If the new year were to have a new term, that would be house hacking. The word “hacking” is synonymous with breaking into computers or computer software, but has been added to our lexicon in other ways.
The word “hack” is also another word for “manipulate”, or to deal with something skillfully or efficiently. What a great way to describe what needs to be done during these times of housing inefficiency and inequality.
House hacking refers to using your home to generate income. Usually, this means buying a multifamily or multigen home and renting out a portion of it. For example, purchasing a duplex, living in one side, and renting out the second side. The tenant’s payments then pay the owner’s mortgage.
House hacking can include building a small apartment within an existing home.
Other examples of house hacking include buying a home and converting a basement or attic into an apartment or turning a master suite into a studio. We also love and support the idea of multigen homes being used as income generators.
So how can you house hack a tiny house? One way to do it is by purchasing land, putting a tiny house on it, and then slowly adding on other tiny homes as rentals. Of course, this will depend on the regulations in our area.
However, it has been done by people such as Michelle Boyle, Element Life, and Cherry Clouds Oasis
Michelle built My Tiny House Village in Oregon and has been featured on the Drew Barrymore Show and Florb. Her village consists of four darling tiny houses of various sizes tucked into the woods. They are available for nightly rentals.
Nate and Shannon of Element Life work with a partner to run and maintain another tiny house village in New Mexico. The land came with a tiny cabin and the couple have added two tiny houses into the mix. The homes are also available for overnight rentals.
Cherry Clouds Oasis is an overnight rental and events space in the Mojave Desert. It consists of several vintage campers and buses, a boat, and an outdoor kitchen and shower. The rental income helps to pay the owners for the land and their work on the structures.
These are just three ways to house hack a tiny house, but we are excited to see other examples in the new year.
By Christina Nellemann for the [Tiny House Blog]