When I first started researching tiny houses, I was amazed at how much they cost. I didn’t realize that there were prefabricated tiny houses that could be purchased for a few thousand dollars.
As it turns out, the materials alone can cost $15,000 or more for a 400 square foot house. And that doesn’t include labor costs and building permits. In fact, it is hard to find an affordable place to build a tiny house without breaking the law and building without permits.
In this article, I will share with you some of the methods I used to build my own tiny house for less than $7,000. My home is about 200 square feet and costs about $6,500 in materials alone. That does not include labor costs or permits.
For the purpose of this article, I will assume that you already have a place to build your tiny house and you don’t need any permits. If that is not the case then you should talk with your local building department and get their advice on how much it will cost to get your project approved before you begin building.
I built my tiny house on wheels for less than $7,000 and it took me less than a month to build it with the help of a friend. The materials alone cost around $6,500 but that doesn’t include the cost of tools or labor costs.
The main reason my tiny house was so inexpensive is because I was able to do most of the work myself and use cheap materials that were not made for building homes. Most people would never think of using used pallets or shipping containers for building their home but I think it is a great idea!
Another way I was able to save money was by doing most of the work myself. The most expensive part of building a tiny house is the labor cost. If you can do some of the work yourself then you will be able to build your own tiny house for less than $10,000.
I know that seems like a lot of money but when you consider how much it costs to rent an apartment or buy a home, it isn’t such a bad deal. You will have more freedom in your tiny house and you won’t have to pay rent or mortgage payments.
Also, when you build your own tiny house, you will learn some valuable skills that can help you make money in other ways. You could start a business helping others build their own tiny houses or sell the plans for your tiny house online and make some extra cash that way.
