Are Amazon’s Tiny Houses a Good Deal?
You may or may not have seen the chatter about Amazon selling tiny house kits. While I do appreciate the ideals of the tiny house craze, and I think a lot of Americans have too much house, I'm not sure about the feasibility and cost/reward of these tiny, truck delivered buildings. Honestly, you'd probably be better off buying a decent used camper.
The click bait titles in your Facebook feed always say something like, "Check out this amazing tiny house you can buy on Amazon for only XXXX dollars!" And yes, I clicked it to find out more. Most of them are pretty much just the tiny house shell. Most don't have windows or doors. Most of them do not have plumbing or lighting fixtures. Many don't include shingles or roofing materials. This little guy, while super-cute, only has walls that are 1 3/4" thick. Good luck staying warm in that tiny house in Montana.
None of the tiny Amazon houses include foundation or septic work, which can easily double your purchase price. And you still have to find some land somewhere with loose enough zoning that you can park your tiny cabin. Not to mention, you have to put them together yourself. Some of the ones I looked at say that they can be assembled by two people in a weekend. Yeah right. I've heard the same thing about those big swing sets you have to put together from Costco. 40 hours and three cases of beer later, swing set still not done.
If you are seriously interested in a "tiny house" or cabin or garden shed, I would recommend you talk to any of the numerous shed builders in Montana. You've probably driven past a number of them on your way to work today. Or call or visit a place like S-Bar-S in Lockwood that can help you build a realistic tiny structure, built for Montana conditions, at prices that are likely as good as Amazon. No assembly required.