Around here they sell little hunting cabins that are portable:
http://www.waysidelawnstructures.com/log-cabins/portable-log-cabins/hunter-log-cabin.php
You can buy one, set it up and when you have built the house, sell it again if and when you don’t have any use for it and don’t want to see it again.
I would put in a hunting cabin like what Bluey described, as long as your zoning allows it without paying impact fees and other taxes. Later, you can use it as a guest house, party room, place for barn help to stay, or just a play house for your kids. Alternatively, can you make a small barn apartment when you put in the barn that would serve the same purposes?
Having access to a refrigerator, sink, microwave, bathroom and a comfortable chair, will make your lives so much more pleasant as you spend more and more time on your acreage. Also, later, when family comes to visit, they will be more comfortable if they have a little privacy and can stay in the cabin while you are in your home.
Are you ever going to need a pool house? If so then I’d scout that location now.
I suggest either a used camper (you can find inexpensive ones and resell for about the same a year or two later ) or a garage with a small apartment upstairs (since you mentioned your husband wants the garage ASAP).
Another idea would be a storage shed and rent a port a potty. Storage sheds are portable later on (built on skids), can be had for under$2k, set up rain barrel for hand wsdhing water, easy storage for limited shleping of tables/chairs/ etc. You can store tents in it and use it as emergency shelter if a storm comes up. Then move it later on to store the lawn mower and stuff once the house is built.
You could also build a simple wooden platform and put a heavy duty semi permanent tent on it like they have for summer camps.
Cabins can be sort of pricey unless you are able to build it yourself. I’d want to save the money a cabin would cost and spend it on getting everything built sooner.
Sheila
Whatever structure you go with, do give some thought to security. Stuff being stored on a property where no one lives is attractive to thieves.
OK that garage + guest quarters is adorable! :yes:
I want one now, and I don’t have land, five minutes away or otherwise.
Before building anything permanent, be aware of how you want your property laid out and the location of barn, house, pastures, etc. Takes some time and lay out the location of everything on paper to see how it will work.
Anything as a permanent structure will be RE taxable also. I like the tent deck idea. I think a garage/shop space is always handy! a utility bathroom, a frig and some cots, I’d be set.
Or bring the whole family and learn to build your own cabin.
there are a lot of places to learn to build straw bale and cob and cordwood and adoble and etc etc all over the place if that approach appeals.
this is the school i hope to attend in the fall.
I’d do the little building such as Bluey suggested; they’re quite common here.
I’d avoid a mobile home like the freaking financial plague that they are. Handy, yes, but expensive to set up, move, trailer, and nearly impossible to get rid of.
[QUOTE=WannabeDQ;8054347]
I think one of the reasons he isn’t for it is because he is secretly gunning to get his garage before next year. [/QUOTE]
When we were preparing to move from Texas to NC, we knew we wouldn’t build our house for a year or two but made many trips over to build fence, etc. My husband wanted a shop so we built that first - a 36x36 metal shop styled like a barn with a cupola. We walled off one side as a 12x36 part with studs and sheetrock to make (starting at one end) a a 12x8’ bathroom/shower/laundry combo, a 12x19’ “great room” with small kitchen, and a 12x8’ bedroom/office - 436 sq ft total. We ended up living in that full-time for more than 2 years once we moved. It’s now officially his shop but he kept the “finished” part as an office with drafting table and storage for tools and supplies.
He might be willing to go for that approach; even a smaller garage could be temporarily walled off to provide both a place to park car (or a shop) plus a little apartment.
Meantime you should check out some of the “Tiny House” books and TV shows; they usually go from 200-500 sq. feet and are really efficiently designed.
I vote for a camper of some sort. You can’t just build what ever you want. Many places limit where you can put a mobile home. Most places will not let you have 2 dwellings.
So if you built a cabin most likely you would have to tear it down when you built a house.
So before you decide on anything I would check zoning and codes.
OP, you need a tipi.
No, I’m not kidding.
They are pretty affordable, can sleep several folks and you could put the kids to bed and not have to leave the party. This would be a warm-weather option only, but they are really comfortable and beautiful.
Bring out a barbecue, invest in some good igloo coolers, run home if someone’s got a bathroom need beyond whizzing outside and you’re good to go!
http://tipi.com/PriceList.html#packages
Did you think to rent a smaller RV and see how that works?
Then go from that, once you know more what you like for a temporary solution.
They would rent reasonably here for that, if you are not pulling it down the road.
A local cowboy for several years lived in one of those parked right inside his barn and loved it.
Thanks everyone for the replies. We have decided to move up construction of either the barn or the garage to the fall and add a small living area to that. I think this makes the most sense, can’t believe we didn’t think about it before.
Now which one to build first… you know which one I want!
[QUOTE=WannabeDQ;8054170]
My husband and I are having a disagreement and I need an unbiased opinion…
We own a farm 5 minutes away from our house. It will eventually be where we build a house and live, along with bringing my horses home. However, we are doing this slowly as to avoid having to take out loans/debt. Our time line is looking like this:
2015 - plant grass, trees, fence perimeter and work on driveways.
2016 - fence interior, build barn, build garage.
2017 - build house.
My husband and I LOVE it out there. We spend every weekend there and work or just hang out. I would love to build a small (like 500 sqft) cabin out there. It would be wonderful to have bathroom/kitchen/place to spend the night with our kids and dogs. Husband thinks it would be a waste of money because we will eventually build a house out there.
I hate to admit that he has a point, i’m not sure what we would do with it when we build our home, but that is 3 years down the road and I want to enjoy our place now…
Has anyone built a small, simple cabin? How expensive do you think that would be?[/QUOTE]
We stayed in this cabin just outside Saratoga Springs last summer and had the best weekend ever!!!
http://www.vrbo.com/655923
It started out as a little getaway at the back of the farm for the owners, then they decided to put it on vrbo to see what happened, and it’s usually booked solid all summer. So not sure what your long term plans, are but this cabin brings in $125 a night and it was great! If you are near any local attractions and can maybe set it off to the side or something, and you are the hostest with the mostest, you can turn a little getaway into a little extra money to getaway!
[QUOTE=WannabeDQ;8056102]
Thanks everyone for the replies. We have decided to move up construction of either the barn or the garage to the fall and add a small living area to that. I think this makes the most sense, can’t believe we didn’t think about it before.
Now which one to build first… you know which one I want![/QUOTE]
Or you can do what my FIL did many years ago (after WWII in fact) and build the house in sections. Depending on your design you might be able to build the kitchen, bathroom, a BR, and another “family” room now and build the rest when you’re ready to move.
This, or the garage and barn with living quarters, are all viable.
Good luck in your program.
G.
If you do decide you want to build a structure, design it such that it can become part of your future home…do an open design to preserve flexibility. This might mean investing a little in professional design assistance now rather than later, but in the end it could work out quite nicely!
I would consider the idea of a mobile home or prefab cabin if I was willing to entertain the idea of renting it out in the future. It could be a great supplementary source of income, a place a boarder could stay overnight if necessary (if you want boarders) a place for live in farm help, a crash pad for you if you need to stay overnight with a sick horse, or even a fun sleepover for the kids when they get older.
It would also be nice to have a shower, toilet, heated/air conditioned place at the barn.
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