Budget

I am going to do my best to build this house as cheaply as possible. I will be scouring the scrap lumber piles at Home Depot and Lowes... I will ask friends to help me with certain jobs... I will ask people in the construction business to keep an eye out for scraps I could use. I will find items on craigslist, and will only resort to buying things new from the store after exhausting all other options.

I am going to take a shot at building my own windows, cabinets, and counters. I will not hire a plumber or electrician; I'll ask people who know how to do it to teach me. I'm going to ask my cousin or my uncle to help me with the roof. This entire project will be a test of skill, endurance, and patience. Along every step of the way, I will be doing what I can to save money and learn something new.

THE PLANS:
First up, the plans/license to build. I was patient and waited for a sale, and got them for $159 less than the usual price. I believe this is a good start to saving some dough!

THE ROOF:
In 2012, I had a new red metal roof put on my house. I have a good amount of scrap left over that I figured I could use on this house! Well, now my parents had the same color put on their house, so I have A LOT more scrap! I'll have to sit down and measure it all out, but I believe I might have enough to do the whole roof!

January 11: I bought a house yesterday, and have started demolishing areas to redo them... I now have a LOT of OSB to use as the sheathing on the roof and exterior walls! There was also a roll of roofing felt in the garage that I can use on my gypsy roof too!

THE TRAILER:
When I was first beginning this journey, the Tumbleweed Tiny House Company had a budget online, and they budgeted $4200 for a trailer. This is a trailer they build and provide, so it already has some pieces and parts that I will have to have a welder add to my trailer! Either way, I'll be saving a lot because I found a company in Fayetteville, TN that is building my trailer for $1750. It'll cost about $150 in gas/food and a day of my time for me to drive up there and get the foundation for my gypsy!

THE FLOOR:
Since I bought my house in April of 2012, there has been a rickety old fence between my house and my elderly neighbor's house. In January of 2013, I asked her if I could tear it down and replace it, because I really need a place for my dogs to safely exercise! Her reply? "That's your fence... not mine!" Needless to say, now the fence is gone! I've taken the fence apart, and kept the panels to use as the floor in the gypsy. I'm confident that once I run them through a planer, they will all be the same depth, and I'll rip them to a few specific lengths and widths before laying them down. Then, I'll stain and seal them!