A big opportunity for tiny-house fans

If you’re interested in a tiny house and have a tiny budget, here’s a giant possibility for you.

A bankruptcy auction next door in Alabama has more than two dozen dwellings in various states of completion up for grabs.

The lots are up for bid online through 7 p.m. (Central Standard Time) April4. If you want to go check the mout, thereare open houses planned for 10 a.m.-3 p.m. CST April 3 and 4.

Other items are available as well, including assorted tools and building materials, along with refrigerators, stoves, washer/ dryer units and other appliances to trick out your new digs. Other things to keep in mind: If you enter a bid, there’s no retracting it. You can pay with cash, a wire transfer or certified check — that’s it — and payment must be made by April 7. You need to come get your new castle after April 11. For full details or to register for the auction, see auctionbypearce.com.

These sweet homes from Alabama come with other key caveats, too. Chief among them: where it might be legal to have them. Depending on where you are, they might be officially classified as a mobile home or a recreational vehicle, and thereby subject to regulations governing those structures. Some municipalities impose minimum squarefoot restrictions on residential construction, and other places are a lot more freewheeling.

“Some of these counties in Alabama — Lord, they’ll hook up power to anything,” said Pearce & Associates President Chip Pearce. “Then some of these off-the-grid people don’t want power anyway. They’re going to use a generator.”

He wants to be absolutely clear in noting that his firm in Bear Creek, Ala., (about a 3 1/2-hour drive from Atlanta) is just moving merchandise, and that potential buyers should seek zoning guidance from their local municipality.

The auction outfit isn’ t even using the term “tiny house,” the buzzy phrase used in HGTV’s “Tiny House, Big Living,” “Tiny House Hunters” and “Tiny House Builders.” (There’s also “Tiny Luxury” for the tiny home fan who wants to live large.) Instead Pearce & Associates is referring to them by the name of the now-bankrupt company that created and sold them: Lil’ Lodges.

The American Tiny House Association maintains a nationwide database of what individual states allow. In short: There’s no one clear answer. Here in Atlanta, City Council member Kwanza Hall in October introduced an ordinance that would allow “accessory dwelling units” or “micro-housing.” The pro- posed legislation is still under review.

They’re legal in Decatur, where builders must adhere to the same building codes that apply to conventionally sized homes. They must be on foundations but don’t face minimum square-foot restrictions. Not coincidentally, last year’s inaugural Decatur Tiny House Festival was held there, and the second is planned for Sept. 29-Oct. 1.

“This whole movement all depends on where you want to live,” said Tiny House Atlanta Executive Director Will Johnston. “There are so many nuanced rules.”

He’s hopeful that as metro Atlanta grows, area governing bodies will adopt tiny-house legislation to provide low-cost accommodations to all the newcomers. The Atlanta Regional Commission forecasts the 20-county metro area will grow from 5.5 million to 8 million by 2040.

“They can’t all go in highrises,” Johnston said. “We just want to see this as a full-time residence option.”

CONTRIBUTED BY PEARCE & ASSOCIATES The bid on this tiny house, officially called a Lil’ Lodge, one of the more complete units up for grabs in an Alabama bankruptcy auction, was $18,250 as of Monday.