Can You Build A Tiny House For $10,000 (Average Cost List)?

Tiny houses have become a desire that most people want to fulfill.

If you’re like me, you really want a tiny house but you don’t want to spend a fortune to build one. You may have a lot of questions already, but let’s address the cost first.

So, can you build a tiny house for $10,000?

The answer is Yes. There are decent tiny houses that cost between $5,000 and $10,000. And depending on where you want to live, you can save some money if you build it yourself by learning how to do so. Or getting help from a friend.

People like tiny houses because it gives them the opportunity to become house owners and offers them a unique and simple way of life instead of living in a large house.

This type of house brings the owners closer to nature — since most of these tiny houses will be located in unpopulated areas where there is access to a cooler environment.

It gives the owner time to be with their family and also have a quiet time.

These are some of the benefits of living in tiny houses.

According to Tiny House Build, Tish and Erika who had no idea of how to build tiny houses built a nice tiny house because of the passion they have for tiny — the cost-effectiveness.

Considering these advantages of having your own tiny house, people want to know if $10,000 can build them a tiny house.

This amount ($10,000) can build you a tiny house, but this depends on some factors like:

• the size of the house
• the location
• the number of laborers
• the materials.

However, there are people who have spent lesser amounts, while there are others who have spent higher when they constructed their house.

Read on, in a short while I will show you how to make good use of this $10,000 budget to build a tiny house.

Another reason why people switch over to tiny residents is the financial freedom that (becoming debt-free) comes with it.

This set of houses gives the owners complete access to their income, unlike building a duplex with a mortgage.

According to research by The Tiny Life, over 60% of tiny house owners living in the U.S. have no mortgage, compared to 29.3% of all U.S. homeowners who have a mortgage.

And also, 89% of tiny homeowners have less credit card debt than the average American, and 60% have no debt at all.

These financial freedoms that come from having your own tiny house make it more popular in the U.S and other countries as well.

So, key into the idea today and become a debt-free house owner.

People are not just going into this project because of the financial aspect of it only, but also the environmental pleasure that it brings.

Due to the location of these types of houses, tiny houses bring the owner closer to an eco-friendly environment.

Even though people are beginning to like tiny houses and the popularity it’s gaining in the U.S and other countries, there are still Governmental policies that hinder people from going into them.

Some of these policies are zoning laws. This law makes it quite difficult for some average Americans to find a building site.

“I think that originally those laws were there to protect people, and then they grew to be more about keeping the standard of the neighborhood and keeping property values high,” said Elaine Walker, founder of the American Tiny House Association. “But I think we’re seeing a bit of pullback on that idea.”

You may have been scared based on the policy above, there is no need for that because this article is here to take you through the simple process of building a tiny house with $10,000.

Let’s get started.

Tip 1: Plan And Design The Outlook of Your House

The success of everything is in the planning. Plans play a major role in our life. For a tiny house dream to come into reality, you must plan it out.

This aspect of constructing your house is incomplete without writing down your plan. During this process, don’t overshoot your budget.

Planning and design will give you an idea of how your tiny dream house can come into reality.

This aspect of the preparation will make you avoid unnecessary expenses and regret during construction.

Also, planning and designing will help you to know the outlook of your house before it’s built.

The design gives you insights into the types of materials to use when constructing.

More so, don’t just buy materials — but go for a market survey before you embark on purchasing.

This will give you the overall idea of the materials cost of both fairly used and new ones.

Here’s an illustration of how to frame your tiny house before constructing it.

In addition, planning involves the acquisition of land or making use of a moveable trail to build your house.

Tips 2: Do It Yourself

Your dream tiny house will come into reality if you engage in the construction by yourself. This will reduce the cost of the building project.

Unless people choose to help you, otherwise, do all the work on your own.

You may be concerned about how to go about it, especially when you have not done it before.

Set out to learn it or contract the major work (structural framing, electrical, plumbing) while you engage in other works (e.g., roofing, flooring, painting).

You may not be able to afford the labor, and the materials cost based on your budget if you contract everything out. Hence, do it yourself.

Tip 3: Go For Fairly Used Materials

Tiny house construction is cost-effective when you do the right thing. One of the right things to do is make use of second-hand materials when building your tiny house.

Fairly-used materials will reduce the cost of building and make you debt-free after building.

You may be asking “what if the materials aren’t strong enough?”, this is the reason for the market survey. They are fairly used doesn’t mean durable.

Most of the materials haven’t been used at all. Sometimes, people give out those materials freely.

So, don’t worry about the durability and the quality of those materials, they should be good and nice for your house.

Tip 4:  Visit Craigslist And Local Stores for materials

Craigslist and local stores are other places to get cheap and quality materials.

Visit Craigslist to see affordable materials to buy — not just affordable, but quality used materials.

Part of the market survey is to visit Craigslist and local stores in your area for an affordable price.

This store offers incredible prices because most of the materials are donated by people.

Tip 5: Begin The Collection of Material Early

There’s no better time than now. Your tiny house will not come to pass if you don’t start on time.

Why wait when you can begin on time? Never wait until the last minute before you can purchase your house materials.

If you wait until the last minute, chances are, you may not see what you need for your tiny house at that time.

The way to achieve this cost-effectiveness is to start early. So, begin early to acquire those things you need for your house.

Tip 6: What Is The Cost Of A Tiny House?

Tiny houses are of different sizes — likewise, the costs are different. There is no fixed price when it comes to the construction of houses.

Usually, people work within the available budget. Therefore, when you plan with this available budget of $10,000, you can afford your tiny house.

Get the cost of tiny houses from various people who had built their house before now.

Part of achieving this is by going for used material for your building.

Don’t just use new materials. New material will be a little bit expensive based on your budget.

When building a tiny house, don’t always look for new material that will fit your house but buy standard used material that will last.

Likewise, build your tiny house window to fit your frame, not buying a frame that will fit your window — this will be quite expensive for you.

Buy an unused one and frame your wall to fit your window.

Assuming you don’t have land, what type of frame do you want to use? You can go for a customized frame. Most especially, when you know of someone who can build it for you. 

The table below shows the cost of various tiny houses when making a decision on the style of house you want.

From the table above, you can make a decision on what type of tiny house you want to build based on your budget.

Conclusion

All in all, your $10,000 can build you a tiny house. Are you confused about where to start? 

Start by planning and designing your tiny house how you want it to be.

Go for a market survey and get the price of goods, especially fairly used goods for the tiny house.

Do the major work by yourself. Ensure all your plans are within your budget.

Don’t forget to know the policy guiding house owners in the area you wish to build your tiny house.