Everything in the home is so lovely. How expensive was it to build?

One very smart couple. Practical and modest housing decision, and fabulous style and ethic with use of reclaimed materials. Impressive.

Does anyone know if it’s true that Seattle city council has recently looked at preventing landlords from evicting tenants from December through March, even if tenants don’t pay rent?

They appear to be outside Seattle city limits, so perhaps not an issue yet

Wow. I absolutely love it. My contractor does has a side-hustle of tiny homes on wheels and though I want to go tiny in the future, those are just a little too small. This one, however is pretty awesome. Now to plan!

I'd like to see more articles about small houses. This one is lovely and smart.

I love everything about this! I wonder what the total budget was.

I really love this house and have been thinking about cork flooring for the upstairs of our house, which cork flooring product was used in this house?

A fabulous creative design, Reclaim wood is a savings and great finish look.

This is so great! The ideal size for a retired couple who wants to downsize and age in place. Compact but completely comfortable and livable.

Love it. Inspirational. Would be great to get an idea of the budget.

On the builder’s profile (Targa Homes), it say the typical job costs between $225k - $350k. Higher than I would have guessed. It’s still adorable and much nicer inside than I would have expected.

I'd love to know the budget too.

Is there any way we can buy the floor plans? This is fabulous!

This is a great design! I can only dream ...

va22314: yes, Seattle passed a law prohibiting evictions during the winter months. This is a darling house, but sitting on the footings could allow for all sort of critters living underneath.

What a beautiful home! I'm curious about the cost. I, too, want more articles and videos about small homes. Does he only build in the Seattle area?

As a retired couple who downsized into 1700 sf, I am pondering whether we have another downsize in our future :) Amazing use of space and love that she flipped the floorplan to get the best light. Smart and green!

This video, this couple, and this designer were fascinating, grounded, and intelligent about their needs for a beautiful and economical place to live. Well done, Houzz!

va22314, yes it's true, Seattle City Council just voted 7-0 to stop evictions during Dec, Jan, Feb. Here's a story on it: https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/seattle-winter-eviction-ordinance-becomes-law-without-mayors-signature/DE475N63PVDHLGJBARAT6AAFGE/

Good question, I’m also interested in the overall budget. We have a property that would suit a similar project

I wish more builders were hip to build smaller houses of this quality. I live in Virginia Beach and builders here seem to think bigger is better to maximize property value and tax bases. But, if smaller homes like this were available, more people would buy them. Retired folks, childless couples, successful singles. The footprint of this house is gorgeous, the finishes are attractive and the livability is generous even though it is small. Bravo to this couple for moving in the smaller new place and renting out the larger one.

Perfect! Love it all. ENJOY!!

Thanks for the feedback everyone! To answer the questions on budget - of course this varies greatly by where you are in the country as well as the specifics of your site and project. This specific project was roughly $230K here in Seattle/Shoreline but could be half that or double that in other regions.

Oh and the cork flooring is Wicanders Cork GO in "charm"

Love this concept!! Well done!

Love it!

I'd love to downsize from my 1000 sq ft house to a smaller, better designed, more energy-efficient home. Marketplace, bring them on! What I'd like to see is my block of smaller, older detached houses replaced by semi-detached or attached dwellings with a shared parking lot. We live in a snowy region, so communal parking would cut down on street clearing costs and free up square footage for green space and gardens.

Love this place! Can you tell me the size of the shower tile and where to find it. Thanks!

Hello this is a question for Targa Homes.

I am a builder in Victoria, BC and am interested in the technique you used to air seal the home with "vapourized caulking". Is there a web-site or some other source you could direct me to so that I could look into this?

Thanks,

Dennis Dale

Fairwest Construction Co. Ltd.

We have a small homenear Seattle and will be upgrading kitchen this summer. Can you provide more information about the countertops? durability? cost? Source?

Love this house! My own off grid solar powered home is 684 square feet, but the cathedral ceiling is 15' at its peak. Everyone who has been in it say it feels so much more spacious than what the footprint would suggest.

Amazing! Bravo & all the best in your lovely home. So inspiring 👍

Lovely home, I could easily live there. I am curious about the footings, would this work in areas where there is actual winter conditions, with snow and froen ground? I am assuming it is also built to withstand earthquakes?

Amazing place!

Very impressive!! I would want one as I get older or for a vacation home. Saving this article.

I could definitely live there!

Lovely house, lovely couple. Thanks for sharing -- this was such an interesting read.

@soupercam - the shower tile is American Olean "Starting Line" 10x14. Got it at Lowes.

@Dennis - yes the air sealing product is called AeroBarrier (https://aerobarrier.net/). It's game changing. Look for a dealer in your area!

@Lynne - Yes Diamond Piers definitely work in frost/snow. Check it out - https://www.diamondpiers.com/

I wish NYC would be friendly to this type of building but there are so many zoning restrictions....guess it's time for me to move!!

What are the House dimensions.

Lovely home and great use of sustainable products. The airtight envelope and energy recovery ventilator are pretty brilliant features. And that radiant ceiling panel.

This house reminds me of the Rock Musician's Tiny House (total 560 sq ft) owned by a violinist from Trans-Siberian Orchestra.

Both are very amazing even if in different ecosystems. :)

A word about Wicanders. We put it in what we call the “boot loop” of our home; mudroom, kitchen, laundry, slop sink and dog washing stand, twenty years ago, and it has not a mark on it. It’s the same color as the dog, hides everything, feels great once the boots are off. Cannot recommend it enough.

I love these people!!! Thank you so much for sharing this awesome story!

Beautiful! I could easily live in this soace.

space.

@Stan John - 35' x 22' (minus the cutout at front door)

@mollyds1 - great to hear, yeah I'm a huge fan of the cork!

Perfect in design, application of construction and energy efficient technologies, execution of details and just "feels" good! I build very energy efficient smaller homes utilizing much of the same technologies with the addition of Metal SIPs for walls and roof (since 1977). I would love to build a home under 900 sq. ft. in the Winston-Salem, NC area (not a Tiny Home on Wheels - a friend does those). Anyone interested?

Where did you buy the counter stools. They are exactly what I am looking for!

@seachange1988 These can be purchased on Houzz! You can find the counter stools and a handful of other products used in the space here.

Hey everyone, I'm the homeowner! I want to share how we live in the Seattle area for $500 a month in this beautiful eco-friendly backyard cottage. This is our financial journey that brought this project to life:

How we live in the Seattle area for $500 a month in this beautiful eco-friendly backyard cottage

Question: Since there is no foundation, how is the electric, sewer and water lines hooked up? Do you have any problems with the pipes freezing? I'm not as north as you & we do have a crawlspace but our pipes tend to freeze if there is sustained below freezing temperature even though the pipes are wrapped.

@Anne Watt: Very expensive home at $328 per square foot, considering 700 sq ft home and what you ended up paying for it including load and interest. Flipping houses isn't new. Some people are successful doing it, One requires knowledge, lots of planning and smarts to be good at this business. Then there is the 2% rental rule. I trust that's what you used for your rentals and that your rentals also meet the Tax rules regarding deduction.

It's the same idea/basis as day trading. Some are successful, some aren't. Apparently you have the ability to handle such a business. I wish you luck with your business plan and the ability to weigh out the financial downsize of the housing market.

BTW, I began investing in my early teens with my first savings account. I learned to deposit a percentage of my income (allowance at that time) and a bit later from jobs which included baby sitting money. You are right - as long as you reinvest your capital and don't take out any income, your net worth will most certainly grow even with financial downsize of the housing market. It's when a person removes the income and the capital worth decreases that problems occur as one moves on down the road.

You are both young and learning. Again I wish you well. I'm sure you'll learn much from your experiences, both the upsides and downsides.

Anna....what a great and powerful article! Although you said you wanted to be a property manager and start your own business, you should also find a side hustle job and be a writer. Your message, “just get started” sounds so simplistic, but that’s what holds so many people back from getting where they want to go. Unless you are fortunate enough to become wealthy from an inheritance, your next best strategy is building wealth over time. You and your husband have started your real estate portfolio and I bet over the next 5-10 years you will be a landlord of multiple properties. Congratulations!

Can this plan be purchased?

beautiful design love it alot

How did you insulate the water line coming up into the house? Heat tape? Conditioned space? Thx.

The ~3 ft or so that comes from the ground into the floor joist cavity is just wrapped in foam insulation. We don't dip under freezing too much in our climate, plus being sheltered by the house above eliminates radiative heat loss to the sky, plus the water is flowing regularly. If the house was vacant for a while and temps were sub-freezing I suppose it could be an issue but that is unlikely.

Love this!

Great job! In our area ADU' s are getting very popular- this is a perfect inspiration.

Thank you!

Love The idea!

Wow. No wonder you left the 4 bedroom house behind.

Wonderful design I love it 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Beautiful...

Can you please share the name of your mini-split ? Thank you in advance.

@beecavetx - Sure it's a Mitsubishi 12KBtu unit, outdoor unit is MUZ-HM12NA

thanks again. Happy New Years.

Thank you Anna for sharing your information. And yes I agree you write great:)

There are many things about this home that I like. I particularly like the idea of building with as little concrete as possible in residential work so as to reduce imbedded carbon. I also like the idea of a second small house on a residential lot as a means of addressing the housing crises for young adults or elderly parents who want to be close to family but maintain some autonomy. And as an alternative for suburban sprawl. Too bad so few communities allow this.

My one suggestion is that building costs should be shared with readers as I do not believe a house can be green if it is not affordable for average people. Otherwise it becomes a hobby rather than a solution to societies problems.

I lived in a big 1910 Victorian before I bought my little 704 foot condo. It's an old apartment complex built in 1955. It's like I have more room here than I did in the house. I got rid of all my 1890 to 1910 furniture and now I've gone blond Mid Century Modern! The living room is 4 feet deeper than the one in the house. Of course I had 2 living rooms and a sun room in the house but I could only be in one room at a time. My bedroom is bigger in the condo than the bedroom in the house and my second room in the condo, which I turned into a wash room is bigger than the washroom in the house. The kitchen here is the same size as the house. The house just had extra junk space like 2 foyer's, the big sun room. I love it here. Sometimes I'll go into someone's bigger house and feel a little deprived but when it's time to clean mine and pay the condo fee, which is $350 a month with heat and hot water, I look at my bank account and think, eBay here I come! LOL.

Love the cork floor

love all of this we are in Poulsbo and considering all of this, question how are cork floors to clean? Totally the way the air is cleaned and heated, is cool! Beautiful!

@bizeebees Thank you! We love our cork floors - best kept secret is that we don't clean as often as we used to on hardwood and vinyl floors because the cork texture hides pet fur and dirt really well! We just use the Swiffer wet jet wood floor cleaner and a vacuum and/or broom to keep clean!

I just have colored concrete for my floor, so it's easy to give it a quick cleaning with a Swiffer. Doesn't quite hide the dust as well as your cork floor! But it's easy to mop it once a month, and it's also my heating and cooling system, so I have multiple benefits from one investment.

I am interested to know the dimensions of the kitchen and living room, as I have a 710 square foot interior, and would like to have a larger kitchen.