At 22, buys & customizes lofted home in Pocket Neighborhood on a budget

Summary

The transcript describes a unique housing community in Tempe, Arizona, where residents live in affordable, micro-homes designed for efficiency and sustainability. The homes, ranging from 450 to 600 square feet, are equipped with smart home technology and feature high-performance systems for energy efficiency. The community is designed with a focus on biophilic design, maximizing natural light and incorporating green spaces with fruit trees. Residents have access to shared amenities like a community center and laundry facilities, and the homes are part of a land trust that ensures long-term affordability for first-time home buyers.

Takeaways

• 🏠 The community features micro-homes and tiny homes designed for affordability and individuality.
• 🌳 The area is described as an oasis with fruit trees and a community-focused environment.
• 💰 Investors and first-time home buyers face challenges competing with high prices in the market.
• 👫 The homes are small (600 sq ft) but designed to maximize space and efficiency.
• 🌿 The community encourages self-sufficiency with features like personal garden spaces and storage solutions.
• 🏡 Homeowners have the opportunity to customize their living spaces, including smart home technology.
• 💡 The homes are equipped with energy-efficient features, such as solar panels and advanced framing techniques.
• 🔄 The community has a unique lease-to-own model that ensures long-term affordability.
• 📈 The homes are designed with high-performance systems and biophilic design for optimal living conditions.
• 🚰 Gray water systems are in place for efficient use of water in landscaping and fruit tree irrigation.
• 📊 The community center provides shared amenities like a laundry room and kitchen, fostering a sense of togetherness.

Q & A

What is the main challenge mentioned for first-time home buyers in this area?

The main challenge is the inability to compete with investors who buy multiple homes at high prices, making it difficult for individual first-time buyers to find affordable options.

How does the speaker describe the community they live in?

The speaker describes the community as a little oasis in the heart of Tempe, with fruit trees, a storage container concept, and a sense of personal space combined with community living.

What type of homes are in this community?

The homes in this community are micro homes or tiny homes, designed to be affordable and individualized for each homeowner.

What is unique about the design of these micro homes?

The micro homes are designed with full-sized appliances, smart home features, and efficient use of space, including a crawl space for storage under the stairs.

How does the community manage the shared spaces?

The front yard and courtyard areas are managed by the Homeowners Association (HOA), while the side yard is left for personal taste and customization by the homeowners.

What is the significance of the window placement in these homes?

The window placement is strategic to maximize daylight, with most windows facing east to avoid the intense afternoon sun in Arizona, and to provide natural light throughout the home.

How does the community ensure long-term affordability of the homes?

The community uses a land trust model where homeowners have a 99-year lease, and when selling, 25% of the equity goes back to the land trust to keep the homes affordable for future buyers.

What are some of the sustainable features of these homes?

The homes have solar panels on the roofs, advanced framing techniques for better insulation, and gray water systems that use water from laundry for landscaping.

How does the speaker feel about their micro home?

The speaker is very positive about their micro home, appreciating the minimalist lifestyle it promotes and the opportunity to make it a smart home. They see it as a starter home and plan to stay for at least another 5 years.

What is the average utility cost for these homes in the summer and winter?

The average summer utility cost is around $65 to $70 per month, while in the winter it can be as low as $25, due to the efficiency of the homes and the use of solar energy.

How does the community handle laundry facilities?

Most homeowners use the shared laundry facilities in the community center, which is equipped with full-size washing machines and dryers.

Outlines

00:00

🏡 The Oasis of Micro Homes in Tempe

This paragraph introduces a unique housing community in Tempe, Arizona, where investors and individuals are purchasing homes. The speaker, a young homeowner, discusses the challenges of competing with investors and appreciates the affordability and community feel of the micro homes. The homes are described as tiny, personalized, and efficient, with a focus on biophilic design and high-performance systems. The homeowner shares their experience of customizing their space, the benefits of the shared community areas, and the innovative storage solutions within the small footprint of their home.

05:02

💡 Smart Home Living in a Tiny Space

The speaker elaborates on the smart home features integrated into their micro home, which includes voice-activated controls and smart blinds. They discuss the efficiency of the home, the use of space under the stairs, and the ability to store items not used daily. The paragraph highlights the affordability and efficiency of the homes, with the speaker mentioning their low utility bills and the use of solar energy. The focus is on the practicality and sustainability of living in a small, smart home.

10:05

🌳 Sustainable Design and Efficient Use of Space

This paragraph delves into the architectural and environmental design aspects of the micro homes. The speaker explains the advanced framing techniques used to reduce wood and increase insulation, the strategic placement of windows to maximize daylight and minimize heat exposure, and the use of natural materials. The paragraph emphasizes the high air tightness of the homes, the efficient use of space, and the overall goal of creating affordable and sustainable housing options.

15:06

🏠 Community Ownership and the Future of Micro Homes

The final paragraph discusses the unique ownership model of the community, where a land trust holds the land and homeowners have a 99-year lease with an option to renew. The model ensures affordability by requiring a portion of any equity gained to be returned to the land trust for the next buyer. The speaker talks about the communal facilities, such as the community center and laundry facilities, and their personal plans to stay in the home for at least five more years. The paragraph concludes with the speaker's view of the micro home as a starter home that allows for growth and experimentation with smart home technology.

Keywords

💡Micro Homes

Micro homes, also known as tiny homes, refer to small, compact living spaces that are designed to maximize functionality while minimizing the use of space. In the context of the video, these homes are an affordable housing solution that allows first-time home buyers to own property without the high costs associated with traditional homes. The script mentions that these micro homes are fully stocked with appliances and are designed to feel spacious despite their small size, with each home having its own plot of land for individualization.

💡Affordability

Affordability in the context of the video refers to the financial feasibility of purchasing and maintaining a home. The micro homes are designed to be affordable in perpetuity, meaning they are intended to remain financially accessible to first-time home buyers over the long term. This is achieved through various cost-saving measures such as efficient design, use of economical materials, and smart home features that reduce utility costs.

💡Community Living

Community living as presented in the video involves residents sharing common spaces and resources, fostering a sense of neighborhood and mutual support. The micro homes development includes a community center where residents can do laundry, host events, and socialize. This setup not only promotes a sense of community but also contributes to the affordability of the homes by reducing the need for individual utilities and facilities.

💡Sustainability

Sustainability in the video pertains to the environmentally friendly design and practices of the micro homes. This includes the use of solar panels on the roofs, efficient insulation, and gray water systems for landscaping. The homes are designed to reduce energy consumption and promote the reuse of resources, aligning with broader goals of sustainable living.

💡Biophilic Design

Biophilic design refers to the integration of natural elements and processes into the built environment to promote well-being and connect occupants more closely to nature. In the video, this concept is reflected in the use of natural materials, such as wood, and the strategic placement of windows to maximize daylight and views of the surrounding greenery.

💡Smart Home Technology

Smart home technology encompasses a range of systems and devices that enhance home functionality and energy efficiency through automation and remote control. In the video, the homes are equipped with smart features such as programmable blinds and voice-activated controls for appliances, which not only add convenience but also contribute to the homes' overall efficiency and cost savings.

💡Efficient Design

Efficient design in the context of the video refers to the architectural and construction strategies employed to maximize the use of space and resources while minimizing waste and energy consumption. This includes advanced framing techniques, strategic window placement for daylight, and the use of high-performance systems to ensure the homes are well-insulated and energy-efficient.

💡Customization

Customization in the video refers to the ability of homeowners to personalize their micro homes to suit their individual tastes and needs. This is facilitated by the flexible design of the homes, which allows for modifications such as adding storage solutions or landscaping the personal side yard.

💡Land Trust

A land trust is a legal arrangement where the ownership of land is separated from the ownership of the buildings or property on it. In the video, the land ultimately belongs to a land trust, and homeowners have a 99-year lease. This structure is used to ensure the long-term affordability of the homes by requiring that a portion of any equity gained upon sale is returned to the land trust, thereby maintaining the homes as affordable options for future buyers.

💡Urban Oasis

An urban oasis refers to a peaceful, natural, or green space within an urban environment that provides a sense of refuge or relaxation. In the video, the micro homes development is described as an urban oasis, with fruit trees, green spaces, and a community center, offering residents a tranquil and inviting place to live amidst the city.

💡Starter Home

A starter home is typically an entry-level property that a first-time homebuyer purchases to begin their journey of homeownership. In the video, the micro homes are referred to as starter homes, indicating that they serve as an affordable and practical first step into the housing market for young buyers.

Highlights

Investors buying multiple homes as first-time buyers makes it difficult for individuals to compete.

The community offers an oasis-like environment in the heart of Tempe.

Homeowners planted fruit trees themselves, creating a shared, fruitful space.

The houses are micro homes or tiny homes, each unique and personalized.

The community has a table of 40-foot fences allowing for personal space and community integration.

The speaker was a young buyer at the age of 22, finding the market challenging.

The homes are designed to be affordable in perpetuity, with individualized plots of land.

The homes come fully stocked with appliances and are energy-efficient.

The homes have smart home features, allowing control via tablet or voice activation.

The design includes a crawl space for storage, maximizing the use of space.

The homes are designed with high-performance systems and high air tightness.

Windows are strategically placed for optimal daylight and heat management.

The community has a shared community center with laundry and kitchen facilities.

The homes are leased with a 99-year lease, with a system to maintain affordability for future buyers.

The community utilizes gray water systems for landscaping, promoting sustainability.

The homes are designed with advanced framing techniques for better insulation and reduced wood usage.

The community is a starter home for young buyers, offering a stepping stone to future homeownership.

The homes are all-electric, with solar panels on the roofs contributing to energy efficiency.

The homes are designed with biophilic design principles, incorporating natural materials and elements.

Transcripts

one of the things that's tough about

this area is you'll have an investor

come in here and buy up seven or eight

homes as a first-time home buyer or you

know just a single person you can't

compete with those kind of

prices so this was nice to have this in

the heart of Tempe

this is like some sort of little Oasis

at the end of the street it is yeah you

kind of you come in you're not sure kind

of what to expect in this area as you're

kind of coming down here with all these

either duplex homes or single family

homes and then once you get to the end

of the street here with the fruit trees

the neighbors the storage container

concept it opens up to like this huge

Oasis in the in the summer this place is

a jungle all the you know all the trees

are fruit trees we have orange trees

lemon lime apricot Peach all free for

the

picking and the cool thing is we

actually planted all these ourselves as

homeowners it's interesting it's they're

definitely not traditional houses no

they're not you know they're they're

micro they're kind of micro homes

they're tiny

homes it's nice that everybody does

their own thing like there's a a table

like you're allowed to build your own

you can have your like yeah yeah I think

it's a 4ot fence that you can have up in

the front yard so um it it's having that

space where you can have your own

personal space and then kind of enter

into the community side of things over

here I was kind of looking for a house I

was 22 at the time and you know for a 22

year-old to be in the market looking for

a house is very tough and at that point

none of this was really here this was

all a dirt lot and I I applied right

away it was actually the 13th so there's

13 homes I was the last person to get in

this looks like houses like little

houses right and that was the plan cute

little houses that are small enough to

be affordable in perpetuity uh and yet

actually have them individualized where

they're all separated so that each

person feels like they have their own

plot of land which they really

do did you get a pick which one yeah so

well actually cuz I was the last

homeowner all of them um were pretty

much taken at that point actually I kind

of like my unit as one of the the best

not not to be biased at all each home

has it like a little sidey yard so the

front yard and the courtyard areas are

all HOA managed but the the sidey yard

is kind of our own personal taste so

this is the estate part of the micro

Estates

yeah this is you yeah so this is all my

personal taste everyone started with

just a dirt lot um and then you kind of

kind of got to choose whatever you did

so I wanted to have like a little bit of

grassy area for if I do get a pet or

something and then wanted to kind of

have some vegetation and such ended up

installing this spine back here over

time hopefully having this kind of shoot

out into both directions right it's just

a small patch yeah it's it's nothing

large where you're sitting out here with

the lawn mower or anything and it go

again it goes back to affordability and

the Market's just it's so hot right now

and as as a young person 600 square ft

of a home is plenty of space for one

person so what's cool about the place is

you kind of walk straight into the uh

into the kitchen area the homes came

fully stocked with appliances and then

to kind of as you kind of make your way

through uh it opens up until this is I

think at the lowest point is 16 ft and

then at the highest point if you're

standing from the bottom all the way up

it's 20t at the other end so it's a huge

space when you think of like a tiny home

or a micro home you automatically think

oh there's probably like a ladder to The

Loft you probably have a mini fridge the

cool thing about these homes is that

they're full-sized

appliances one of the cool things about

this area so you know you have the

bathroom on the other side of the stairs

which is a great use of space like right

about here is where the bathroom ends

from here on over you still have a ton

of space under the stairs and the

original plans had this as just dry

completely drywalled out the builders as

they were building the place the

standard 2x4 they actually went around

this whole area and left this open with

no 2x4s coming through here so that the

homeowner could come in and just without

you know needing any handyman to come in

here could actually pop this open

themselves break the drywall this they

had specifically designed Ikea cabinet

and it actually opens up

to a a storage space down there cuz like

so in a way it's kind of like your craw

your craw space it is yeah it's the

crawl space yeah the crossplay SL

storage for everything whatever you're

not using on a day-to-day basis if you

look around they're just where do you

store the Christmas tree where do you

store some of the stuff that you would

normally have in a normal house and so

that's actually a huge at the at the

highest point you can stand up it's

probably 6 feet and it comes all the way

down it's a most people on first you

know when their first their first time

looking at the place they don't really

notice it cuz the it it does a good job

of kind of hiding itself you really have

to kind of focus when someone's sitting

on the couch for a while then they start

to then they notice that you know hey

that bookshelf doesn't doesn't look too

normal but um like first time walking by

you don't really notice that there's a

whole storage room back there the other

thing too is because it's such a small

space being able to make the the Home

Smart proof and you know like a whole

smart home is was pretty inexpensive to

do originally when I bought the house

all the switches and everything in here

were just standard toggle switches

everything in here now um is all smart

home so I'm able to I'm able to control

90% of the home um on on my on my tablet

uh you know voice activated um it all

everything here is kind of activated in

one way uh the blinds also are all smart

home

activated and that's the cool thing with

the smart blinds too is in the morning

as I wake up I have them programmed to

you know come up right before my alarm

clock comes off to start to let some

natural light

in and then in the evening and night as

I'm driving in the lights are already on

the shades are already down um and it's

just a smooth transition into the

house you know when a lot of people come

up they think that it's a very small

space but they're actually shocked by

the size of the insides you know I've

had 10 people in here all at once and

you would think that 10 people on the at

on the first floor only would just be

just completely packed but it actually

has a decent amount of space where

you're able to still kind of move around

in

there I'm such a minimalist when it

comes to a lot of stuff I try to keep

everything kind of tucked away as much

as possible so most of the time this

kind of stays stays open do you like the

material difference there it's

noticeable yeah and so I growing up well

my my dad was in construction and so I

always got to see like blueprints and

stuff of places and so growing up I was

a huge architecture fan and this is so

it's different in the future I might

kind of make a couple changes down thead

Road I I thought about maybe open up

opening up little slits through here to

kind of let some of that natural light

from up here flow down into the main

area I mean I like that you're talking

about the future like this isn't just a

20-some house yeah that's the nice thing

I think the the age range here is pretty

dramatic but you know we're all

firsttime home buyers being first-time

home

buyers we all are kind of in the same

bucket we all kind of didn't understand

like you know okay well you know what do

you do for blinds you know what do you

do for closet system this was actually

an idea that was bounced off of another

homeowner what I ended up doing was

putting in a ton of Ikea closets here so

you have yeah yeah you have a ton of

space yeah you have a lot of storage

space for clothing yeah that's the nice

thing too is that it's so customizable

so underneath the bed you have a ton of

drawers to keep everything in there

extra bedding and such and then and then

kind of you're off I work from home

space so it's kind of nice to be able to

work from home here on most of the time

you'll actually catch me downstairs

working at the dowy table cuz

it's the homes because they're new and

because they're so efficient one of the

worries was how do you get fresh air in

here when you don't open the windows you

know they're they're sealed up so well

that vent right there actually is a

fresh air vent so it's timed with the

exhaust fan in the bathroom certain

times the night it'll turn on and start

to suck air from downstairs and then

pull fresh air from outside so you con

conly have some fresh air in here the

whole place is all about efficiency you

want to share what you pay for utilities

yeah we all have solar on the roofs it's

not our solar it what we do is we

actually we lease quote unquote our

roofs to the local electric provider and

they give us a credit each month on our

bill so all the solar goes back into the

Grid on average and again keep in mind

we live here in Arizona where it's 118

in the summertime the average summer

bill is probably somewhere around $65 to

$70 a month and in the in the winter I

think my most recent bill was $25 so

very very efficient homes very efficient

no gas it's all um all electric in here

um but you can't beat that all electric

$25 yeah exactly yeah you can't beat

that at all and I think that's what

shocks a lot of a lot of people it's

like $25 a month

how most of what we did was economical

in order to keep the homes as affordable

as possible the homes are all um

designed with as much biophilic design

and as much of the high performance kind

of systems and they are quite high in

air tightness and everything else I knew

to keep the envelope very very

simple the framing in these houses is

actually Advanced framing techniques

where normal you would have a stud every

16 in on Center and you put the

insulation in between that the all of

these are framed at 24 in on Center

which is perfectly fine structurally but

we reduce the amount of wood we need by

20% and we get more insulation so we get

better insulated walls with less framing

members and you want to limit the amount

of size of the windows for two reasons

one is to look keep the cost low because

windows are more expensive than than

walls and the other is is that you want

to limit the um heat exposure that you

get through them as much as possible we

chose a placement of Windows that

maximizes daylight where you need

it hey

again so the the four Windows had to do

a a great amount of work you know they

had to bring in a lot of light and where

you really want it and so that's where

it got really fun with trying to

experiment with where those windows

should uh should

be there's a window on the back at the

bottom of the stairs and this provides

light the corner where the at the bottom

of the stairs so it it reflects light

all over the place in the corner and

then the other windows are in the

opposite corner so you get light kind of

all through the space on the inside just

from those couple of Windows there no

window on this side which is this is

west west side okay but this is right

against the property lot line and so you

can't it needs to be 1 hour rated so you

don't want to put a window in it because

then it gets really expensive you know

economically we really chose carefully

where to put the windows and where not

and West you definitely don't want a

window in Arizona because you're working

with climate which is which is like what

somebody was saying 117 degrees

sometimes in heat waves in the summer oh

it gets up to

122 but this last summer we had it was

um over 110 for 31 days straight we're

not totally unused to that but not for

31 days it was a

lot and I big fan huge fan of the uh of

the glass door wor this is the glass

side I mean it's just like all right

here yeah yeah so you know in the

evening here in Arizona it's the hottest

time of the entire day so having all of

the windows and doors facing uh to your

East you're not getting all that hot you

know light coming into the home yeah and

this is a huge part of like just the all

the amount of natural light that you get

inside the house I'm a huge fan of it

personally the window placement are kind

of at these Corners so that there's

always natural light no matter where you

look this is or it all is now that I'm

back here I'm like w there's a lot of

window here you know this is where you

want

it so the window that you can't see here

is bouncing natural light

around and then um when you're looking

this way when you come down the stairs

you have light there and then you turn

around and you've got lots of daylight

there if you're when you're walking up

the stairs here there's a the fourth

windows up in the bedroom up there you

get natural daylight there and just even

using the um inexpensive Lumber is

really you know something that you

wouldn't normally find in affordable

housing to actually have exposed wood

and one of the things about bleck design

is natural materials and so we did that

handrail as a oak for

instance these are actually wood that is

used for form work for concrete walls

and it ended up being a little less

expensive and a little better looking as

a finish to use this and it's pretty

expensive material and it's very very

hearty and the other thing with the

windows too I mean he's got this open

right now so again you can release Heat

at night and when you look around like

you can really tell there's plenty of

daylight right there's the lights are

not on which is odd because there's so

few windows and they're small but it's a

small

house how big is this each house is 600

square ft that includes the mezzanine

okay so down here is what I think about

for roughly 450 and 150 okay it is small

but like Christian lives here alone

still right but um Danielle who lives a

couple doors down it's her and her

husband so they share it and they say

it's plenty for them too

so and then of course we wanted to have

some connection between the main window

which is at the kitchen so so that

there's some sense of being able to keep

eyes on the neighborhood and being able

to say hi to each

other

the land ultimately belongs to the land

trust everybody that buys one of the

homes has a 99-year lease which they can

renew if they want and when they sell it

they have to return 25% I believe it is

to the next buyer so whatever Equity

they brought in 25% of it goes back to

the land trust in order to hand it to

the next buyer in order to keep the

houses affordable and

perpetuity you buy but you're not on

it's not a market rate right correct so

the homes they were you know between 175

and 210 they appraised obviously a lot

higher than that uh the whole idea is

again affordability so at the end of the

day you know when you do want to go sell

new town which is the owners of the land

lease will be the people to likely

repurchase your home right away it's

kind of giving back to the community in

terms of again letting another first-

time home buyer come in

here so I'd say like 80% of the

homeowners do our laundry in the

community center there's I think one or

two homeowners that actually have their

own laundry aside from that 80% of us

all kind of do it in there um you would

think that it would be a pain but

honestly all of us have gotten really

used to it and haven't had any problems

on rare rare occasion you'll have

overlap where you know multiple people

want to use it but and you would think

that it'd be on the weekends but in

reality sometimes that overlap happens

like on a Tuesday night so huge space uh

Community Center and this is kind of

where you know again CU it's a smaller

home having some of those larger

Gatherings kind of makes it tough to do

in a small space um so you can host a

large event you can have friends giving

or or like a Friends Christmas party in

here a full-size Kitchen in here with

the

appliances and then we have the laundry

here so this is kind of where this is

the uh home away from home as we all

like to call it as I said look it's 5:00

on a Saturday and

open um these two are the are the gray

water um systems there So eventually

what'll happen is when we do go through

the final install process that'll be the

switch there'll be a switch here for

homeowners to be able to swap that on

and off so the gray water from the

laundry it goes into the Landscaping

correct and even with you know the fruit

trees and everything people will ask us

about the watering of that but right

there is a large water tank that

collects roof water and that goes to

these fruit trees yeah so there's a

slanted roof it all flows to the back

where there's a pipe system around the

whole complex it takes it to an

underground storage system under the

parking how long do you think you would

stay here I definitely see myself

staying here for at least another 5

years it's a space that I'm still kind

of growing in because it's small it

gives me the opportunity to do a lot of

of the stuff that I dreamt about like

making it a smart home to test some

stuff out here before actually taking it

and when I do purchase a you know a big

boy home I can kind of use some of what

I learned here so it's just the old idea

of a starter home yeah it is 100% yeah a

starter home

yeah