A: Yes, but not in a way that meets our objectives of building equity through low-interest, long-term financing. Tiny homes on wheels are treated like RV’s, as personal property, not as real property that appreciates in value.
A: The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) offers loans with a minimum size requirement of 400 Square feet. Minimum house size is therefore not the issue for conventional financing if you plan to go bigger than 400 sq ft, but you need to make sure your sales price is justified by comparable appraisals. In the 12 months between April 2016 and April 2017, 10 homes were sold in Hampshire County that were under 700 square feet, with an average sale price of $103,760 and an average of 163 days on market (smallest home sold was 504 sf). In Franklin County, five homes under 700 square feet were sold with an average sale price of $79,480 and and an average 156 days on market.
A: Several first-time home buyer programs exist that offer 100% financing for first-time home buyers, including the Massachusetts One Mortgage and the USDA Rural 502 Direct Mortgage Loan program. While the USDA does offer a construction mortgage loan program, typically first time homebuyer programs are not for construction of a house but purchase of a completed dwelling.
A: Yes, but many local banks do not provide loans for manufactured homes (built to HUD standards in a factory) or homes that are placed in mobile home parks. Specialty lenders like Priority Funding are often needed for the purchase of a manufactured home. Financing for modular housing on private land is generally the same as site built houses (see the glossary following this FAQ for the difference between mobile, manufactured and modular)
A: The UMass Five College Credit Union has a program for providing mortgage loans on community land trust land. Other local banks may consider it for a portfolio loan. The USDA Rural 502 Loan Program will provide loans for new manufactured homes in parks if they have a lease of at least 35 years.
A: Zoning tells you where you can put your house and what you can build (single family home, apartment building, etc). Some zoning codes will also have requirements that include reviews of site plans or other design elements. Building codes tell you how you can build. In Massachusetts, the building code is a statewide code and zoning is adopted town by town. Other regulations regarding energy efficiency, wetlands, stormwater, sanitation, may apply – always check with your local officials before you build.
A: Most zoning regulations in Hampshire and Franklin Counties do not include a minimum house size requirement. Montague does require dwellings to be a minimum of 500 sq ft – but this is the only example of a minimum size requirement we have found.
The building and health codes in Massachusetts have minimum size requirements for elements of a house but not the overall house.
- One room must be a minimum of 120 sq ft per building code and the health code says one room must be a minimum of 140 sq ft
- No habitable room can have a dimension of less than 7’ in either direction per building code
- Bedrooms must be a minimum of 70 sq ft for one person or 100 sq ft for two per health code.
- The building code also requires minimum distances for the placement of toilet, bath, shower, stairs and ceiling heights.
A: Almost anywhere you can build a larger home (with the above qualifiers)! Land costs may be expensive for a single lot for a single small house so individuals interested in small homes may want to look for accessory dwelling unit bylaws, small lot zoning, infill zoning and opportunities for creating cluster developments (see Glossary to better understand each of these terms).
A: In most of Hampshire and Franklin Counties, new mobile home parks or mobile homes are not permitted as per zoning bylaws. The town of Shelburne allows new mobile home parks on lots of ten acres or more in some districts. Mobile home parks allow for clusters of manufactured homes on leased land, while cluster developments are permanent dwellings on fixed foundations. This gets to be a little blurry because the reality in most “mobile” home parks is that the homes never move and are sometimes even attached to a foundation.
A: In Massachusetts, landowners can pull a building permit by themselves but need to hire contractors for trades like electrical and plumbing. The biggest challenge for a low-income owner/builder would be financing (and possibly expertise). Construction loans are paid out on a schedule as work is completed so the homebuilder needs to have sufficient capital to purchase materials and hire subcontractors and be reimbursed later. A manufactured home delivered complete may simplify this process for owner/builders.
A: Every site is unique but choosing a manufactured home that is pre-designed or starting with a well detailed house plan from another project can help save money by not reinventing the wheel. Houses work as a system and a good designer will think through how all the different parts inter-relate and meet code. The more you try and customize plans yourself, the more you create a ripple effect of other changes needed.
A: You can’t put the same house that works in Arizona in New England because of differences in climate. Massachusetts has a strict energy code including the requirement in some towns to hire a HERS rater for energy analysis. If you are trying to build really low-cost you may want to shelve your dreams of a Passive House and consider if a small low-cost home a “pretty good house” as described by the magazine Fine Homebuilding and Green Building Advisor may be good enough. The last 5-15% of energy efficiency on the way to zero is often the most difficult to achieve.
A: In our case studies we have found that an owner builder built a 400 square foot house in Brattleboro for less than $60,000. Yestermorrow also built a similar project in size and budget. It seems the construction of a small, simple dwelling can be completed for $50,000 if volunteer or DIY labor is used in combination with a low-cost design. This $50,000 construction cost does not include land, expensive concrete or site work.
Folks in the tiny house movement report self-builds in the $13,000 to $40,000 range and contractor built homes for sale in the $50,000 to $80,000 are typical. Remember, these tiny houses on wheels will be financed like an RV, not a house. Habitat’s projected budget for our small home pilot is coming in at the $50-$60,000 range for construction costs (not including site work and overhead). Zero Net Energy mobile home replacements from Vermod cost in the $110,000 to $150,000 range to build but can be subsidized through special programs making the long-term affordability competitive with a lower-cost DIY project.
Big Enough survey respondents and interviewees identified a number of reasons for enjoying where they currently live. Among the most common responses were: quiet / safety; access to nature / wildlife / recreation; and a sense of community.
Participants earning $16,000 – $28,000 annually were more likely to report that the most valuable thing about their current living situation was quiet / safety. Participants earning $40,000 – $52,000 annually were more likely to report that proximity to amenities was what they enjoyed most about where they currently live.
The most common reasons cited by respondents on the question of why they do not enjoy where they currently live include: unaffordable rental payments; landlord / neighbors; and the aesthetics or layout of their current unit. These were consistent across all three income brackets represented.
Our 2017 survey of people earning between $16,000 and $52,000/year with a family size of four, included a “Rapid Fire Question” round where respondents were asked to view 20 housing amenities/features and determine if each was a benefit (a feature they would love to have), acceptable (a feature that is neither positive or negative), or unacceptable (a feature that would prevent them from purchasing a home at an affordable price).
Some of our findings included:
- 77% said not having a washer and dryer would be unacceptable
- 74% said having an open floor plan (no private bedrooms) would be unacceptable
- 63% said no pets allowed would be unacceptable