Devil in the detail when it comes to tiny houses

The appeal of a tiny house is clear, at least to me. But there’s adevil in the detail that fans need to be aware of.

First, the pros. It’s clearly a cheaper solution. Youdon’t have to buy the land, as you’re just building a small hometo yourownspecifications.

Youcan even build it yourself, including only the things that matter to you, but keeping the things that makeit feel little-leagues luxe.

It’s technically a vehicle, rather than a building. Thismeansthere’s less waiting around for consents, and then having to pay for them.

That alsomeans youcan packup andmovewhenever you want a change of scenery. Afriend’s glorious garden? Asea view? Somenative bush?

Youmight need a grey water outlet and electricity to plug into, or youmight even be so self-contained that those are taken care of, through solar or a composting toilet. It’s your tiny house. Youcan choose.

But in that cheaper solution, is exactly the problem that can creep upon you with tiny houses.

You’re not buying the land under the house, which is actually the valuable part. That’s also the part that grows in value the most.

Because a tiny house is technically a vehicle, it’s actually most likely to godownin value over time.

For mostnewzealanders, their homeis their biggest asset. Whether or not I agree with that strategy (I personally don’t) it’s still a fact that that’showwetreat it.

So in order for the tinyhomeplan to work, creating another financial plan is probably a good idea.

Creating a different strategy for building wealth can give peace of mind, particularly if at any point you decide that youwant to change out of the tinyhomelifestyle.

Whether you’re thinking about retirement, early financial independence, or an eventual regular-sized house, buying property is far from the onlyway to get there. It’s just the default setting for most people.

Investing inshares or building a business are two options that could balance out the lack of property.

The good thing is that both of those can also be done on the cheap — particularly if you were to put your household cost savings into a shares account.

Living in a tiny house could save youhundreds in rent, and potentially evenmore on power bills. If you were to put that into other investments, then leave it to grow, you could build a substantial nest egg quite quickly.

Then youcould live your tiny housedream while still having financial peace of mind.

That’s called awin-win.

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