Berkeley Backyard Cottage Open House

Kevin Casey from New Avenue Homes contacted me about an open house coming up in Berkeley, California in a couple of weeks. A 430 square foot backyard cottage and I am hoping to get on over and see this little cottage in person and I wanted to let you know … Read more

Sausalito Floating Homes

If you love houseboats or floating homes, you may want to make a walking tour of the famous Sausalito Floating Homes part of your next trip to the San Francisco Bay area. I thought I would profile these particular floating homes because the community is maintained by homeowners and individuals rather than city officials. This makes this waterside neighborhood unique in that the designs of these homes, that are docked in Richardson Bay, are up to the owners.

M Skaffari/Flickr

The famous Sausalito floating homes community has a history that stretches over a century. During the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s improvised floating homes made from scrap wood, old tugboats, elegant ships and even old Pullman cars were built by professional artists, and since the dock areas were so small, most of the floating homes stayed small. Some of these homes are now offered as vacation rentals and there are usually a few for sale. Some of the homes have names including the Taj Mahal, the Train Wreck and the Pirate.

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SALE! Topaz Lake Tiny House

This tiny house that I wrote about last year near Topaz Lake in California is still for sale. The owner, Tracy Pope, is eager to sell it as soon as possible and is willing to take as low as $1,500 for it. If anyone is interested in taking it off … Read more

Marc’s California Custom Cabins

Marc Hyman from Santa Barbara, California contacted me a while back about his new business called Custom Cabins. It is so neat to see more and more builders considering small spaces. Marc shared his ideas with me, so I will let him tell you more about Custom Cabins.

After researching the market for the past 3 years, I have come up with a common sense approach to building small, tight, eco cabins.

In a nut shell, I do what most weekend / amateur / average eco dreamers can’t do for themselves. I deliver a properly framed and built shell of a cabin with a sturdy base, watertight walls and roof, and square walls. I avoid doing interiors in order to deliver a very affordable product. The average guy / gal can go to HomeDepot and buy flooring, shelves, wall coverings in order to complete the cabin themselves or with the help of a good handyman (handyperson).

This allows me to deliver an affordable, highly flexible / adaptable space.

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Kenwood Guestroom/Cottage for Sale

Todd West of Kenwood California has what he calls the “Kenwood Guestroom/Cottage” up for sale. Here is Todd’s description.

The framing was done with dry sound reclaimed fir. I use two layers of 5/8″ plywood for the sub floor. the exterior and interior walls are also 5/8″ plywood. I textured the interior to look exactly like drywall. the ceiling is drywall. the floor is reclaimed refinished oak. All it needs is a bit of siding and some exterior trim.

The interior ceiling height is 8.5″ at the walls and 9’3″ in the center. The big window is 4’x5′, the dutch door is 36″, and the french doors are 8′ tall x 5′ wide. the interior is painted and trimmed with reclaimed painted redwood 1×4. It is wired for 4 duplex outlets and one porch light. The total height is 10′ 5″. The attached redwood deck is 4′ x 10’3″ it is also reclaimed wood. Over all it is a nice cozy space.

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Homemade Homeless Shelter

The New York Times has a video produced by Sean Patrick Farrell about a man in California who is using his ranch as a special homeless shelter and rehab center. The difficulties he has encountered and the laws he has chosen to ignore to make this work. Thanks Jeff for letting me know about this video.

Dan de Vaul has taken in dozens of homeless people by building ramshackle, illegal housing on his ranch in San Luis Obispo, Calif. Some see him as a good Samaritan, but others consider the ranch to be a dangerous eyesore. Watch the “Homemade Homeless Shelter video here.”

Photos from video by Sean Patrick Farrell

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