Does anyone have knowledge on Tiny Homes as a rental strategy?

Question

I've seen the trend on Tiny Home communities and would love to learn about permitting, zoning, cost estimating, financing... etc.  Expertise/interest is welcome! I'm looking at a property that comes with land zoned for commercial so I'm wondering what would it take...

Patrick Wood · Answer

I built 6 tiny homes in a campground that I owned. The biggest misconception is that they are cheap to build because the square footage is so low. Wrong the cost per square foot goes up drastically. I built these in 2018 the cost to build a run of the mill home was around $100/sf and it cost me $150 with no builder mark ups. The good thing was they were very efficient. Utilities ran around $50 a month for all electric. I tried long term rental and Airbnb and they were always full. I built just outside of town in a rural community so there were no permitting issues.

Ronald Rohde · Answer

its very hard in most cities, if you're outside city limits, its easier, but power/water/sewer is tough. are you going to just rent lots or build foundation or tiny homes on wheels? each has pros and cons.

the short answer is that US code was not drafted with tiny homes in mind, you'll have minimum building size, minimum everything that needs a variance for every single item. it requires a lot of departments to all be on board even if you have the "city" approval/support.

Brett Deas · Answer

I just went through this process for my most recent STR resort deal. Permitting is not easy, each county has their own specifications and not to mention cities too. But for cost, you can just call the builders and they are great with helping for estimating costs based on your design and wants. For financing sometimes builders have their own, but for me I went to local banks. Depending on the bank they can really understand the are and if you have a good plan and everything they can help you finance these tiny homes.

Ronald Rohde · Answer

either personal or lot rental loans, commercial as real property is tough

Henry Clark · Answer

This is a specific question to your zoning entity.

Commercial.  Will they accept this.

Setbacks. Being small units, the setbacks could eat a lot up quick.

As mentioned your utility connection costs will be massive compared to your rentable square feet.  Can you daisy chain them or are they required to be individual hookups?

What from a cost, revenue, or local attraction is guiding you to this concept other than curiosity?

Maribel Manibo · Answer

Thanks @Patrick Wood for sharing! what's the financing on tiny homes? Personal loans... commercial if you make a compound?

Does anyone have knowledge on Tiny Homes as a rental strategy?

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