Micro Living Units -- Affordable
From: VAN DEIST (vandeistmsn.com)
Date: Tue, 21 Oct 2014 05:08:41 -0700 (PDT)
Tiny
House / Retirement Cottage

The
current Tiny House phenomenon has focused primarily on singles &
young professionals seeking financial relief in high cost areas. 
That's a very good concept which also applies to senior singles &
couples trying to maintain their life styles on moderate incomes.

Downsizing
appeals to many seeking to age-in-place; who have sorted through
their priorities; and who have made some crucial decisions.  As one
of those, I decided that I want a free-standing house with a little
land around it.  It needs to be a wheelchair friendly home that is
not located in a flood zone.  I want energy efficiency, storm
resilience and fire & termite resistance.  I want to be safe and
snug in my strong home and not have to evacuate.  I want enough room
for me and my stuff but not too much to keep clean easily.

Working
with Banyan Tree Construction in Sarasota, I have helped design what
we believe to be the smallest floor plan that can still be w/c
accessible.  It can have any façade, but we have chosen a 1920’s
style cottage with a metal roof and front & back porches.  Its
construction material is neither cement block nor wood but is
Structural Insulated Panels (SIP’s), a strong, well-insulated
building material which is also fire & termite resistant.  The
assembled panels create the home’s exoskeleton; don't require
trusses; and provide vaulted ceilings throughout.  These ceilings
create a light & airy environment which belies the cottage’s
small, 24’X24’ footprint.

This
cottage utilizes energy-efficient, space-saving appliances which
lower the square footage cost but do add to the appliance allowance. 
To me, this trade-off is a good investment in, both, design &
ambiance.  The idea is to save money by downsizing the home while
maintaining a high ft2 value.  


The
cottage has 576 ft2 of a/c space; a 94 ft2 front porch; and a 128 ft2
back porch, and it costs $120K complete on a developed lot. 
Technically, that’s $208.33 per a/c ft2, and it reflects the value
of this home’s practical amenities & lifestyle enhancements.  A
home is first & foremost a safe, comfortable, and enjoyable
environment.


For
those requiring more space, there is a 2BR, 2BA model available which
adds a master BR to the rear of the 1BR, 1BA cottage.    


We
offer study plans at no charge upon request:  vandeist [at] msn.com 

> From: elaine [at] ostroff.org
> To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
> Date: Sun, 19 Oct 2014 08:32:49 -0500
> Subject: [C-L]_ 4. Re: Micro Living Units -- Affordable
> 
> 
> Hello to this informative list. I've been an appreciative lurker since 2008 
> when our "forming group in Westport, MA" just couldn't make it.
> 
> Thanks to Sharon for the link to the Politico article (and MANY other 
> comments) along with her reminder about the growing phenomenon of "single 
> people."
>  I'm very interested in the potential of affordable, and some accessible, 
> rental micro living units in a co-housing model. This would be an urban 
> model, with access to public transportation.
> 
> Is anyone out there thinking about this? Micro may not be the best 
> descriptive term, but it opens up a way of thinking. And, as in the general 
> co-housing model, individual units can be smaller given the availability of 
> common space. Affordable is another term that has specific definitions 
> depending on the context/funding sources.
> 
> I'd like to facilitate, collaborate to organize a webinar that describes 
> these various models; anyone with examples/suggestions please be in touch.
> 
> Elaine Ostroff
> Westport, MA
> Founding Director, Institute for Human Centered Design (retired)
> Boston, MA
> _________________________________________________________________
> Cohousing-L mailing list -- Unsubscribe, archives and other info at:
> http://www.cohousing.org/cohousing-L/
> 
> 
                                          

Results generated by Tiger Technologies Web hosting using MHonArc.