Land Land... No Land?

Ok, I'm back as promised, to talk about our search for land...

So.  Back in January when we returned from California, friends of ours got excited about building a tiny home of their own and we decided to buy some land together... Together?  How?

Well, our bank offers a 'mixer mortgage' that allows two or more people to share a mortgage.  By dividing the property costs, it increases each party's purchasing power.  Everyone's ownership is then protected by a legal co-ownership agreement.  How the property/home is divided is up to everyone involved.  We wanted it to be 50-50, but a mixer mortgage does not have to be split exactly in half. This type of mortgage is portable and assumable and it is eligible for multi-owner insurance.  It's an all-round great option, especially if you live in an expensive part of the world. 

We saw a number of advantages in the sharing of land.  Firstly, and very practically, it made it half as expensive.   Other reasons included: the sharing of tools/kitchen gadgets, having people on the property when we are away, built-in community, mutual doggie-sitting... 

We were so excited that we went looking even during a snowstorm:

We looked at everything that was for sale in the valley near us.  The land parcels were between 7 and 10 acres.  Most of the properties were treed (no road on the property and no clearing for a house), without a septic system, without infrastructure for power... for about... oh... just half a million dollars. With the cost of setting up the infrastructure for building/living in mind, we thought we could live in the bus as is... and then when we wanted to spend more money (!) we would build an extension around it - adding a bedroom and a living room area with a wood stove... or to start building an actual house.  This was always our plan... to buy land and to move our home (on wheels) to its permanent location.

But.  Alas.  We did not find any land that we fell in love with :(!  So we started looking at another community closer to the big city, upon a hill with this view of the Pacific Ocean:

However.  We could not have 2 homes on it... and other restrictions... and there was a possibility of a new highway being built right behind the property.  It was really too bad because the view is so incredibly amazing!

So at this point, tBoy and I are joking around, that at the end of this search, we will just end up in a condo of our own (no mixer mortgage)!  Well...

As tBoy and I thought more and more about land ownership, we realized that we LOVE our bus, but we do not love renting land.  We did the bus project to stop being renters, but we still ended up as renters... in a different way... but renters nonetheless.  As our search for something that we could share with our friends became more and more discouraging (due to restrictions and zoning), our desire for something of our very own increased.  So...  Condo?  No!!

But... We did look at some townhouses... but, just like condos, you are part of a strata... so you do not have complete autonomy of your environment or your home actually...  I think you know where this is going...

WE BOUGHT A HOUSE! 

Yes.  Crazy.  I know.  A real.  Entire.  Detached house. Of our very own.

I can go on and on about why?  how?  what?... But I'm not going to.
Not now.
For now.  We bought a house and are waiting to move in.
For now.  I'll just say this:

The teeny tiny LIVING bus will soon be ON SALE.
Yes.
We are selling this beautiful bus home.
More details to come VERY soon.

Here are some photos of the bus again: click here.

More photos to come soon.
Check back soon.