Tiny House Hunters (2014–…): Season 2, Episode 18 - Tiny Living in Kentucky - 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!

- It is 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.



This is really cute.

Allie and Jeremy are looking
for a tiny house

and a big property
in Lexington, Kentucky.

Wow!

It feels so big in here.

But by wanting to downsize,

have they bitten off
more than they can chew?

It's very cramped.

Yeah, it looks really awkward.

This is your bathroom.

It is a bucket.

You want an apple?

My name is Allie,
and this is my husband, Jeremy.

I am a full-time registered
nurse in Lexington, Kentucky.



And I'm a certified therapeutic
horseback riding instructor.

And I work as a full-time
youth pastor.

We went to
the same high school

but didn't really talk
until after Jeremy graduated.

I returned to my high school to
give my homecoming crown away,

and Allie was on the court
that year.

And so I got to see her parading
in front of the crowd,

and I was interested.

When we got married,
we bought a house together,

and within a year,
we filled it up with stuff.

We didn't want to get caught up

in constantly looking
for bigger and bigger houses

and always remaining in debt.

We sold our house,

and we are looking for
a tiny house that's between

100 and 300 square feet so that
we can pay off and then feel

a lot more financially set
as we got older.

We have to be careful
while we're in this big space

not to go ahead and accumulate
stuff again that we can't fit

- into a tiny house.
- Yeah.

In the meantime, we have moved
in with my parents.

Our families have always
been supportive of us,

but I think they thought
we were a little bit crazy

whenever we told them we wanted
to move into a tiny house.

They house that I grew up
in is over 15,000 square feet.

My parents' closet

alone could probably
fit three tiny houses in it.

But Allie and Jeremy

aren't just
looking for a place to live.

They're looking
to combine their talents

by opening up
a therapeutic horse farm

where visitors
will find both riding lessons

and spiritual guidance.

It'll be so nice
when we have our own farm

and our own horses that we
can do this with every night.

Yeah, won't have
to travel to do it.

Be right in our backyard.

I think
our house-hunting experience

is kind of unique because
we're looking for a tiny house,

but we need a big property.

For Allie and Jeremy, this
means at least 6 acres of land

where they can set up a barn,

fenced-in paddocks
and fields for grazing.

With the money they've put aside
from selling their big house,

they have some savings
they can spend on land.

But they would rather find
a home that comes with it.

All right.
How many pairs of jeans

- can we live with, do you think?
- Less than this.

Over the past year,

we have sold, I would say,
80 percent of our possessions.

But not everything
has been easy to pare down.

Look, this still has the tag
on it, and I've never worn it.

Box it.

It's so hard, though!

A deal-breaker for us
would be not enough storage.

We want to live really simply,
but we're both neat freaks,

and we like our things
to be organized

and have a place to go.

What about him?
We gettin' rid of him?

I think we need to keep Oscar.

Okay.

Found some tiny houses
I think we should look at.

Is that in our price range?

Uh, it's a little high.

Our budget is $30,000
to $60,000 for our house.

What do you think
about this one?

No, it's too modern for me.

The style of tiny house that I
really love is the rustic feel.

Well, if you think about it,
if we're gonna have a barn,

that's gonna pretty rustic
and cabin-feeling in itself.

So maybe our house
can be a little more modern.

Yeah, maybe.

I'm really drawn
to a lofted sleeping area.

I think it's a really practical
way to utilize space.

It's really important to me that
the dogs can get up there

'cause our dogs
sleep with us every night.

We're excited
for the search.

This is a new
experience for us.

I mean, it's gonna be our house,
so it's kind of exciting.

Allie and Jeremy are
working with local

real estate agent,
Leandra Jenkins,

to find the perfect tiny home.

Today, she's showing them

a space that comes
with its own acre of land.

I think the biggest selling
point of this house

is that there's so much space
outside that you can live in.

It makes it feel bigger
than what it truly is.

It's priced at $49,000.

Okay.
That's awesome.

- It's so pretty.
- It is 320 square feet.

Wow. It's good size.

But look at all these
beautiful flowers.

- Gorgeous.
- Like, as far as you can see,

almost, I feel like.

This property is so beautiful.

But I'm really concerned
that the land

that's taken up by the flowers

is land that could have
been used for horses.

By the way, there's no bathroom.

- No bathroom at all?
- Nope.

So what do you do?

Who builds a house
without a bathroom?

That's crazy.

There's a septic system,

a possibility
of hooking up to that.

Jeremy, I don't know
if that's gonna work for us.

We use bathrooms.

Oh, this is really cute.

She's already got
it decorated for Christmas.

Yeah, I'm okay with that.

Christmas all year long
is okay with me.

It's a lot of room.

I like how the ceilings
are so tall.

Do you think you could use

this as your living room
and your bedroom?

The bed takes up
the majority of it,

so maybe if we
got a smaller bed...

Like a day bed or a futon

that would double
as the couch and a bed?

- Yeah.
- That would be a good option.

I think we could definitely
make it work.

We were really hoping
for a sleeping loft.

I don't think it's quite
tall enough for that.

This place definitely
has Allie's rustic cabin-y feel,

but I would at least have
to take some of the carpet out

and redo some of this to kind
of modernize this space

a little bit more.

This is a really nice size
kitchen for a tiny home.

Yeah.
It's, like, kind of huge.

You have full-sized appliances
which is really nice.

The sink is
a full-sized sink.

Yeah, it's a huge sink.

There's not a lot of counter
space because of it.

You do a lot
of the cooking though.

So... All of it.

Storage is important to me.

- All of it?
- Yeah.

I love that there's, like,
a full-size oven, though,

and the refrigerator.

Like, it's awesome to have this
in such a small space.

And maybe just, like,
add a counter or add, like,

another cabinet to kinda
make it more functional for us.

But I do love that there's,

like, a sitting area
within the kitchen as well.

Like, this is really nice to
have kind of a separate eating

- and then cooking area.
- It's perfect.

I could very much

envision myself sitting here
for breakfast every morning,

eating the food
that Allie cooks.

I'm not sure what this is.

This is your bathroom.

It is a bucket.

- Okay.
- It's a bucket.

I mean,
that bucket toilet thing,,

you just can't unsee that.

I was not sure about this being
in the kitchen area.

I mean you can almost
just kinda sit here and...

At the same time.

It kinda weirds me
out it's so close to our food.

It's kind of the only, like,
space for it though 'cause,

if you don't put it here,
then it's in the bedroom.

We have to figure out

another place to put it at least
or built it--

build a bathroom or something.

And then we
have to have a shower.

There will be a lot of work
that needs to be done

for us to be able to live
in that place comfortably.

I mean, the place is beautiful,
especially the flowers

and the views
everywhere around here.

- Okay.
- Yeah.

And I'm just a little bit
concerned about not being

able to have as many horses
out here as we want.

We might need something
with a little more land

just for grazing horses.

I would just like to see
something with a lofted sleeping

area to maximize our space
within the house.

So Leandra's showing
them something with better use

of vertical space.

- It's very awkward to climb up.
- You need a spotter?

Aw, that's a boy.

Yeah, come on, sweetie!

Allie and Jeremy are
looking for a tiny house

in Lexington, Kentucky,

where they can live and also
operate their own horse farm.

They saw a 320-square-foot space

that fit nicely
into their budget range.

While it has Allie's
rustic style, the acre of land

it came with isn't enough room
for the horses.

And Jeremy is less than thrilled
about the lack of modern touches

and a bathroom.

So today, their agent,

Leandra, is showing them
something a little more in-tune

with Jeremy's tastes.

Now this is a modern
tiny house.

Although it doesn't
come with property, Leandra

still thinks this mobile unit

could be the right house
for Jeremy and Allie.

With this being at the bottom
of their budget for a home,

it gives them lots
of options for their land.

Come on in.

Watch your step.

Ah, this is kinda cute.

It's a 160 square feet.

Okay, that's pretty small.

It's also a small price.

- It's $30,000.
- Okay.

Yeah, that's affordable.

But this house doesn't come
with land around it.

But, with the house
only being $30,000,

we're able to use
some of our budget

to look for a decent property
to put horses on.

Here, you have
a full-sized fridge.

- This is big.
- Yeah.

That's huge for this space.

I don't notice a stove
anywhere, though.

That's something
you would have to get.

So, that'd be
an added expense.

I think we would probably

would have this space
for it on this wall.

I feel like this is definitely
your style a little bit more,

more modern, clean, white... Right.

So what's going on
in the floor right here?

This is actually storage.

They truly did use every inch
of this space in here.

Wow.

Fit a lot of things
in there.

Yeah.
For sure.

I mean,
we can put anything in there:

clothes or seasonal stuff.

As you can see here,
there's also storage

under the steps
in these little cubbies.

Yeah.
I love that.

And this is your washer
and dryer.

- All-in-one?
- All-in-one.

Okay.
That's so cool!

I didn't even know
you could do that.

I love that it, like,
it fits in there.

It's not taking up
extra floor space or anything.

And this also would be
your living area.

Okay.

So there's not really room
for a couch

- or anything like that.
- No.

And we'd need somewhere
to sit down to eat.

So, like, some sort
of table or chair or something.

Possibly a table
that could fold up,

be out of the way
when you're not using it...

- That you fold down.
- That might work.

It'll be tight.

It will be.
And here, you have a closet.

It's not terribly big, but,
I mean, it's handy to have.

- And here's your bathroom.
- Nice space.

There's more storage
in the floor.

There's also some storage
cubbies here by the shower.

I mean, this would definitely
fit our needs

- as far as storage goes.
- Yeah.

Absolutely.
And the shower's a good size.

I'm assuming this is
where the toilet is gonna go?

Yes, which you'll just have
to discuss the options

on how you want
that to work for ya.

And here's one of the lofts.

You have storage beside it also.

I love the modern look
of this pipe ladder.

I'm a little concerned
on how close it is to the wall.

It's very awkward to climb up.

Yeah, it looks really awkward.
What do you think?

Uh, I mean, you could maybe
fit a twin mattress up here.

It's very cramped.

I could see, like,
our niece and nephew

sleeping
up there probably?

- You think?
- I think a shorter person

would definitely feel more
comfortable up here.

Smaller feet is definitely

what you would need
to navigate this ladder.

- You need a spotter?
- Possibly.

I'll hold you.

And you have the stairs here
to get up to this loft.

A lot more manageable
for adults, I think.

Yeah, and our dogs too.

I could see Hippy and Oscar

- getting up these pretty easy.
- Yeah.

This would be
where our bed would be.

- It's a little tight.
- Yeah.

It's a little cramped.

The headroom would definitely
be on your side.

There's just not room for
storage or really anything else.

The fact that this doesn't come
with land, I mean,

that's kind
of a big concern for us.

'Cause where we gonna put it?

Buying this would allow
you to have the money

for a down payment for the land.

That's true.

I love how modern it is.

The space is
very small though.

I mean, we couldn't really
fit anyone else in this space.

Yeah. It couldn't be used
for entertaining at all, really.

So I would like
to see something maybe

with a a little more space.

So, it's time
for Leandra to think big.

There is definitely
plenty of space in here.

Look at these burlap pillows!

I think this one
might be my favorite.

Allie and Jeremy are
going tiny

in Lexington, Kentucky,

with dreams of starting a horse
farm on the same property.

They would love to find a place

that's perfect for
entertaining family and friends.

They saw a 320-square-foot
rustic space

within their $60,000 price range
which came with an acre of land.

Allie and Jeremy
love the beautiful surroundings

and think the spacious interior
is ideal for entertaining.

But they worry that there's
no bathroom or room

for horse grazing.

Next, Agent Leandra

showed them a 160-square-foot
modern tiny house

on wheels with Jeremy's style.

While it has the lofted sleeping
area they want,

it lacks room to entertain,

and they would need to buy
their own land to park it on.

So Leandra is showing them
a space with more elbow room,

both inside the house and out.

This is really cute.

Looks like there's a lot
of land here.

There's 6 plus acres.

ALLIE; I like the kind of cabin
feel that is has going for it.

It's 480 square feet.

- That's good.
- Okay.

And it's priced
at $61,500.

It's kind of at the top
of our budget.

Yeah, but there's so much land,
though, that comes with it.

But it would be a really great
spot for your horses.

Wow, it feels so big in here.

It's a ton of space.

It's really nice
having the ceiling

that high in a tiny home--
makes it feel a lot larger.

Yeah, it's awesome.

So it feels like slightly more
closed in, in here, I feel like.

Probably because of the ceiling
being low here.

But it's because you
have your loft bedroom upstairs

that you're looking for.

Okay.
I mean, there's a ton of space,

and it's cool that it's, like,

an open space right
into the kitchen.

You could seat people and...

There are
a lot of cabinets.

I like the appliances
being full-size.

There's some things
that needs to be fixed,

like, I mean, this counter

and everything, I don't know
if it'd have to be replaced

or if we could just fix it.

Where the two floors
come together...

And there's gaps and scratches,
and we'd have to fix that.

Do you think we'd have to,
like, update these too?

Like, it looks
a little bit dated.

The problem is that we're at
the top of our price range too.

So we don't have a lot of money
to mess around

with some of those things.

It does need some updates,

and for us to be able
to put horses out here,

the outside needs a little bit
of work done to it as well.

So, some of those costs
will start to add up.

Oh, I love this floor in here!

This is so, like,
back country rustic feel,

- you know?
- I love the floors.

The pink walls,
we would have to change.

And what about
the nice-size shower?

That's a huge shower.

Yeah.
It's perfect.

It's everything that we need.

And the toilet
is lot better than the bucket.

So that's a plus.

It's an actual toilet!

Okay, let's come take a look
at the living room.

Wow.

There's definitely
plenty of space in here.

We could have all the people
from the horse ministry

come in here, and it wouldn't
be claustrophobic at all.

And you've got a nice closet
here for your clothes.

We can definitely fit
all of our clothes in there.

Yeah.

Let's head upstairs
and take a look at the bedroom.

Watch your heads.

- It's actually pretty spacious.
- Yeah, it is.

It's kind of got,
like, that A-frame thing,

though, going for it.

It kind of impedes
the head room.

Yeah, you definitely can't stand
and walk around up here.

You'd have to kinda just
go right to the bed.

I don't know about that.

One thing we wanted was stairs,
not a ladder.

So these are definitely doable
for Hippy and Oscar.

Wow, look at the view.

It's so pretty out here and,
like, open.

We have tons of space
to put a barn,

and this will be perfect
for the horses.

I mean, all in all,
the house is very spacious.

Lot of room to entertain.

But it still needs a lot
of work.

Yeah, but it includes the land.

I mean, 6 acres is a lot.

We also have to put in fences
and build a barn,

and with the house
at the top of our price range,

we have to think about the cost.

It's time for
Allie and Jeremy

to pick the perfect place.

We got a house!

Our house hunters
are upgrading to tiny houses.

It's time to make a decision

and kind of get out of
living with your family.

Allie and Jeremy are
looking for a tiny house

that's both a home and a space
for their horse farm.

They've seen several places,

and they're ready to choose
the one they'll move into.

The flower house
is at $49,000.

The space on the inside,

I feel like was
just what we needed.

But, do I mention
the obvious negative on there,

that it doesn't have a bathroom
except for a pot in the kitchen.

Right. That's a huge
concern of course.

But just the outdoor space

was so beautiful with all
of the different flowers...

Which is beautiful to look at,

but it also isn't very practical
as far as the horses go either.

I mean,
they can't graze in that.

We really need more land
for the horses.

So there's the house
on wheels that's $30,000.

I didn't like
how modern it was.

It was definitely
more my style.

It did have a sleeping loft

which was what
I was looking for.

But, it doesn't have land.

So that would be something we'd
have to continue looking for.

I mean, that's still
a whole other expense

we're gonna have to take on.

And it was just really small.

Yeah, tiny.

The house on the foundation
with 6 acres at 61,500,

that was at the top
of our price range.

But it did have the land
for the horses.

It was definitely more
your style

as far as looking and feeling
kind of like a rustic cabin.

I'm a little bit concerned
about the fixing up that we

would have to do and kind
of repairing some of the things

that were wrong with it.

It needed work, but a lot
of it was cosmetic things,

so we wouldn't have to add
on a complete bathroom

or anything like that.

I think that we should probably

knock out the house
with the flowers

only because it
didn't have a bathroom.

We're gonna have to add that.

It just isn't practical
for us.

So that leaves us with
the house on wheels

and the one
on 6 acres.

So the bottom and the top
of our price range.

- Right.
- What are you thinking?

I'm thinking we go
with the house on wheels.

We can still look for land,

and it's on wheels, so we
can take it wherever we need to.

One hundred and sixty
square feet's really tiny.

Do you think we're ready for it?

- I think so.
- Do we have our tiny house?

- I think we do.
- Yay.

We got a house!

We chose to go with
the house on wheels

because it had pretty much

everything
that we were looking for.

The asking price
for the house was $30,000,

and we got it for $30,000.

Come on.

We had to look
for the farm property

to start the horse ministry
and to put our home on.

And we found
that about a month ago,

which was when we're able
to move the tiny house

onto the property

and really kind of settle down.

The property we bought

was more than what we
had originally budgeted,

but when we saw this property,
we fell in love with it.

Their families were
able to chip in

to help make their dreams
of a horse farm come true.

It came with a lot of space
for the horses and a great barn.

And we felt like we could really
move into this space and grow.

This table was a good idea.

I also like how we were able
to pull that ladder

out from the wall.

We thought we might have to use
the second loft for storage,

but there was plenty
of storage elsewhere,

so we were able to use it

for a sitting loft
and library kind of area.

We thought 160 square feet
might be a little bit too small,

but it's actually been great.

I had a dream the other night
that I wished that

I wished that it
was smaller.

Good girl!
Come on.

Good girl!

Hippy and Oscar
love the tiny house.

They've both figured
out the steps,

and Oscar actually has kind
of moved into a little cubby

in the first floor.

So he likes it a lot.
This is yours.

We didn't really know

what to expect
moving into a tiny house.

But then we found ourselves
easily adjusting to this space

and finding plenty of room

to move around in and do
everything we needed to.

The only thing
I really miss about big living

is kind of having

that opportunity to have people
over to your house.

But that's kind
of only in the winter.

I mean, otherwise
we can have that happen outside.

We don't feel like we're
in a little box or anything.

This is our home,
and it's plenty of space in it.

It's just everything
that we need.

Cheers.