Author Topic: What is a dream Mustachian house?  (Read 8441 times)

MakingSenseofCents

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What is a dream Mustachian house?
« on: June 02, 2013, 11:21:47 AM »
Hey everyone! I am new here and just found the forum last night. I have been reading EVERYTHING and am super excited about what our future holds. I currently work as a financial analyst but plan on quitting my job early next year to pursue my side hustles further (these are all things that I enjoy and love). But before I do that, we want to buy a new house because it would be hard to buy our dream house and forever home when I only have self employment income. We are also ready to buy as well (we have always known that we wanted to buy in 2013 or 2014).

We currently own our home now (well, we have a mortgage), but we know that we don't want to live here forever. The schools are okay, but this just isn't our dream house. We bought it when we were newly 20 year olds, and new that this would only be a starter home.

Anyways, we have thought long and hard about being financially independent (we want to focus on passion and not be so reliant on income) and what we want in our next house. However, we keep changing our mind.

Since I will be working from home starting next year, this makes it tough. I like the thought of a lot of land, but I don't know if I want to be so far away from everything and feeling isolated.

So, what is your perfect Mustachian house? Lots of land so that you can raise your own food? Or little land so that there is less maintenance? Close to everyone and everything so that there is less commute?

Zikoris

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #1 on: June 02, 2013, 11:54:15 AM »
I would love one of those tiny houses, with a small yard to use for gardening and letting my cat play in, right smack in the middle of downtown Vancouver so I could continue my downtown lifestyle of walking to work and everywhere else. It doesn't and never will exist, but a girl can dream :)

EK

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #2 on: June 02, 2013, 12:11:03 PM »
In my dream world I have a well designed  small-ish house (by modern American standards- like 1000-1500 sq ft) in Brooklyn with a small yard WITH NO GRASS.  Mowing sucks.  I'd have enough room for some raised vegetable beds, but not so much that its a huge burden to maintain.  The rest would be like a wild-ish garden for prettiness.

This kind of place exists somewhere in Brooklyn, but in a nice area i would want to live in, I'd never afford it, hah.  In reality if we wind up back in Brooklyn we'd probably be living in a smaller than ideal apartment with a fire escape garden at best.  But a girl can dream ;)
« Last Edit: June 02, 2013, 03:10:26 PM by Evakatharina »

Russ

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #3 on: June 02, 2013, 12:28:59 PM »
Right now my perfect house is a ~1200 sq. ft. house in the city I rent with my 3.5 roommates. It's walking or biking distance to everything, hella cheap, in (or at least close to...) a beautiful neighborhood, and just the right size for everyone. The only way it could be better would be if it were free and our kitchen could clean itself.

Future perfect houses include a camper van (VW Type 2 or similar) and a container home I build up myself, somewhere with land but not too far from the hustle and bustle, with a big garden and lots of squirrels for my future dog to chase.

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #4 on: June 02, 2013, 12:50:17 PM »
I'll go against the grain and say medium house with a gigantic back yard. I want trees, lemons, oranges, avocodos. I want my kids to have a place to play and explore.

Khan

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #5 on: June 02, 2013, 01:21:48 PM »
I want the house of a family friend I visited a couple times. The house itself was enough, it was somewhere around/above 2000 square feet, but besides that, it had a detached workshop/garage, and, and this is the most important part, it had a creek running along the large-ish property which was ~6 feet wide(and natural). This was also in Watsonville, California I think, and so it was temperate, and very, very close to the beach.

But, I don't imagine I'll ever be able to afford that place because I'm sure prices will creep ever higher for it.

MakingSenseofCents

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #6 on: June 03, 2013, 06:24:20 PM »
I'll go against the grain and say medium house with a gigantic back yard. I want trees, lemons, oranges, avocodos. I want my kids to have a place to play and explore.

This is how I feel as well! Glad I'm not alone.

AboutTime

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #7 on: June 03, 2013, 07:06:41 PM »
One that doesn't come with a mortgage.  Joking aside, I would want one that every square foot is wisely used.  I would like a large enough garden that I could consistently have vegetables and fruits in rotation and play a decent game of soccer with my kids. 

expatartist

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #8 on: June 03, 2013, 08:39:17 PM »
Actually I own my dream house! It's very small, has lots of character, skylights and balconies, high ceilings and a nice view. Still needs more work. In the historic center of a small Sicilian town. Good weather, lemon and olive trees just down the street, friendly neighbors who give us olive oil and lavender and (really bad) wine grown on their land at the edge of town...

Unfortunately I don't live in it :( There was a time when we thought we might relocate there and work remotely, but we've found we prefer living in big cities for now. Instead it's just rented out as a holiday home.

Edited to add: cost of living in the town is very low, esp. as taxes on a small place are almost nothing, and we don't have a mortgage. I guess it's our mental bolthole, even if we only get there once a year at most.
« Last Edit: June 03, 2013, 08:46:00 PM by expatartist »

frompa

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #9 on: June 04, 2013, 02:50:02 AM »
I, too, live I my ideal home. It's small, on a small plot in the middle of my small city, easy walking / biking to work, the library, the pub, etc.. I have a very productive outdoor space, with my three season vegetable garden, native  fruit trees and bushes. Ditto whoever nixed the notion of a lawn. Mowing is a pointless pain in the ass. While a lot of space, indoor and out, can seem appealing in theory, it ALL takes maintenance and money and time, so be careful what you wish for! Good luck.

happy

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #10 on: June 04, 2013, 03:01:26 AM »
For me, an ideal mustachian house would be 1200-1500sqft,  as simple as possible with spaces that can perform multiple functions. Eco efficiency is important to me:  well insulated, northfacing for solar power, solar hot water, rainwater tanks, wood fire for heating. Enough land to grow veges, fruit and have chooks. Close enough to transport links (eg train), shops, work, schools for a short commute.

PGH

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #11 on: June 04, 2013, 04:59:18 AM »
We just purchased land to build our dream Mustachian house, although ours will be on the larger end of the scale (about 1800 or 1900 SF on a 1.3 acre lot). A key element is the apartment above our garage, which will be used for family/friend visits as well as short term rentals. We live far away from family, so when they come, they tend to stay for awhile. We also live in an area with many cultural and college events that bring people from all over the place, so we can likely command $3-400 per week for a 2 bedroom apartment during the summer and fall. We're designing it so that our yard is not visible from the apartment, since we also value our privacy.

I agree with AboutTime that it's important to live in a place where every SF is wisely used. I don't want extra bedrooms or bathrooms to clean!

tuyop

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #12 on: June 04, 2013, 05:25:56 AM »
Man I want a 700sq foot yurt.

Or a 40-foot sloop.

MustachianAccountant

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #13 on: June 04, 2013, 07:13:16 AM »
You need a surprisingly small amount of land to grow lots of food. Our house is on .25 acres, and we have:
-a 25x25 garden that keeps us fed all summer
-2 dwarf apple trees
-a dwarf cherry tree
-2 blueberry bushes
-2 grape vines
-5 raspberry bushes
-an herb garden (the rhubarb lives there too)
-7 chickens
And that's without even trying. We have kids, and there's plenty of room for them to play (1/2 the yard), plus some flower beds that we may someday convert to more food production. Any extra produce, we often sell on CL.

All that to say, you can live close to everything with a small plot of land and still grow your own food!

gecko10x

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #14 on: June 04, 2013, 07:27:35 AM »
Low/no utility cost, designed to suit us, well-constructed to leave to heirs (life spand of 300+ yrs), private location, space for visiting family...

When we are FI, we are going to build an Enertia house.

oldtoyota

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #15 on: June 04, 2013, 07:47:53 AM »
You need a surprisingly small amount of land to grow lots of food. Our house is on .25 acres, and we have:
-a 25x25 garden that keeps us fed all summer
-2 dwarf apple trees
-a dwarf cherry tree
-2 blueberry bushes
-2 grape vines
-5 raspberry bushes
-an herb garden (the rhubarb lives there too)
-7 chickens
And that's without even trying. We have kids, and there's plenty of room for them to play (1/2 the yard), plus some flower beds that we may someday convert to more food production. Any extra produce, we often sell on CL.

All that to say, you can live close to everything with a small plot of land and still grow your own food!

I have two apple trees and have not yielded one apple. Do you have any suggestions? I'm about to freecycle one of the trees.

Insanity

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #16 on: June 04, 2013, 07:59:17 AM »
Low/no utility cost, designed to suit us, well-constructed to leave to heirs (life spand of 300+ yrs), private location, space for visiting family...

When we are FI, we are going to build an Enertia house.

That is pretty cool.

I despise our house, now.  Built in 1969 and a split level.  So not only does a lot of stuff need updating to make it more energy efficient (we did the windows when we first moved in), but the design itself is energy inefficient.  My ultimate dream is to make it self-sustaining (solar panels when the technology gets better) and tweak the design a lot.  I wouldn't mind, if I had the money, blowing it up and rebuilding on the lot of land.

rubybeth

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #17 on: June 04, 2013, 08:28:04 AM »
I wish I could have a house designed by artist Geninne Zlatkis' architect husband Manolo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/geninne/sets/72157603815357508/

However, as that is extremely unlikely (we don't live in Mexico), I'd want a 1,500 square foot 3 bed/2 bath home with less than 1/3 acre yard as close to the center of our current city as possible. We love our neighborhood right now since it is convenient to just about everything, so if we ever do buy a house, we'd try to stay in the general area.

iamsoners

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #18 on: June 04, 2013, 09:16:06 AM »
Quote
I have two apple trees and have not yielded one apple. Do you have any suggestions? I'm about to freecycle one of the trees.

Apple  trees need another near-by in order to cross pollinate so giving one away will definitely not solve your problem. Is one very young? It might just take time. Are you sure they're going to be an edible variety when they do fruit?

As for me, I think I have several versions of dream house.  Common among all of them is the ability to grow a garden and increase efficiency as much as possible.  Right now that's taking the form of updating an 1200 sqft 80 year old home in an inner-suburb that's quite walkable (even if the people in this neighborhood don't act like it!) and on a small but very gardenable lot. (Oh, and it has an apple tree ;) ).

If we have several kids, I could see needing a bit more space during the high school years. And I like the idea of a walkable-area condo with a rooftop garden for later in life.

MustachianAccountant

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #19 on: June 04, 2013, 09:17:04 AM »
I have two apple trees and have not yielded one apple. Do you have any suggestions? I'm about to freecycle one of the trees.

Find a good reputable local nursery to buy them from. Ask them lots of questions. Bonus points if they have a money back guarantee for non-producing trees.
As to your current tree, it could be a whole host of problems, and this isn't a gardening forum. ;-) I'd check with your local nursery on that too.

mobilisinmobili

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #20 on: June 04, 2013, 11:21:00 AM »
One that meets your needs (not necessarily your desires) and is in good repair & paid off.

MakingSenseofCents

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #21 on: June 05, 2013, 09:49:45 PM »
Low/no utility cost, designed to suit us, well-constructed to leave to heirs (life spand of 300+ yrs), private location, space for visiting family...

When we are FI, we are going to build an Enertia house.

We definitely want a house that will last. There are so many cheap houses that are being built recently that won't last very long.

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Re: What is a dream Mustachian house?
« Reply #22 on: June 06, 2013, 12:59:05 AM »
You need a surprisingly small amount of land to grow lots of food. Our house is on .25 acres, and we have:

good to know!

my ideal house would be small/medium sized house (1000 sqft?). straw bale and/or passive solar and/or earth sheltered for heating efficiency. probably with solar panels for electricity. or a green roof because i think they look lovely.
on a medium sized plot (around .25 acres going by MustachianAccountant's experience). I'd like space for food growing, plus some animal/insect/bird-friendly space.
i work from home so commute isn't an issue but if i could also be within 30min walk/cycle of a library, train station and reasonable sized supermarket that'd be ideal.
i quite like this plan: http://strawbale.com/store/applegate-plans-package/