10 Tips to Help you Find Land for Your Tiny House

Spoiler: They all involve work.

South Island Tiny House. Photo provided by Cori Holmes.

I don’t like to brag, but for the six years that my husband and I lived tiny, the tiny house was almost repo-ed once, we had to move it stealthily two times at night to avoid detection and had a handful of random people off the street spot our house and ask to see inside. Practically nothing momentous happened.

So I mean, pftt, our tiny house journey was a total breeze.

Don’t let the tv shows, Pinterest boards and idyllic tiny house Airbnbs fool you, it’s not easy. And plenty of people agree with us. Just in New Zealand, there have been cases of people getting locked out the property where they are building or a local council telling someone their tiny house is in breach of the Building Act. And this happens in cities around the world. And I feel for them. But there is help!

TINY HOUSE LIVING IS NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED. PERIOD.

Julie Jacobson​, said she realised how tough finding land for alternative housing was four years ago… “I thought it wouldn’t be difficult to find someone who would let him put it on their land for a bit, but it was impossible.” (Samantha Gee- https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/housing-affordability/124172450/finding-land-a-big-issue-for-tiny-house-owners-as-expo-raises-profile)

So without further ado, and in response to this article (quoted above), here are some tips that we have learned along the way, some by sheer luck and others by bad luck. So take notes and learn from us.

South Island Tiny House. Photo provided by Cori Holmes.

1. Don’t max it out.

BIGGER is not always better. If you don’t want people dobbing you into the council, DON’T BRING ATTENTION TO YOUR TINY HOUSE. Keep it low key, don’t build a monstrosity. Who knows, maybe down the line you will need to get under a tree to park, or need to get your tiny house down a long narrow driveway, build your house with options! A big blue tiny house 10 metres long, 3 meters wide and 4 meters high will stick out like a sore thumb and will attract all the grumpy neighbours who have nothing better to do than complain. So do yourself a favour and think of your future tiny-house-living-self who is just looking for some land to rent.

2. Actually advertise

Take advertising for a plot of land seriously. I know, it is super hard to finish your tiny house build, move out of your old place, AND look for a place to park. It’s a lot. Been there done that. BUT, it must be done. Don’t half-ass your land search. Post to all the Facebook groups, subreddits, tiny house land websites, use all Instagram hashtags, visit all the RV parks. Print all the posters and all the flyers. Tell literally everyone you know. Make a BIG effort and you will reap the rewards for months or years.

3. Network

Everyone has a network. When you are starting your tiny house journey, don’t keep it a secret. Tell your friends, family, coworkers, high school/ college friends, former coworkers etc. I personally would try making friends with people with land, who have rich parents or own farms.

4. Keep the Wheels

I don’t understand people who want removable trailers for their tiny houses. I couldn’t live like that- too risky. We made sure that our tiny house could be moved in less than 1 hour. All we needed was to unhook the plumbing, the electrical wiring (if you have any), drop all the jacks and hook it up. We moved our tiny house in less than an hour twice in the past five years.

5. Have a PLAN B

Don’t wait for shit to hit the fan to think of a plan B, whether that is having another location to move to, options about housing or just a good excuse. Think of these things BEFORE you are put under pressure. I would even suggest thinking of your breaking point. How much are you willing to spend or fight to stay in place? Have a numerical value in your head and stick to it. We always had a plan in our heads should a council worker rock up to our house as we sipped homebrew on the deck in front of our tiny house.

Option 1: “Oh, I don’t live here, I actually live in the big house down there. This is just my office- you see no bed! (this is an inside joke because no one can seem to figure out where our bed is when they come to look at our tiny house, we even had to label it.)

South Island Tiny House. Photo provided by Cori Holmes.

Option 2: “Omg I am so sorry- I am just trying to get my financing in place and I am submitting my building plans to council in a few weeks promise!”

Option 3: “I don’t live here, I am just travelling/ staying at this Airbnb/ house sitting/ I am actually a ghost- I don’t even have a mailbox! See I pay my taxes in such and such a place, here is my ID and some mail sent to my PO BOX I just happen to have…”

Option 4: Have a great hiding spot in your tiny house. And just hide until they leave.

South Island Tiny House. Photo provided by Cori Holmes.

6. Hide Hide Hide

Don’t put your tiny house, whether is moderately sized or huge, in clear view of other houses or a road. This is so important to avoid nosey people, mad/bad types or neighbours who want to complain. Use fencing, bushes, trees, hills, camo print, long private driveways to your advantage. And if a great spot opens up without any of these things, sorry to break it to you but it’s not great.

7. Get creative

When looking for land, the simple exchange of money isn’t all you could offer. Suggest these things (with or without money) for a place to park: babysitting, gardening, housesitting, watching/feeding animals, cleaning or you could use your skills in other ways!

8. Research

Get to know the laws, building codes, by-laws, loopholes, and legal precedents for wherever you want to park. Set up a google alert for tiny houses and your city/district/council/region to stay up to date. And if a county or city is particularly unfriendly to tiny house dwellers- RUN. Unless you plan on being the next Erin Brockovich of Tiny House Movement that is, in which case, good for you!

9. Peace out when you need to

Before you move to a new tiny house parking spot, please for the love of god draw up a legal contract. Relationships, handshake agreements and casual arrangements go south so frequently it’s not even funny. So protect yourself and ALWAYS have a clause where if you get asked to leave by the city, council, landowner or whoever, you won’t be on the hook to pay until the end of the agreed time. If you need to find somewhere new- just leave. Sometimes it is better to live to fight another day.

10. Get involved

When we built our tiny house, I spent more time explaining about the tiny house movement to random workers in Bunnings than I did actually building the tiny house. Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but seriously, back in 2015 in New Zealand, no know knew what the hell we were doing, including ourselves. But there is a huge community around the world of tiny house enthusiasts and dwellers. So get involved. I started a tiny house facebook community in Dunedin, chances are there is one in your area. If not start one. And speaking of getting involved, make sure you donate or help out at your local school, volunteer at a community garden, help out at a community gig, join a club, don’t just be a hermit in your tiny house. If people know you, like you and can count on you, you will not only have an easier time finding land but will also help you keep the spot you have!

South Island Tiny House. Photo provided by Cori Holmes.

So in summary, tiny house life ROCKS, but finding land is a challenge. That is why after 6 years, 7 moves, and so many amazing memories we decided tiny house living wasn’t for us anymore. Funnily enough, we quit tiny house life after we secured our own land. Maybe we liked the challenge of finding a place to park too much?

Although we don’t live tiny any more, we appreciate the lessons we learned and want to help more people gain the independence, financial freedom and lifestyle benefits from living tiny.

And yes we still have the tiny house. It’s on Airbnb if you want to visit.

How to Make Pat's Pizza!

Pizza before cooking!

Pizza Dough

Ingredients

1. 1/4 cup milk (60 ml milk) - any milk alternative will work

2. 1/2 warm water (118 ml warm water)

3. 1 tsp of instant yeast (6 grams of yeast)

4. 1 1/2 cups of flour (200g of flour)

5. pinch of salt

6. pinch of sugar

Instructions

1. First proof your yeast by adding it to the warm water with a pinch of sugar. Let it get foamy for about 10 minutes.

2. Measure your flour into a big bowl.

3. Add your proofed yeast, salt and milk to the bowl of flour.

4. Stir well with a fork or spoon until well combined. Remove from bowl and knead for a few minutes.

5. Place ball of dough into a well oiled large bowl (you can use the same big bowl from earlier).

6. Cover with plastic or a damp towel and leave in a warm spot until doubled in size.

7. OR place into the fridge and use after 24 hours or longer (up to three days).

Pizza Sauce

Ingredients

1. 1 can of whole peeled tomatoes

2. 2 tablespoons of your favourite barbeque sauce

3. pinch of salt

4. pinch of sugar

5. pinch pepper

6. 1 tablespoon of minced garlic

7. 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning

8. 1 good glug of olive oil

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients and blend.

2. Pour into a saucepan and simmer until thickened for about 20 minutes.

3. Set aside and cool completely.

Putting the pizza together

Ingredients

1. Pizza dough

2. Pizza sauce

3. toppings (whatever you prefer)

4. 1 1/2 cups of grated mozzarella cheese

5. 2 tablespoons of butter

6. flaky salt

7. parmesan cheese

8. garlic herb salt

Instructions

1. Dust your work surface and dough with flour, deflate the dough and remove from bowl.

2. Dust both sides of the dough with flour and pat into a round disk.

3. Continue to pat and stretch the dough until it fits onto the pan size that you have. Or you can toss the dough until it reached your desired size.

4. Place onto an oiled pan and lightly press the edges to form the crust.

5. Spread about 3/4 cup of cooled pizza sauce onto your dough. Make sure the sauce reaches the crust.

6. Sprinkle your cheese and add toppings.

7. Prepare your grill by placing a thick pan or piece of sheet metal over the grill top. This will allow heat to better circulate around your pizza so the bottom doesn’t burn.

8. Place into your grill and turn all your burners to high. Cook for about 7 minutes, but every grill is different so please keep an eye on it.

9. Turn your burners to medium heat (for us this means the two middle burners on low and the outer burners on high) and cook for another 15 minutes. Rotating and checking on your pizza throughout. Can’t emphasise this enough!

10. Your pizza is done when the bottom and edges are golden brown and crispy.

11. Turn off the grill and remove the pizza when it’s done.

12. Spread melted butter on the crust and sprinkle the crust with flaky salt.

13. Grate parmesan cheese and sprinkle the whole pizza with garlic herb salt.

14. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.

15. Slice into desired portions and enjoy!

Delicious Pizza!

I guess we're boat people now?

When life gives you lemons…..you know the rest! This boat could have been called LEMONADE for everything we went through to get our hands on it (and to get it working I might add).

It all started with a tiny house trailer….that we couldn’t sell!

It sat and sat and sat and rusted. So instead of giving up, we painted it again and started offering it as a TRADE! No one had cash but everyone has an unfinished or unloved project laying around!

It didn’t take long for us to find someone who didn’t have time to take his boat out but DID have time to build a tiny house. That man was a mystery- but who are we to look a gift horse in the mouth?

OF COURSE WE TOOK THE BOAT!

Watch the video below to find out how we restored it to its former glory.

And also what we ended up naming it!

But what is the point of having a boat if you can’t take it out and take in the beautiful scenery of Otago from the water?

Check out the video below for some jaw dropping views !

Please like and subscribe to your youtube channel so you don’t miss a single video!

Thanks!

-Pat and Cori

Easy Quick DIY Way To Sanitize/Clean Homebrew Beer Bottles

20 Ways to Save- Even if You Don't Live in a Tiny House

Yes I did just dump the change from my change bowl on the table for this photo! 

 

Before we built our tiny house we knew we needed to cut back in order to save more. We didn't use all of these tricks to save money but if you read this list then hopefully you will think of your own inventive ways to save! 

1. Join the DARK SIDE

Cut your electric bill by embracing the darkness on a regular basis. True story- I had my electricity cut when I moved into my first place. It took two weeks to get it back on and in the mean time I loved lighting candles, walking to the grocery store every day and spending more time out and about! If you make it fun and track your dark days with your electric bill you are bound to be surprised at how much money you can save. I should also mention this helps with mindfulness. No internet, phone recharging or Netflix binge watching can occur with no electricity. 

2. Stockpile free anything

Either you have done this or thought about doing this, but seriously if you take free napkins, ketchup packs or mini soaps and lotions make sure that you actually use the items! 

3. Hang your clothes

Clothes dryers use a huge amount of energy, if you plan well enough it shouldn't affect your wardrobe at all. Not to mention your clothes will last longer. 

4. Wash your dishes in cold water

If you only use hot water for the greasiest pots and pans it will save you hundreds over the span of a year.

5. Loose and lost change

Collect all your change and check your car, purse, pockets and couch for lost money on a regular basis. We like to use our collected change for food shopping once we have enough. 

6. Don't buy alcohol with dinner

When you go out to dinner just order water to save on the bill. 

7. Plan your driving to save on gas

Carpooling and running all your errands on the same trip can help to conserve gas. Get to know your car and buy gas on the same day every week, that way you can see how much you can save by the time your gas day comes around.

8. Stop paying for your trash bags

We shop at two grocery stores, one that give away plastic bags and the other charges 10 cents a bag. We save the bags from the free grocery store to use as our trash bags and use our cloth bags for the other place. It's a win-win! 

9. Buy generics

Name brand doesn't usually mean that it is better. Try the generic version of something you buy on a regular basis, and if you like it you can save a lot over the course of a year.

10. Cancel your subscriptions

Keep an eye on your bank statements and look out for subscriptions that you don't use anymore. Also be on the look out for free trials that have run out and that are charging you for something you don't want. 

11. Stop smoking

'Nuff said.

12. Have a “no spend” day

Challenge yourself to have a no spend day- if you are really competitive see if you can do it for the whole week! 

13. Reuse things

Plastic zip bags, paper bags and tin foil are all reusable if you take the time to even rinse them once before throwing them out you will have do buy them less frequently. 

14. Get a smaller fridge

If you get a small fridge and sell your big one you will not only waste less food, but also save on the electric bill. Many families in Europe are able to use a small bar fridge with a freezer for a four person family. You may need to hit up the grocery store a bit more often but in the long run this can mean better fresher food!

15. Leave your credit cards at home

If you are trying to pay down credit cards, leaving them at home or in a place that is not accessible can help you avoid the urge to buy something you don't have the money for right at that moment in time. 

16. Meatless Mondays

Meat usually is the biggest ticket item in your grocery cart. By choosing one day a week to go meatless you will help the planet and your savings account! Before I started dating Patrick I was a lazy vegetarian- which meant I didn't want to be involved with defrosting, marinating or cooking meat which meant I spent all of $50 a week on groceries! 

17. Buy a reusable water bottle

This one is really obvious, don't buy bottled water! A reusable water bottle can save you so much. Use the tap or get a water filter if you need it where you are. 

18. Buy off season

We use a wood burner for heat in the winter and by purchasing what we need for the winter in the summer, we can save hundreds of dollars. You can buy clothes, beds, outdoor equipment and decorations off season to save tons. 

19. Measure your pet food

It's easy to get lazy when feeding your pet, a handful here and bowl full there. Instead get a automatic pet feeder or just use an old measuring cup at regular set times in order to make sure no food is going to waste. This will also keep your pet at a healthy weight because an obese pet also costs money! 

20. Make your own food staples

Baking your own bread, making your own pasta, slicing your own meats, and whipping up your own granola will not only be healthier for you but also so much cheaper! Once you find a go-to recipe that you like it will be really simple to make on a regular basis.

Bottom Line

If you are serious about saving- look closely at everything you do, there are lots of ways to save. But don't stop there. Step it up a notch by putting the money you would have otherwise spent in an account that you want to build up. For example, every time we make pizza at home we deposit $10 from our personal account into our fun account, instead of paying Domino's or allocating that money to something else we don't necessarily need to buy. This is the fastest way to see serious money accumulate or to see your debts decrease.

What do you do to save money? 

How Building a Tiny House with my Husband Saved our Relationship

I used to smile to myself as I read states about the number one most common things couples flight about. For example the Top 6 Marriage - Killing Money Issues, "haha!" I would think, none of those things effect us. Until a bigger problem started appearing in our relationship, BOREDOM. 

You gotta keep it spicy! 

At the time I was working two jobs part-time and pursuing my masters full time. Patrick on the other hand was working a 7-3pm shift and paying most of the bills. When we finally had a moment to spend together- we wasted it watching TV, movies or being on our devices. 

This may be normal for some couples, but our relationship has always flourished when we work as a team toward something incredible. When we first meet we quickly learned that we loved projects, trying new things, traveling or building. While we were planning to move to New Zealand, we had a singular focus on the goal of saving enough and making a home here. Once we arrived, we traveled and went about the huge project of setting up a home in a new country. But once we figured everything out and the day to day started getting mundane, we started picking fights. 

Rock bottom was when Patrick wanted to return to the USA while I was still in the midst of my studies. But luckily we had both been marinating a plan in the back of our minds. And when the opportunity arose to act on it- we had nothing to lose at that point. 

So it was all or nothing, and I am so glad to say we left nothing behind and gained everything by trusting in our teamwork and ability to manifest our wildest dreams.

It's never too late for shutters

Hi there,
This is our first post since hearing the disappointing news about the election. The best way we found to keep from crying was to get started on a small project!

Pat used some free pallets, primer, paint and his nail gun to whip up some shutters for the house. I will let the photos speak for themselves. 

Thanks for reading!

-Pat and Cori

Modifications- Improving the Tiny House!

HI Readers! Pat and I have just finished a long day of cleaning and "renovating" and wanted to share some photos with you!

Living in such a small space means everything really has to work well. Things have to be convenient and useful. Otherwise you might find yourself wanting to give up all together. For example, when we ordered our storage crates, we were still undecided about what sort of seating we wanted. Little did we know that the plush seat we made, bumped the height of our "couch". It wasn't a huge deal, just a slight inconvenience when we were watching TV or on the computer. So we decided to cut off the very short legs of the crate! While we were down there we decided to insulate the wheel wells. Turns out there was a bit of a draft coming from under the crates. We only noticed it once the weather got a bit colder.

When we built the house we knew there would be things we would want to change, so it was really straightforward and only took a few hours.

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I hope it makes a big difference. Otherwise it would have been a waste of tape and insulation!

Along with the insulating of the wheel wells, we also decided to finally get our record player out of storage and install it on the wall so we could use it whenever. It was a job for patty cakes!

I had found a perfect green suitcase (for 5 bucks from the EcoStore) and it worked a charm! See below:

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Thanks for reading!

We will be in the states soon, drop us a line if you want to say hi!

Cheers!

Pat and Cori

Tiny House Living

Hello from the othersideeeeeeee....... We haven't posted in awhile because we are busy living our lives in our tiny house!

In case you don't have time to read the whole blog we spent 2015 building a tiny house on a used trailer. It took up every weekend of the better part of a year and $15,000. We are electrically off the grid via three solar panels, we use a wood stove for heat and a composting toilet for you-know-what. We also have gas hot water and a cooking stove top. Check out these photos of our life in the tiny house! We couldn't recommend the lifestyle more.

Thanks again!

-Pat and Cori

Video and new Porch pictures!

Hello hello! We have great news! Our tiny house video by Bryce of Living Big in a Tiny House was completed!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd7ZNuzvYRs&w=560&h=315]

We had a great time filming and chatting! Sadly the filming happened before we had a chance to finish the porch but it is finally complete.

For more you can visit his website: http://www.livingbiginatinyhouse.com/tiny-home-built-recycled-materials/

Cheers!

Pat+Cori

First Night Stay at the Tiny House!

Hello Again! Friday night was the very first night we slept over at the tiny house. We arrived at about 9:30pm and found the house to be warm and when we turned on all the lights, very well lit. The pillows and kitchenware were quickly put away and we had a nice quiet evening with a glass of wine and a good book. We were very comfortable, warm and everything we needed to relax for the evening was easy to access and use. We slept very well and the hot shower in the morning was amazing. We were both able to cook and be in the kitchen area at the same time without running into each other and the eggs and hashbrowns were delish! It was a great night and we were sad to go the next day. We did make a short list of item to improve but over all we did a great job of planning and anticipating our needs.

Tiny House Quick Video..."what weird birds? ohya"

Composting Toilet

Hello! We finally got around to making our toilet, it took a while to find the right raw materials, but Pat scored a sweet crate that we painted, cut a hole in the top, and mounted hinges. The toilet seat is a special slow close seat (you can afford to upgrade your seat when you're pooping a bucket.) We need to work on sourcing a regular source of sawdust, but we still have some time. 

Sorry we don't have more pictures. I wasn't around to document and supervise Pat.

Thanks!

-Pat and Cori (mostly cori)

Building the Deck

Hello! This morning, bright and early we began to install our deck. As you may know  we already attached a porch roof to the tiny house and used three posts to support it. We attached the deck to the posts and used wooden legs for the rest of the support. The deck was made of recycled materials sourced from a jobsite. It was pretty much already pre-built so it was put together very quickly. It still needs a coat paint but otherwise I think it looks great. We have doubled our living space, after only a couple hours of hard work. We will use the porch to store our shoes, barbecue, and other items that we wish to keep dry. 

A nice coat of deck paint will bring these former walls back to life with a new purpose. Thanks for reading.

Pat and Cori