9 minute read
Living Small
LIVING
LIVING
THE NEW TREND IN MINIMALISM IS TINY HOMES
BY NORA HESTON TARTE
Tiny homes are gaining popularity across the United States. In California, where dreams of living near the beach, Silicon Valley, or top medical facilities are high, many residents find the only way to make their California lifestyle a reality is to purchase a tiny home. And Delta Bay is San Joaquin County’s only tiny home community, offering a spot on the San Joaquin River Delta for residents with small homes.
SMALL
TINY HOME LIVING At Delta Bay, residents can place tiny homes (typically pre-fab structures built by tiny home specialty builders) on the west side of the property. The eastern side is reserved for RVs and trailers, but on the western side there are 15 home sites dedicated to tiny homes. There are 14 sites taken at this time. “The community is part of a 15-acre RV park on the California Delta Loop,” says Corinne Corley, 64, a resident of Delta Bay. “We are on the west side of the park on a ¼-mile circular road.” In addition to the 15 tiny home sites, there are a handful of mobile homes, too—less than 10. “The tiny house section was started about three years ago by the park owner who believes in tiny houses as sustainable living,” Corinne says.
Despite the growing popularity of tiny homes, typically described as dwellings between 100 and 400 square feet but in some definitions measuring as large as 1,000 feet, legal tiny home sites can be hard to come by. In fact, Corinne isn’t aware of any other tiny home communities in Northern California. There was once one in Alameda, but the property didn’t have the correct type of licensing to cater to tiny homes, so the residents were evacuated. What many may not know, is that there are legal stipulations that must be met for tiny home dwellings, and they are not the same as RV or mobile home sites. Corinne originally planned to
“Our tiny homes come with a full kitchen, restroom, living space, storage, and sleeping loft, as well as a 2.0 model with a downstairs bedroom. All of our homes come with a large
Bay window and kitchen window which allows for beautiful views, and the loft is surrounded by windows on all sides.” - Crystal Serrano park her tiny home north of Santa Rosa, but the tiny home community she was eyeballing burnt down in the fires in 2017. That’s how she ended up southeast at Delta Bay.
Crystal Serrano, who co-owns the tiny home builder Pacifica Tiny Homes with Josue Serrano, says it isn’t as much of a challenge to find a home site as it used to be. “Many cities are legalizing them,” she says. In addition to tiny home communities like Delta Bay, property owners are often willing to rent out space on private property to tiny home dwellers, or people build them on friend’s or family’s property.
When it comes to tiny living, Corinne says anyone can do it—young, old, single,
partners, married. “It provides a chance to focus on the more important pursuits of life besides taking care of cleaning and home maintenance.”
Corinne’s home is a 8.5 feet x 24 structure made of Missouri cedar, good Missouri tongue, and groove pine, by a private builder in Missouri who built it to her specifications. It includes a lowered bedroom loft, a sitting area, a galley kitchen, and a guest sleeping loft. “I have propane cooking and an ondemand propane hot water heater. I have electric heat and a composting toilet and a lovely tiled shower,” she says. She has also completed some modifications to the space. Corinne made the decision to downsize after
her divorce when she fell in love with the Pacific Ocean and wanted to get closer to it. She also loved the idea of living somewhere with just the basics, a new type of minimalism boomers and millennials alike are flocking to. When asked what appealed to her most about tiny living, Corinne says it’s the way life is distilled to the essentials.
There are a lot of positive attributes to tiny home living. In addition to lower costs (including home cost, monthly expenses, utilities, etc.), less home maintenance and time spent cleaning as well as a smaller carbon footprint are among chief praises. Some studies even suggest that tiny home living is a better investment, with statistics pointing
LIVING SIMPLE “Living simple and tiny is one of the best choices you can make, there are so many benefits to your mental, physical, and economic health. The best part is that a tiny home can be remodeled and modified, and you can take them anywhere you want. You can just hitch up your home and move somewhere else,” Crystal Serrano, Owner, Pacifica Tiny Homes
toward a 10 percent higher appreciation rate in the tiny home market than the home market overall.
While choosing a place to park your tiny home is important—and one you should take seriously—it isn’t the only decision to make before committing to this lifestyle. Tiny living does come with its challenges including adjusting to living in a small space, little privacy or personal space, struggles with financing and insurance, and the inability to host family and friends often if at all.
BUILDING A TINY HOME Tiny homes are available for resale, but a popular way to get them is to have one built. Pacifica Tiny Homes sells constructed tiny homes to prospective buyers. There are two models to choose from, the Bay Cottage and the Tiny Victorian, ranging from 211-363 square feet. The models are identical, boasting the same floor plan, features, and upgrades. “Creating only two models helps us offer them to customers for a reasonable and affordable price,” says Crystal says. She adds that contrary to popular belief, their homes are celebrated for being spacious, letting in lots of natural light and air due to design, and having a very functional layout. The homes come with a loft, but a 2.0 model offers a downstairs bedroom and second
loft, accommodating older people, people with disabilities, or those who need more space.
“Our tiny homes come with a full kitchen, restroom, living space, storage, and sleeping loft, as well as a 2.0 model with a downstairs bedroom. All of our homes come with a large Bay window and kitchen window which allows for beautiful views, and the loft is surrounded by windows on all sides,” Crystal says. “We offer free customization so that each customer can personalize their home. Customers have the option to choose their flooring, lighting, exterior paint, appliances, countertop, furniture, etc. for no additional price. We also offer many upgrades and add-ons such as off grid/solar options, roof deck, patios, and many other special projects that customers can ask for.”
Pacifica Tiny Homes has been in business for two years and builds an average of three tiny homes per month, and they are sold to people all over the U.S. Although the majority are purchased by people in California and Oregon, tiny home enthusiasts from other states have also ordered their homes through Pacifica. One home was even shipped to Hawaii for a buyer. The customer base is very diverse, as well. Tiny homes fit the needs of retirees, students, and young professionals. A tiny home can be a final place for retirees to call home, or a starter home for a young family. Corinne echoes that sentiment, adding the residents at Delta Bay include all walks of life, both young professionals looking to live modestly and retirees who wanted to downsize. “Tiny homes are for everyone, and they are used as starter homes for young people, for retirement, for investment rentals, Airbnb, vacation homes, etc.,” Crystal says.
DELTA BAY TINY HOME COMMUNITY Living in Delta Bay offers many of the amenities of a high-end neighborhood. You’re not simply regulated to a small lot on the grounds. Homeowners in Delta Bay, and those who rent park-owned models, can enjoy bathhouse, clubhouse, tennis courts, volleyball court, lush green lawns, and fishing docks on the San Joaquin River.
The location of Delta Bay in Isleton offers the rugged country escape many tiny home dwellers are searching for, with the nearby amenities of big cities such as Sacramento and San Francisco. Prospective residents can either rent a lot from Delta Bay to place their purchased tiny home on—the community offers previews of new models from manufacturers that are for sale—or rent out one of the dozen park-owned models available in the community.
Those who stay can come temporarily, or permanently. Tiny homes are welcome year round and many of the residents choose to live there full-time. One very important stipulation to keep in mind though is that all tiny homes in Delta Bay must be on wheels. Shipping containers and tiny homes on foundations do not meet this criteria. But that doesn’t mean you have to have an RV either. The lot fee includes water, sewer, landscaping for common areas, and trash collection.
Tiny Houses By the Numbers
$65,000
The average cost of a tiny home in 2019
MORE THAN
10,000
The number of tiny homes in the U.S.
68
The percentage of tiny home owners who don’t have a mortgage
100-400
SQUARE FEET The size of most tiny homes
89
The percentage of tiny home owners that have less credit card debt than U.S. average
Up to 5,000
Tiny home sales per year
19
The percentage of appreciation
