Tiny House Hunters (2014–…): Season 2, Episode 20 - Starting Fresh by Going Small in San Diego - 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.

This 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.

- Oh, my gosh.
- That'll catch your eye.

With her kids out of the house,
Annie has decided

to do something for herself
and go tiny.

Oh, look at this!

So, here is your table.

And this is a bench.

That is your shower.

It doubles as a sauna.

What?! I feel like a little kid
in a tree fort.

This is too much fun.

But her son, Lynah,
thinks the transition to tiny

might be more than
she bargained for.

You can set up



two bar stools here
and have a nice meal.

With your half-size plates,
your tiny stools.

- There's no sink.
- This almost reaches.

I can't imagine
you living in this.

My name's Annie,

and I'm an artist here
in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Most recently, I've been making
hats and scarves

and shawls and painting
inspirational quotes.

When I moved to Chattanooga,

moved into this house
with two children,

and it made sense for us
to have all this space.

But my daughter has graduated
from college.

My son is off in college.
I'm divorced.

I'm in a house
that's way too big for me.

So I'm looking
to make some changes.

Two summers ago,
when my divorce was finalized,

I didn't really feel
comfortable in the house.

I've got a great
glassed-in porch,

so I moved my bed out there for
the whole summer,

and I just started to look
around, thinking,

"If I had a little kitchen
in one corner

and maybe a bathroom
right off the side,

I could live like this.

That was like a little
ding, ding, ding,

a little light going off.

So Annie's putting
her large house up for sale

and using the proceeds to pay
cash for the tiny house,

which she'll park
on a friend's farmland.

She's already packing up

and parting with most
of her belongings.

I'm committed to moving into
a much smaller space.

For Annie,
this means something

in the 200-square-foot range.

Since I made the decision
to downsize,

I have started getting
rid of things.

I had hundreds of books.

Six months ago,
I gave away probably 400,

and it didn't even make a dent,
so that's gonna be

the biggest challenge

is not to have a whole lot
of space for books.

Will you help me move
- some of this stuff?
- Sure.

Annie's son, Lynah,
is back from college

to help pack up his childhood
home and find mom a new one.

I was very skeptical
when she first mentioned

the idea of moving
into a tiny house.

I don't see her fitting
everything she needs

in that small of a space.

Your whole house is gonna be
the size of this kitchen.

How are you gonna deal
with that?

I'm sure it'll be a challenge,
but it's an adventure.

I have a working budget
of $35,000,

but if I, you know,
found something

that was a little bit
more than that,

I could do a little bit more.

And that roof slope

gives you more room up
in a sleeping loft.

I like the idea of a loft.

I think I'm still kind of
a 6-year-old at heart.

And I like the idea of bunk beds
and climbing up a ladder.

This I'm not that wild about.

I'm just not a big fan
of rustic.

I would rather have clean
and contemporary.

I'm really looking for almost
sort of a stark Zen thing.

This is what I was talking
about with open shelves.

When cabinets are closed,

and if you're in a small space,
you have to open them.

So you're leaning back
and opening things.

And, you know, when you have
the open shelves,

it feels more spacious.

I'm not exactly sure where
I'm gonna end up,

which is part of the reason

I wanted to do
a tiny house on wheels.

My son was teasing me
that I'm gonna turn into

a nomadic hippie,
and I realized that,

you know, yeah,
that's kind of who I am.

Annie is working
with local builder Jeff Loper

of Valley View Tiny Houses.

Annie's budget is $35,000.

Currently, we don't have a house
that meets that exact budget,

but we're gonna show her
some excellent options

that I think she'll love.

Jeff is starting
Annie off

with a place he thinks will
appeal to her artistic side.

Oh, my gosh.

That'll catch your eye.

Bright and fresh
and beachy.

Definitely contemporary.

It is colorful.

I mean, you can see it
from five miles away.

I thought, with
your artistic nature,

you might
appreciate the colors.

Colors are certainly vibrant.

You could live in this thing, seriously?

Well...

- It's tiny.
- Well, how big is this one?

This one's 189 square feet.

- And how much is this one?
- $37,500.

$2,500 over
your max budget,

but we'll see if
we can make it work.

- We'll have to see.
- All right.

- Wow.
- Oh, my gosh.

It feels spacious.

Speak for yourself.

It's like the size
of my dorm room.

If so.

You could get, like,
a futon, maybe, here.

A couple
dining room chairs.

Like, there's just not
that much room.

This is from a guy

who wants to come visit
and not sleep on the floor.

Oh, yeah.

Ridiculously small.

Even if she has one
or two pieces of furniture,

there's no room to just,
like, lie down and relax.

Living in that thing for
any extended period of time

would just drive me insane.

Look, you've got a little bit
of a bump-out over here.

Yeah, this could be, like,

a perfect reading nook
for you, right?

Ah! Absolutely.

With all your books.
You could put a cushion

up there, some pillows,
and make it really comfy-cozy.

And then this area right here
slides right out,

so you have storage
underneath here.

- Nice.
- Yeah.

And I like the contrast between
the white and the wood.

And the tin-- Oh, my gosh,
look at that.

Wow.

It came off of
an old barn.

Actually,
our electrician's barn.

Very nice.
And look at the kitchen.

Yeah, so you could set up
two bar stools here

and have a nice meal.

See? And eat together.

You can fit half a plate
on the counter.

With your little, tiny plates

and your tiny stools,
with your tiny utensils.

I'm not quite sure what my mom's
thinking with this kitchen.

The dining room table is like
an eight-inch piece of wood

that folds out.

I mean, we've been used to
a table that can seat

like 8 to 10 people.

Here you have
an induction cooktop.

And you're shaking
your head already.

You need an oven.
You need stuff to cook with.

That stuff is really
not important to me.

I'm really looking
for a simpler existence.

Nice-sized fridge.

That way you're not running
to the grocery store

every two days to get
something if you get,

like, a dorm fridge
or something like that.

This is beautiful.

That's one thing
that I was looking for.

- Yeah, open shelves.
- Open shelves.

Still pretty limited, though.

I mean, I don't know if you can
fit all your things in here.

Here we go.

Full-size closet.

Yeah, improves
the storage situation.

So we've got
that nice full-size shower.

That's a good size.

Composting toilet!

Composting toilet.
I'm a little weirded out
by that.

There's no way he's gonna
come visit now.

The ladder to the loft

is concealed within
the bookcase.

Oh.

Oh, my gosh.

A little, teeny-tiny
sleeping place.

I'll save you space.

Not much.

No, that's-- It's neat up here,
though, Jeff, though.

The windows are awesome.

You're pretty
cramped, though.

I'm a little concerned about,

you know, headroom in
the loft space.

This is really tiny.

The queen of claustrophobia.

There's like
no headroom.

Honestly, this is the first time
it's felt tiny.

I tell you I really love
the mix

of materials in this one--

white and the wood and the tin.

- Excellent.
- I like the layout a lot.

You know, the colors--

it's just not quite
what I was envisioning.

I'm still not quite sure
I can see you

living in something
this small.

Like, the loft is very cramped.
The kitchen's very basic.

The open shelving does make
the interior more spacious,

but I'm still not quite sure
you'll have enough storage.

You know, Lynah,
you might be right.

You know, all in all, it might
be a little bit too tiny.

So Jeff's found Annie a tiny
house, but with a big surprise.

That's amazing!

This thing inside
is like the Taj Mahal.

Do you guys take donations?

- We do.
- Yay!

I'm massively downsizing,
so they need a new home.

Artist Annie
is ready to trade in

her 4,100-square-foot
Chattanooga, Tennessee, home

for a smaller space that will
fit within her $35,000 budget.

With her college-age son,
Lynah, along for the ride,

she's seen
a 189-square-foot bungalow

that appeals
to her artistic side.

Although it has the contemporary
style and open cabinets

she's looking for, at 21 times
smaller than her current home,

it's a tight squeeze.

So now builder Jeff Loper
is showing Annie

a tiny house that's a little
more sizeable.

While he didn't build this one,

they can use it as inspiration
for Annie's house.

I called some friends
up the road,

and I wanted you to see
their latest offering.

Well, and this is
interesting 'cause it's got--

To me,
it has contemporary lines,

but kind of a rustic outer.

Right, absolutely.

This place is twice
as big, at 396 square feet,

but it's still easily towable,

thanks to retractable
slider walls.

When the slides are closed,
it measures 287 square feet.

- Wow.
- When they're out,

- it's 396 square feet.
- Okay.

- Oh, my gosh.
- Wow.

And how much is this one?

- This one is $62,000.
- Oh!

You're kidding me.

Whoa.

So I know it stretches
- your budget quite a bit.
- Whoa, whoa.

That's nearly twice my budget.
Does it come with a driver?

This house is packed with
surprise features throughout.

Yeah, grill stows away nicely
when you're traveling.

I think there's things in there

that she would really find
beneficial down the road.

Whoa!

- That's different. Wow.
- Wow.

- Pretty great, right?
- Mm-hmm. Awesome.

Yeah, this is
quite luxurious.

From the outside, you know,
I was worried

it was gonna be
a little bit cabin-y.

No. This thing inside
is like the Taj Mahal.

It really
feels spacious.

You can't even tell

these are, like,
the pop-out sides, wow.

When they pop back in,
how does that happen?

Believe it or not, these
are actually manual pop-outs.

Really?

- You're kidding me.
- Yeah, come on.

Grab right over there.
Let me show you how this works.

- All righty.
- Just grab it
just like this...

All right...and pull.

- Hey.
- Oh, my gosh!

It's great that those
bump-outs are manual,

but I'm by myself, so I'm not

quite sure I'd be able to handle
pushing them in and out alone.

There you have it.
Instant room.

That's amazing.

That was a lot easier
than I expected.

And there's all sorts
of terrific

hidden little features
in this house, too.

Like, for example,
this is your dining area.

So here is your...

Wow.table.

It comes all the way
across here.

- Wow.
- And for your
dinner guests...

is a bench. Like that.

- Oh, my gosh.
- That's nice.

- Pretty amazing.
- That's wild.

Good gosh.

And there are cabinets everywhere.

Wow.

No open shelves.

These ones over here are
definitely worth opening.

A full-blown pantry.

Wow.

Check this out.
Closet storage up in here.

Oh, my gosh.

This is like a magic show.

You've got to be
kidding me.

I don't even think
you'd have to downsize

your wardrobe for that.

No, I'd need to get more clothes
if I had this closet.

It's like an Advent calendar.

Every little door you open,

there's some new gadget
or storage space.

I mean, you've got lots of room
over here in the kitchen.

Two burners.

You could cook and make tea
at the same time.

Two burners.
I'm a fan.

Ooh, there we go.
There we go.

What is that?

That is a dishwasher.

Oh, are you kidding me?

Got a cool pocket door.
That's beautiful wood.

Again.

Oh, my gosh.
It's huge.

Holy smokes.

That is your shower.

It doubles as a sauna.

- What?!
- A sauna.

A sauna, for goodness' sake?

Oh, my gosh, it's like
a five-star hotel.

After driving 12 hours

and navigating the roads
and being able to sit back...

Oh.

I'm relaxed just thinking
about it.

It's a little cramped,
but still.

Hey, for a sauna, - you can squeeze, yeah.
- Yeah, it would work for you
for sure, yeah, that's right.

- I want to check out the lofts.
- Let's go check it.

Oh, my gosh, Lynah, wait
till you get up here.

There's room
for you to sit.

Yeah.

Yeah, quite spacious,
- isn't it?
- It is.

Yeah, this is a six-foot-wide
loft over here

and an eight-foot loft
on the other side.

- Oh, my gosh.
- So you could easily fit
a queen bed in each side.

I've got one more
surprise for you.

We pull this out,
slide up and out of here.

- This is too much fun.
- Wow.

Guess what's behind
door number three.

Another queen bed
for your visitors.

It's huge.

It's the true test
if it can fit me.

Here we go.

This is nice.
I got plenty of room.

I had no idea it would be
this luxurious.

The only thing I got a little
bit of misgiving about

is all the cabinets.

This does have
a nice-size kitchen, though.

I feel like it would be
an easier transition for you

moving from our house
to this one.

And the bathroom?
I mean, that's amazing.

Bottom line for me, though,
is that price tag.

Ooh.

Yeah, it's steep,
for sure.

Yeah, that is something
to think about.

Yep.

So Jeff is
cutting back on the cost

and the square footage.

I feel like a little kid
in a tree fort.

This is definitely
one thing

that will not fit
- in the tiny house.
- Yeah.

Annie is
a Chattanooga, Tennessee-based

artist looking to downsize
from a five-bedroom home

to a 200-square-foot tiny house
under $35,000.

With her son, Lynah,
home from college to help,

she's seen
a 189-square-foot bungalow.

Although it had her contemporary
style and artistic flair,

the tiny living quarters
left her looking for more.

Next up was a 396-square-foot
tiny house

with room for the whole family.

Annie was wowed by
its guest loft and sauna

but floored by a price tag
that was double her budget.

Now builder Jeff
hopes to once again

appeal to Annie's creative side

with a house
that she can customize.

It's our first rustic model.

I was hoping for a little bit
more contemporary.

Yeah. Well, think of
this one as a blank canvas.

We left it unfinished
on the inside

in terms of the woodwork,
so you could

give it that contemporary flair
that you're looking for.

How much is this one?

This one's $44,500.

Forty-four-- Ugh.
Okay.

211 square feet.

It's definitely pretty,
but it doesn't look

like it has too much space,
to be honest.

I'll let you be the judge
once we get inside.

Oh, my goodness.

- Wow.
- Look at that.

- This is beautiful, Jeff.
- Isn't it awesome?

- That's beautiful woodwork.
- Oh, my gosh.

A chalet feel.

We built in this nice
flip-down tabletop here.

What a neat use
of that bay window.

That's really nice.

To access the loft,

this house has a ladder hidden
inside a shelving unit.

- That's cool.
- We get lots of
compliments on that.

Oh, look at this!

Neat!

Oh, my gosh.

This is way more spacious

than I thought it would be.

Yeah.

Over here on this side,
you have flip-up panels.

Okay.

So you have some storage
in the floor.

Oh, my gosh.

We call that our
dresser-in-the-floor system.

I feel like a little kid
in a tree fort.

This is awesome.

I'm surprised at how much
I like this house.

211 square feet, and it really
feels absolutely livable.

That's a big transition from,
like, full-size bed to a loft.

How are you gonna
deal with that?

I mean, I've been talking
about for years

that we have more room
than I really need.

I'm willing
to give it a try.

As long as you know what
you're getting into.

Voice of doom.

Over here,
we have the kitchen.

- Kitchen cabinets.
- Yeah.

I mean, they're pretty,

but to have to back up
to open the doors,

that's one of the reasons I
really wanted open cabinets.

Right, right.

I don't really know if I can see
her working in this kitchen.

It's kind of closed in
with the cabinets

and the fact that it only has,
like, one cooktop.

It's gonna be
a big change

going from four burners
- to one with no oven.
- I know.

That is gonna be a challenge.

Look at this.

Pocket door.

Lee-de-lee!

- Nice feature, right?
- Neat! Yeah.

- Full-size shower?
- Absolutely.

That's, like, as big
as mine at home.

There's no sink.

Nope.
Sink is right out here.

- It's right outside.
- This almost reaches.

- There you go.
- Spray yourself.

Perfect.

And so, here, you also have
some built-in shelving

for your canned goods
and your spices and whatnot.

Your hot sauce shelf.

Yeah, exactly.
If you keep adding

pieces of motivation,
I might come visit you.

All right, we'll talk about
pieces of motivation.

We're gonna convert
Lynah yet. We'll see.

I really like
the way that, like,

the ladder folds away
and the table folds away.

Like, there are a lot of cool,
concealable features.

And that loft
is nice and open.

"Just because you go tiny

doesn't mean you have to go
without," is what we say.

One thing I'm a little
uncomfortable with

is the narrowness
of the kitchen.

It just feels a little
closed-in to me.

Something about those
cabinet doors.

Sure, well, that's something
that could be easily changed.

You could just take
the doors off.

It's still, like, cramped
in lots of areas.

I still can't believe
you're gonna live

in something that's this tiny.

It's time for Annie

to pull the trigger
on a tiny house.

That thing still feels
very small to me.

Such a tough decision.

Our house hunters are moving
on up to a much smaller space.

Could you live in a tiny house?

See how people make
the small space work

What are you doing?

You're supposed to be
- getting rid of these things.
- I only found three.

I'm just avoiding
making a decision.

It's so much
to think about.

Annie is an artist
from Chattanooga, Tennessee,

looking to downsize
to a tiny house.

With $35,000 to spend,
she's seen several tiny options,

and it's now time
to make a decision.

She saw a 189-square-foot

colorful contemporary house
for $37,500.

I like the colorful
aspect of it.

- Really? Not too much?
- I mean, for me, yeah,

but I think you'd make it
your own very well.

And all the materials inside--
you know, the reclaimed wood--

I mean, it's just beautiful,
beautiful stuff.

I just don't know if you'd
be comfortable in that loft.

I mean, it was tiny even when
we saw it without a bed in it.

And there's no room for,
like, a guest bed.

Like, none of us
could come visit you.

That is true.

But that
living area's so open.

And it's got all those
open shelves.

Mm-hmm. Yeah, the builder did
a very good job making it feel

very spacious, considering it's
the smallest house we looked at.

Next was
a 396-square-foot house

with expandable slide-out walls
priced at $62,000.

Oh, my gosh.

That's massive amounts of space
for a tiny house.

It had awesome features
that, I don't know,

I feel like
I'd like that one.

I know. That's your house--
the slider house.

I definitely liked that one
the best, yeah.

If price wasn't an issue,
I would go for that one.

Oh, yeah, totally.

Fold-out beds,
the double lofts.

Yeah, I think of that one
as the family tiny house.

- Mm-hmm, yeah.
- I mean, there's room
for everybody.

We could have the whole family
come for Thanksgiving.

And I wouldn't have to
get rid of any books.

I just am a little worried
about price on that one.

Then there was

a 211-square-foot rustic model
for $44,500.

The rustic one had
my favorite loft.

I know. Mine, too.

And I was surprised.

I mean, that pine
paneling inside

was nice and contemporary.

I can finish it
however I want.

That thing still
feels very small to me.

See, and I think
that one was spacious.

Too many cabinets.
All those closed doors.

Mm-hmm.

I feel like
the increase in price

might not really justify
how much space you get

because it didn't really
feel like it had

that much more space
than the colorful one.

Such a tough decision.

I think I know
which one I really want.

It's the...

- colorful one.
- I knew it.

I can close my eyes
and see myself sitting there

in the window knitting
or reading a book.

It makes me smile every time
I think about it.

I actually chose the tiniest
of the tiny houses--

the flaming aqua one.

The colors, although it was
a little shocking at first--

they really grew on me.

I just couldn't get the inside
of this house out of my head.

It was just so inviting.

Just made you want to plop down
and read a book.

I did go a little bit
over budget.

The price was $37,500.

My big house is still for sale,
but I just decided to move on,

and a friend was kind enough

to let me park my tiny house on
some farmland outside Nashville.

I moved in a couple weeks ago.

Tiny life is actually
pretty much what I imagined.

I know that there's some
compromises as far as space,

but now I love it.

It's like living in my workshop.

I've been getting rid of things
for six months.

It's really given me
appreciation for

not only downsizing,
but to live more sparsely.

The part of my house that I love
the best is the reading window.

It's so soothing.

- Hey!
- Hey!

- How are you?
- I'm good.

I think Lynah likes the home
I chose for me.

And I'm sorry that there's not
a lot of space for you.

- What are you gonna do?
- We'll work on it.

As a mom, I got some

major guilt going on that
there's not a whole lot of space

for people to come and visit.

Look how that storage
worked out.

I got all
my clothes up there.

I love it.
I feel so cozy here.

Living in a tiny house
has totally changed my life.

I am surrounded by the things
that are most important to me.

And, see, this is so nice.

It's like this is
your living room.

I was skeptical at first,
but you've made it work well,

- and you look happy.
- Thank you.

Hey. Huzzah.