a carriage house as an option?

methix · Post by **methix** » Sat Oct 02, 2010 8:43 pm

Budgets and cost cutting on the surface only go so far. In a superficial manner, I've been quick pass over certain budget items as being fixed expenses. Electricity, natural gas(heating), home maintenance. I've toyed with the idea of geoarbitrage in ER, but never really considered the the RV or "tiny houses" as options. In my climate you need a vehicle and I'd like a couple acres for gardening in ER, so I've always passed over them as serious options.
That said, the idea of a carriage house recently caught my interest. Basically it's a garage-house combination... structurally inexpensive. Something modest in size, energy efficient, and low in maintenance would seem to be feasible. it would actually make geoarbitrage easier for me as I wouldn't have to find low cost location and house, just the location.
Some photos from google image search:

http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&rlz= ... iage+house
And yes, I'm using the definition of carriage house a bit liberally. And to get back to the post's beginning, this would give me smaller structure(less maintenance), with less energy needs(reduced utility costs) and I'd still have a garage/workshop space.

csdx · Post by **csdx** » Sat Oct 02, 2010 10:30 pm

I'm kinda confused, both your link and wikipedia seem to suggest a 'carriage house' is the old-timey equivalent of today's garage, some place to park your transportation vehicle. The structures seem fairly permanent/immobile, so I'm not sure how this aids in making relocation/geo-arbitrage easier.
Also couldn't you just, say park your vehicle outside, or even some kind of small shack if it really needs element protection?
All I can think is that your plan is to forgo the traditional 'house' and just live in what most folks would consider their garage?

Robert Muir · Post by **Robert Muir** » Sat Oct 02, 2010 10:57 pm

I think the difference between a house with a garage and a carriage house would be that with a carriage house, the square footage of the house would be the same as the garage.
Of course this would be for folks who desire a garage, because, as you said, a small house can be built/maintained more economically without a garage.
I would think that if just a workshop is desired, then a good basement would be more economical than a garage.

NYC ERE · Post by **NYC ERE** » Sat Oct 02, 2010 11:23 pm

David Lynch lived and filmed in a carriage house for quite a long time while making his first film.

methix · Post by **methix** » Sat Oct 02, 2010 11:44 pm

csdx: The more conventional way to put it would be perhaps a garage with a loft or apartment built above. Everything under one roof. If I was thinking of moving further south, having a garage would be an unnecessary luxury. While like it up here in ND, the harsh winter and short growing season can be a bit much. Perhaps a moving a state or 2 south would be more logical option. A more temperate climate would have lower heating costs as well. I guess my mind still stuck in rural North America. I'll think about it and challenge my view points a bit more. If I stay in ND though, definitely keeping this idea on hand.
I was thinking with geoarbitrage something a bit less extreme than the move to a third world country to cut costs stuff. Simply just finding the ideal parcel of land (costs, location, natural resources, etc.) and then building on it. Building a garage with loft seems affordable, whenever the term "home" seems come into play, prices seem to triple. Any rate, as you state a better form of geoarbitrage would be move somewhere that the garage becomes unnecessary.
Google wasn't much help, but did point me to an example with Better Homes and Gardens. The first 2 slides sum it up, the rest are unnecessary decorating fluff. A bit more than I'd need, oh and it's the "Guest Quarters" no less.

http://www.bhg.com/home-improvement/ext ... apartment/
Disclaimer... Not sure if they have annoying pop-ups, etc. as I use adblock+ and NoScript.

Post by **jacob** » Sun Oct 03, 2010 12:44 am

As far as this alien understands carriage house, it's a garage with a livable loft. Another option would be an in-law addition, essentially a former garage turned apartment. We (DW and I) have looked at both options in our search for places to live.
Having gotten interested in carpentry, I'd say one of the downsides of living in an RV is the lack of a workshop. Basically, I have to pull everything out of boxes every time I want to work on something and put it back again when I'm done. Maybe that's not such a bad thing, but it is inconvenient.

Matthew · Post by **Matthew** » Sun Oct 03, 2010 2:30 am

@Jacob
Are you allowed to build a shed?
@methix
I used to imagine a house like this, but I am convinced a house that can be moved (trailer, RV) is best for experimental types. It doesn't require the regulations.

George the original one · Sun Oct 03, 2010 5:32 pm

@methix -
A friend built a garage with loft to live in while they built their real house. I'll try to dig up the links to their photos...

George the original one · Sun Oct 03, 2010 5:38 pm

Ah, found his business site: http://gregoryfsmith.com/

methix · Post by **methix** » Sun Oct 03, 2010 8:20 pm

He has several interesting remodel projects in the site's gallery. It's interesting that some of the accents used are salvaged or native(wood)... fits some style in economically.