61–62 of 62 posts
I entertain fantasies about living in a small home like this but the reality is this is only for one or two people. It rapid breaks down when you try to expand beyond that.
Isn't the problem that, while the house may cost $30,000, the land on which it would have to reside will inevitably cost far more than that?
No. A couple minutes with zillow.com or trulia.com will show you lots available for well under $10,000. Sure, they won't exactly be in premium locations, but with some work you can find some that are desirable & decent. I've seen some under $2000 just outside Atlanta, rural half-acre lots close to rivers & lakes.
TL;DR - buy/access a "plat book" for each county you're interested in, correlate each lot with a topographic map to identify interesting properties, visit the Assessor's Office to find the owners, write a polite but terse offer letter to the owners who live farthest away - good chance they don't want the property and will part with it fast for a reasonable offer. Yes, takes some work & money, but a whole lot less than list price.