tiny home has no electric, so no ‘modern’ conviences, I use kerosene lamps and solar lights, I heat and cook with wood and have a composting toilet. My ‘shower’ is a large round galvanized tub with a hanging shower curtain which I put up and take down as needed.
    I’ve been in it now for over two years and I just love it!

  13. I agree with Greg. My Park Model manufactured “tiny” home cost $7,000. Reinventing the wheel indeed.

    • Details please? I’m at: radiant30@yahoo.com. Thank you!

    • Park Model RVs are intended for seasonal, recreational use only, then winterized for onsite storage with antifreeze in the lines. Not a permanent tiny home.

  14. Iam in Charleston SC and I am interested in buying a tiny house.can you set them up in a campground. How do I get started.

  15. But the thing is — all “normal”-sized houses require everything on this list, too, to build. So why might a “tiny house” cost _more_ than simply (cost of normal house) (area of tiny house / area of normal house)?

    • One reason is that builders don’t want to do individual small jobs. I discovered this *after* buying my tiny house “shell.” I wanted to get it reroofed and approached a company. They quoted me $8000 to do a 12/12 roof on 112 sq. Ft. House!!!!!!! Because it wasn’t worth it for them to do it for less. Gonna have to learn to roof!

      The other reason is, to fit everything in a small space you often have to buy non-standard solutions: European appliances (extra small) and millwork (cabinetry/custom wood) to fit. Standardized things are far cheaper – but way too big! (I’m really talking about solutions for THOWS…400 sq ft plus probably wouldn’t present quite the same problem.

  16. The best thing about living in a cheap tiny house is the smug self-satisfaction of reading people online saying “You can’t build a house for as cheap as you just built one.” Lol.

    • Ain’t that the truth! This coming March I will have been living in my tiny shelter for three years and it cost me slightly less than $3,000.00 to build. But then I’m just a simple man living a simple life.

    • Congratulations – it’s an achievement for sure. No one is really saying you can’t, but what is being said is, just because a tiny house is 1% of the sq. footage of many houses in the US, you cannot build the equivalent of one of those regular houses in terms of livability for 1% of the cost of a regular house. It just doesn’t scale like that. But, if you have the time, and you have a building background or connections and a piece of land with no zoning or building codes, and you’re willing to live rustically, either temporarily or permanently, you can save a ton of money like you have.

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  18. Finding a plot to rent for your Tiny home is key to the savings. Without that savings the Tiny home makes no sense vs traditional stick built. Many mobile home parks charge around $500 a month for rent. I have a stick built 1500 sq ft home in the heart of Phoenix, AZ and the lot is 7,500 sq ft and my property taxes are only $1000 per year.

  19. Agree tiny house certainly will cost a little. Not only that we can make cost savings if we build it ourselves. Of course we can realize our dream home. True…not everyone has the skills to build a house but they can learn to do it. I personally have experience in building my own house. Fortunately I also have a land that is ready to built and this facilitates me too. For my home project, I entrust to the home builder. But the idea or concept of my dream home comes entirely from me. They can embody every of my ideas. They are very good at this and certainly give satisfaction with affordable price. You can contact and check their site www.biesterbos.nl. Entrust your dream house to them.

  20. The one that is the best value so far, is the Aeronautique Superstructure one. Its aluminum and built with aircraft rivets, and has aluminum studs, and they’ll build a DIY 28′ on a galvanized chassis for like $30K, and I finish it off myself. They told me that they can build it out complete for me for like $28000 with aluminum and leather furniture, and all 120V appliances like a SMEG reefer- and I can tow it with a pickup, total weight under 7000# which is less than half what others offered. Has fold down decks on each end.

  21. Great article. I don’t have a lot of money and you have inspired me even more as I have wanted to build my own but seen most people’s cost and its way over what I could ever afford. Being a single mom now I know there’s hope at owning a tiny home one day. If you are planning to buy a small house with eco-friendly concept you can find at www.biesterbos.nl, give you solution about housing since they are experts in this field and cost-effective developer.

  22. This is good for read. Thanks for publish it. This tiny homes is for people who really cannot afford the huge one that you adore. People who want simple life enough for them to sleep soundly at not and not to worry where to get the money to pay for mortgage the next day. So tiny homes is solution. I would suggest for all of them that need house but affordable and cost-effective, here you can go through www.biesterbos.nl to get a house that you want. They do amazing job with eco friendly concept.

  23. Tiny house cost is indeed more cheap than big house. I think this is solution for them who need a house with limited budget and according to what their need. Whatever the reason is you have your own decision which is best. You may need a solution to find an ideal residence, find at www.biesterbos.nl; They are professionals developers and guarantee you a perfect house for you but don’t worry they are cost effective as well.

  24. I plan on building my own tiny house some day. I look for ideas, what I’d like in mine. Thanks for writing about it. And find another solution more at www.biesterbos.nl ; you will get what you want there since they are experts in this field.

  25. Tiny living raises a question where do you store stuff ie building tools. Next electricity generator solor where are these kept. Cost of these storage needs must be part of your plan. Solor remember there are cost for batteries ranging up to 300 each x 2-10 depending on electricity needs. Generator needs gas stored and current pricing $3 + a gallon adds up.
    Also plumbing where do you hook up or do you utilize a tank system then the cost of driving to a tank dump gas and then the cost of $5-10 to dump the tanks.
    Then there’s Water do you hook up or have an onboard tank system yes there are costs for both of these.
    Some will place their tiny home in a retail park in our location it’s running $300 a month or more.
    Just wondering

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