Tiny House Hunters (2014–…): Season 2, Episode 1 - A Traveling Nurse Needs a Traveling Tiny Home to Move with Her from Job to Job - full transcript

Across the nation,
people are going small--

really small...

These are so cute!

...buying tiny houses,

some just a microscopic
100 square feet.

Whoa.

There's a tiny house.

It looks really small.

This tiny trend
is picking up big steam,

with everything from
converted train cars and barns

to yurts
and microhouses on wheels.



I'd be a gypsy
on the run.

- Wow.
- Hey, check that out.

It's crazy small.

Orlando, Florida,

college students Emma and Joel

are looking to graduate from
their parents' house

to a tiny home of their own.

That is your closet.

Oh, my gosh.

What?

But these tiny houses

are full of some unexpected
surprises, some good...

Oh, my gosh.
It's a tub.

Can you relax in that?



I think I can.

...some bad.

That's the bathroom.

It's a shower
with a toilet.

I mean, there's
no separation here.

I don't like that at all.

This is actually
only a twin-sized bed.

It'd be a little tight
for two people.

But you guys
like each other.

I mean... Kinda.

Big exam comin' up.

My name's Emma.

I'm going to school
for interior design.

My name's Joel, and I'm studying
engineering technology.

- Both from Florida.
- Yeah.

Central Florida,
born and raised.

When's your class?

I've got about 15 minutes
till I need to be there.

We met in first grade
and then kind of lost touch

and reconnected
through social media.

And then, yeah, just once we
got in touch with each other,

just kind of
stayed together.

We actually
just got engaged.

So, things
are moving forward.

Being that we're just
two college kids,

we're living full-time at
my mom's house right now.

With school about to end
and our engagement,

it's just about time we get out
and get our own place.

I put a ring
on her finger.

I might as well put a roof
over her head.

With a budget of
$20,000, they've decided

that their first house should be
a tiny one,

no more than 150 square feet.

Financially, it's just the
- best option for us right now.
- Yeah.

It gives us the option
to move it around.

We're not really sure
where we're gonna end up.

It all kind of depends
where we get jobs in the future.

They're open to
customizing the place themselves

and want something on wheels

so they can put it in his mom's
backyard for now.

So, you're gonna be
all right

with givin' up the ol'
king-sized bed?

We're gonna have to.

I mean, I just don't
think it'll fit.

Not at all.

Our initial search

started out as kind of
like a joke.

"Can you believe people
are actually doing this?

That's a really
small space."

But transitioning

from, you know,
living in a bedroom,

pretty much,
to going in a tiny,

we could--
- we could do that.
- Yeah.

Probably our kitchen
would be here,

and then our-- our bathroom,
you know,

- would be kind of over here.
- Somewhere over there.

My must-haves in a tiny home
are obviously

extra storage space,
as much storage space

as we could possibly get.

I mean, we gotta go
from something like this

to, I don't know,
something like that

if you think about it.

Style I'm looking for
in a house

is kind of

quirky,
maybe Victorian.

Look how small it is.

I prefer a modern utility look.

Metal, wood-- it doesn't really
need to be pretty.

It just has to be functional.

There's your Victorian house.

Yeah, that's
really pretty.

Too much wood.

Too much wood.

I like light wood

because
it opens up the space.

It brightens it up.

You know you're gonna get
the dark stuff in there.

Ah, I'm leaning more
towards this.

Yeah, but you're stuck
in the '90s

with the light pine w--
you know, the-- the--

the, like, white wood
that is just...

"Stuck in the '90s."Yeah.

No, it's gotta be dark
and elegant,

the wood--
It's gotta be.

Emma and Joel are also
looking for a lofted bed

with a living space underneath

where they can entertain
their friends.

A full-size tub would be nice.

I'd prefer to have
a bigger bathroom.

If you have to sacrifice
the space for a tub...

But it's a tub.

But it's a tiny house.

For the house hunt,

they're relying

on Emma's dad, Marc,
for guidance.

So you're looking at maybe

this much room down the center
to walk.

It's kind of-- I would
- take it as a challenge.
- Like a puzzle.

We know he has, you know,

a few concerns, obviously.
He's my dad.

Is the bed gonna fit?

What about
your drafting table?

We haven't completely
pared down yet.

I think it's a crazy idea

trying to live
in 150 square feet.

I'm just concerned that they're
gonna have enough space

for the things they think
they still need.

Starting
our life together

with a house that we
can call our own,

- that's the biggest thing.
- Yeah.

Growin' up.

Look how cute it is.

It's a little small.
I mean...

It's way small.

They're meeting
with builder

Andrew Bennett
of Orlando's Trekker Trailers

to see three different
tiny models.

What do you think so far?

I like it.
It's--

it's dark, especially
with the metal.

Modern-looking, really.

- I really like the color.
- I knew you would.

It's just not Victorian
enough for me...

- Yeah.
- Personally.

What do you think, Dad?

I don't know.
It's crazy small.

It's priced at 19,000,
close to your budget range.

- It's 112 square feet.
- Wow.

Emma... My closet is
112 square feet.

Well, maybe that'll give
us a place to park it.

Wow.

Hey, check that out.

What?
That's a lot of wood.

This is a lot of wood.

And it's light, too.

Guys, it's so small

I can touch the sides.

Yeah.
It's...

- I can touch the ceiling.
- It's a little tight.

If you'll grab the end of that.
- Okay.

Lift it up a little, and then
fold the leg under.

It's got a little Velcro thing
that holds it.

All right.

It opens up the floor
space a little.

Yeah, that gives us
a lot more space.

There we go.
Look at that.

- That's really nifty.
- A lot of space in here now.

It's still small.

The bench here is really cool

because you have an extra place
for company to sit.

So you lift this up,
you have storage underneath.

You have room
for two folding chairs

to face each other
at the dinette.

- Yeah.
- So, nice romantic dinner together.

- Right.
- Definitely...

- To enjoy the breeze.
- Yeah.

It would have to be
romantic in here.

Yeah.

What is this?

That is your closet.

- Oh, my gosh.
- What?

You're gonna, like, climb
up here in the morning

over me
if I'm laying here,

and then to get
to your morning stuff...

- Yeah.
- Your shoes can go
up here, maybe.

You have to pare 'em down, though.

Flip-flops only.

But, I mean, look, I'm--
I'm already hunched over,

and we're really picturing,
like, maybe a loft,

like, a high to mid loft
with, like, a sofa underneath...

Or just, like, a living space.

What about the kitchen?

It looks a little sparse.

There's no place to put spices.

There's no place to put flour.

There's no place to put
your dishes.

That's small.

That's really small.

I love this huge fridge.

And look at the space
underneath, too.

There's the place
for your shoes.

Yeah.
Shoe space.

Check out
next to your fridge.

You got a little extra hanging
space just around the fridge.

That's closet number 2.

Yeah.
I can put coats in it.

Yeah.

What's goin' on back here?

Oh.

Oh.

That's the bathroom.

That's a shower.

That is.
That is a shower.

It's a shower with a toilet.

- That's me.
- That's the bathroom?

That is your bathroom
right there.

It's a shower with a toilet.

Yeah, it is.

I have never seen
a bathroom

like this before, if you would
even consider it a "bathroom."

It's you.

I can sit and shave my legs.

You can pee and shower
- at the same time.
- Yeah.

I have one word to describe this
bathroom, and that's "awkward."

- That's little.
- I just don't want
the sink in there.

That's weird.
And we don't have a tub,

which was something
I really wanted.

I know, but I can't see
giving up

that much space
for something like that.

I got one more surprise
for ya.

Oh, my gosh.
It's a tub.

That's great.

- Holy cow.
- There's your tub.

That's so cool.

Look at that thing.
It's huge.

But you know
what one problem is?

If you're in here, I can't be
relaxing on the bed.

No. You'd have to sit and watch
TV while I'm taking a bath.

It's definitely a, you know,
a talking point.

Have people over, "Hey,
check out our bed/tub."

It's a cool idea,
but the practicality

just really isn't there.

Right. Can't see you cooking
while somebody's in the tub.

Then you gotta worry about when
you get out, what do you do?

And... Still a tub.

- She loves the tub.
- I love the tub.

I don't like the sink
in the shower...

- M'kay.
- And the toilet in the shower.

I think it's weird.

All right.
I can agree with you on that.

And also, we talked about maybe
having a storage loft...

- Mm-hmm.
- To kind of, you know,
maybe, or bed loft.

And I'm sure we can, like,
maximize living space

to make it just feel
- a little more open.
- A little bigger.

A little bigger
than what it is.

I think maybe for us,
it might

just be a little bit
too tiny.

Look how big
that thing is.

It is really big.

So Andrew is showing
them something

154 square feet bigger.

And look at
how many people are

in a tiny-house bathroom
right now.

So, you thought about
where you want it yet,

at least
for the time being?

You know, you walk
outside the door

and you just kind of hop
in the hammock in the mornings.

- Yeah.
- You know?
It could work.

College students Emma
and Joel are anxious to buy

a tiny home of their own
in Orlando, Florida.

With a budget of $20,000,
they plan

to park it in Joel's mom's
backyard after graduation.

Builder Andrew Bennett has shown
them a very tiny

112-square-foot home
with Joel's modern style.

And while it had a hidden tub
for Emma,

her dad thought the place
was just too tiny.

With Emma's dad
along for advice,

they're now seeing a place
that's double in size.

This one's kind of cool.

Yeah.
That thing's huge.

Look at how big
- that thing is.
- It is really big.

A little more industrial
- look on this one, though.
- Yeah. I mean, this is...

- It's a nice size.
- This is modern.

- Maybe too much metal for me.
- You think so?

Yeah. I mean, it's got
zero Victorian elements.

Maybe just some more of that
light wood would be nice.

What's the cost on this?

This one is 39,000.

- Whew.
- That's big.

Yeah, but it's also 266 square
feet, including the lofts.

- Right.
- Okay.

So you get a lot more space.

It's gonna give you
room to grow into.

Wow.

- This is nice.
- What?

- Holy cow.
- It's huge.

- This is really nice.
- See what I mean?

Definitely.
I mean, this is perfect.

Nice and bright.

Yeah. I mean, it feels
like a real house.

And you know what?
I mean, I know

I like dark wood,
but this actually

doesn't look bad
since it's split up.

- Right. It's kind of nice.
- I think it's a fair compromise...

you know, the modern
and your-- your wood.

Yeah.

Look at all the drawer space

and everything.
Those are big.

And again, they go all
- the way to the floor.
- Yeah.

- A lot of cabinet space.
- Yeah.

Now, it looks like
there might be

some storage
under the floor?

Yeah.
This opens up here.

This has a carriage bolt

you just grab and lift up.

Okay.
Oh, that's huge.

I mean, it's not
super easy access.

But it is big.

It's 8 feet by 6 feet.

Well, the only thing I see wrong
is if you put furniture in here,

it's gonna be blocking
the door.

So you'd have to move
your furniture

to even get into the door.

I mean, it's a pretty big space.

We got some-- some room to work
around with.

By tiny-house standards,
it might be big,

but, you know, just keep
the perspective.

It is a small space.

You'll notice over here

under the stairs,
there is storage...

- There is some storage there.
- Oh, yeah.

- From both directions.
- Cool.

Perfect. And I'm assuming
this is the bathroom?

It is.

Oh, yeah.

Oh, wow.
Look at the big shower.

It's huge.

Yeah, this is great.

And look at how many people

are in a tiny-house bathroom
right now.

And there's even more
storage behind here.

Yeah. You could put washer
and a dryer in here.

And it goes
all the way back too.

Yeah, it's huge.

I mean, I'm all the way in here,

and there's still room,
like, 2 feet back.

- Wow.
- It's giant.

I can totally see why Andrew
brought us here.

This house is double our budget,

but at the same time,
I think it's

something we can grow into
in the long term.

- Oh, this is great.
- I know.

You know,
there's enough space

for, I mean, two people, but... It's huge.

Is it too much metal
- for you, though?
- I think so.

You know, I think I'd rather
have tile or something.

Let's see what's up here.

That is the master bedroom.

Oh, yeah.
This is neat.

Room for a big bed.

It actually fits
a queen-sized bed.

This fits a queen?

- Yeah.
- Really?

You're gonna have to get rid
of your king-size.

Yeah.
Maybe.

Downsize everything.

Is that hanging space?

Let's see.

- Oh, there you go.
- Yeah.

That's a big closet.

I can take a space,
and then we can

kind of divide that up
for hanging stuff.

- You can take a space.
- Yeah.

There's plenty of room here
height-wise.

I mean, it's pretty big.

What is this cubbyhole for?

That's actually ventilation
for your air conditioning.

So, what's that over there?

That is your guest room.

- No way.
- Okay.

Nice.

Oh, this is neat.

A little less room
up here, though,

- as far as height.
- Yeah, but it's a nice space.

You could throw some bean bags
up here or something.

Definitely.

Didn't really cross my mind
of having,

like, a guest loft,

but you come up there, sit down,
maybe have some pillows.

It's kind of cool.

I like it.

I can't believe
how big it is in here.

No, it's really nice.

I think it's great design-wise

with the metal on the wood

and just the use of space.

It's just really big.

It's not quite Victorian
as I had hoped,

but I like
the light wood inside,

and it has a good-sized
bathroom.

Mm-hmm. And it's something
we can grow into

and invest in for the long term.

It just might be a little
too high for our budget.

Yeah.

Hoping to get them
closer to their budget,

Andrew is showing them
a much smaller option.

It'd be a little tight
for two people.

But you guys
like each other.

Kinda.

All right. What are we
gonna talk about today?

Well, we'll just let it roll.

Orlando, Florida,
couple Emma and Joel

are working with a $20,000
budget to buy themselves

a tiny house
and their independence.

Looking with Emma's dad, they've
seen a 112-square-foot place

that had Joel's modern style.

While it was under budget
and had the bathtub Emma wanted,

the closet space
was at a premium.

Builder Andrew Bennett
then took them to a house

that was a whopping
154 square feet bigger

with two sleeping areas.

Joel loved the outside
metal siding,

but it had none of Emma's
Victorian style,

and at $39,000, it was nearly
double their budget.

Trying to get back in their
price range,

Andrew is showing them a tiny
model home

with a friendlier price tag.

Oh, I like the way
that looks.

Yeah.
It's cute.

It's not quite Victorian,
but the color

kind of, you know,
makes it stand out.

It is definitely quirky.

Now, we didn't build

this one at Trekker Trailers,

but we can build something
similar to it.

First impression
just looking at it,

the size definitely looks

- where we'd want to be.
- Yeah.

Doesn't look much bigger
than the other one.

It's 160 square feet.

Now, the price on this one
is 25,000.

Ooh. That's a little
over your budget.

Yeah, that's,
like, 20 percent over.

I think the biggest challenge

with Joel and Emma
is their price point.

I really think this is something
they should consider.

You know, you'd hate for them
to get into something smaller

and go, "You know what?
For this much more money,

we could have had that."

Wow.

- Well, check that out.
- This is so cute.

- Oh, this is nice.
- It feels
like a normal house.

Yeah, it does.

It is still kind of small.

- It's not real big.
- Yeah, but it's open, though.

That's the benefit of it.

I mean, it's huge
when you're walking here.

- You get all this space here.
- Yeah.

I really like
these beams in here.

Yeah.
They're not so Victorian,

but they've got the beachy
Key West feel

that I think I like.

Because the counter is
so high,

it gives you a nice, big

open space inside of here... Right.

- And big doors.
- Yeah.

But look. Half your storage is
- taken up by the water heater.
- The water heater

is really big.
- That's our washer space.
- I don't know how I feel about that.

- Exactly.
- There you go.

It looks like you got
a washer/dryer hookup here.

Yeah.
That's great.

Yeah. But, I mean,
we'd have to move it.

Just having it right there,
it's the first thing you see

when you walk into the door.

Where else
would you put it?

Outside.

Yeah. I'm not too sure

about that, but not right there.

This is awesome.

Oh, yeah. It looks like
an actual bathroom this time.

- Yeah.
- How does it feel?

Definitely a lot of space
in the bathroom.

Look how modern this is

with all the metal
and everything,

I mean, the rivets, it's...

This is great.
I love the shower.

And it's open,
so the air can come in.

I don't like that
at all.

I mean, I'm just worried about
the humidity

coming in and out.

I mean, there's
no separation here.

Uh, yeah, it's not
a whole lot of privacy.

I love the floor plan of
this house, how open it is,

but it's a little too open
when it comes to the bathroom.

- Whoa. That's huge.
- Wow.

Yeah, this is a nice...

It's giant for a tiny house.

Yeah. We could fit
everything in here.

Literally, you've got all your
- shoes here, all your clothes.
- Mm-hmm.

And then you've got
over here for more.

I mean,
- there's a lot of storage.
- Yeah.

And is this a day bed?
Or is this an actual bed?

'Cause it's--
it's kind of small.

Yeah. This is actually
only a twin-sized bed.

So it would be... We'd have to...

It'd be a little tight
for two people.

But you guys
like each other.

Kinda.

Can we maybe even, like,
get it higher?

Yeah, this one is
tall enough to do the loft in.

- Okay.
- So maybe that's something
to consider for you guys.

- Is this storage under here?
- It's all storage.

You lift it up, and there's
storage underneath there.

- Oh, okay.
- Okay.

It's just kind of weird
to have people

in, like, the bedroom
when they come over.

You'd definitely have to
- make your bed every day.
- Yeah.

As far as
the entertainment space,

in something like this, we
really don't have that much.

Well, again,
something to consider.

It's nice having
all this big storage

and places to put things,
but are you sacrificing

a place to put people?

I mean, I like it,
the way it's laid out,

and it's got everything
that we could ask for

as far as space-wise.

I think it's a good size.

It's kind of unique
but still

- that modern look.
- Yeah.

And then inside, it feels
like an actual house...

- Yeah.
- Especially that bathroom.

And it is a little bit
- over your budget.
- It is.

Yeah. The bed...
We could maybe

use that better as, like,
a loft or something

just to get more open space.

Yeah.
Then we have a sitting area.

It's just if you start
taking away cabinetry,

you start losing some
of your storage space.

Yeah. We're just gonna
have to find that balance

between storage
and livable space.

It's time
for Joel and Emma to figure out

how tiny they can go.

We love the way
that it's laid out...

- Mm-hmm.
- But it's just too small.

- Yeah.
- Yeah.

House hunting just
got a little bit smaller

with people on the hunt
for tiny homes.

Could you live
in such close quarters?

- Cool.
- Yeah?

- Looks like the right size.
- Yeah.

- Ooh, I like it.
- This might be the winner.

Need a dining room table?

Don't think so.

Engaged couple Emma and Joel

are looking to buy a tiny house
in Orlando, Florida,

that's within their $20,000
budget.

After seeing several
very different houses,

these college students
need to decide which is

the perfect one to start
their new lives in.

We really like the wooden house.

We do love the fact
that it is under budget.

I mean, it's a great price point
to start with.

The inside is just a little bit
too much wood for us.

Yeah.

The bathroom layout
is not something

we would probably adjust to.

We call it
a full-body bidet.

Oh, well, we call it a no-go.

Right.

And the tub just really
isn't that practical.

It'd be nice, but I think
storage would be better.

We love the way
that it's laid out...

- Mm-hmm.
- But it's just too small.

What'd you think
about the big metal one?

That was great
as far as the exterior.

The interior was great, too.

Well, I mean, it definitely
had a lot of light wood.

But, um... Which is great.

Yeah, but it's just

the price is--
it's double our budget.

But at the same time,
it might be something

we need to look into
as far as our future.

It's something we can grow into.

Great.
Yeah.

That second loft
is definitely a plus.

And again, it had that bathroom
with the metal all around it.

Okay. So, I mean, purple house
must've been perfect for ya.

As far
as the size of it...

I think
it would be great.

It's a perfect balance.

But it's
still over our price range.

It had a good
bathroom layout.

It's just that the bed

on the first floor
really isn't practical.

Having people sit on the bed
when they come over... Doesn't...

- Isn't for us.
- It's weird.

We kind of want to stay well
within our budget.

We really like the wooden house,
but it's-- it's just too small.

Well, I mean,
how about this?

Why don't we build
you guys just the shell?

Andrew could build
Emma and Joel a larger shell

based on the wooden house
at a cost of just $13,000.

Then they can finish the inside themselves,

saving money with sweat equity.

Do the hard wiring,
the plumbing,

and the outside water
tight and sealed.

You guys
take it from there.

- Perfect.
- We do the easy stuff.

Easy stuff?
Hey, you'll find out

it's not
as easy as you think.

And I'm sure if we do
that labor ourselves,

we could definitely
afford it.

At the end of the day, if we can
combine all these elements

and design a house
that's best for us,

I think that's really
what we're looking for.

Yeah.
It'd be perfect.

Joel and Emma bought their shell

and moved it
to his mom's backyard,

where they've been working on it
for three months.

So, in the end,
we didn't really fall in love

with just one house.

We kind of loved elements
from each one.

So we put 'em together.

We started our base
from the wooden house.

We went ahead and took the extra
money to finish it ourselves.

Joel and Emma went
with a slightly larger version

of the wooden house,

the bathroom layout
from the purple house,

and a loft inspired by
the large metal house.

They completed the look
with a custom-painted exterior

and personalized interior

that combined
their individual styles.

I really like the metal,
but, um...

We went a little more just...

- Yeah.
- Easy, traditional.

I think the house
is full of compromise.

We ended up doing
the darker wood.

But you know,
but we did incorporate

the lighter cabinets.

We covered the extra space
that the purple house had,

and we added that storage.

Think that's even?

I think so.

- Only one way to tell.
- Mm-hmm.

I'd tell her, "Oh, yeah.
I got this. No problem."

And all I'd watch was,
like, a YouTube video

and just kind of
hope for the best.

Uh, yeah.
Way crooked.

But it turned out.
I mean, everything...

We didn't really make
any mistakes along the way,

- honestly.
- Yeah.
Weird enough.

- Whoo!
- Boom.

Allowing us to be able
to do the inside definitely...

It helped us financially and... Definitely helped.

I mean, create-- we were
creative with it.

It was great to have, you know,
a sense of accomplishment

for us being able
to actually finish it.

We didn't go out
and buy a house.

We went out, and we somewhat

- built a house.
- Mm-hmm.

For the past two weeks
or so, we've been living

in it full-time,
adapting to living tiny.

You know,
I'm sure our parents

are like,
"Yay, we have our space back."

Maybe they miss us
a little bit.

But I think my dad's
really proud of us for...

- Yeah.
- Kind of doing this on our own.

You know, it's actually
plenty of storage.

- There you go.
- Perfect.

This is a great
little sitting area.

We didn't get the tub
that I wanted,

but I'm completely happy
with what we chose

with the living space.

I thought it'd be a little
low, but you're right.

You're just in here...

- Mm-hmm.
- Hanging out.

Living tiny is
not difficult at all.

It's...not for us, anyways.

We don't need
a lot of stuff.

We've got everything
we need.

Got each other.

Ugh.