This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with San Antonio, Texas resident Daniel Salas about his experience purchasing a shed from Craigslist. Salas, a 45-year-old consultant, moved the structure to his backyard and transformed it into a short-term-rental property that rents on Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com for about $75 a night. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The plot of land Salas earmarked for the tiny home. He had to take down his fence to get the shed into the yard.I hired the contractor who had done a total renovation on my kitchen and dining room the year before. Together we did the blueprints and the planning.I got several bids before I decided I wanted to use my contractor. He wasn't even the cheapest, but I got him because I knew his work.
All in all, I probably blew between $40,000 to $45,000. That's including everything, even putting the fence back up.I wanted the house to be just a little bit bigger. So we had to blow out the back wall and add a bedroom. That took about an extra four to six weeks from the original timeline. The bedroom being built. Without the addition, the shed would have been a tiny studio with no separate sleeping space.Building that tiny bedroom was just a lot more work. I had to hire an electrician to reroute the wires, adjust the pitch on the roof, and remove the gutters. It was a little painful, but it was the right thing to do.I didn't expect the materials to be so expensive. The price of insulation has gone up two to three times since 2020 — same thing with lumber.
The finished house is listed on Airbnb, Vrbo, and Booking.com via short-term-rental property-management company Evolve.
Sounds like they actually spent $46,200. Clickbait from rich people.
Suddenly...county code officer.
That's great! Rent must really be cheap these days.
Fucking resourceful, what's the HOA say?