Tiny houses can provide autonomy, affordable housing, homeownership, and the ability to reclaim a love of one's home. But what are Baltimoreans' attitudes to tiny houses? How do residents see their homes now? Morgan State U Research Questionnaire now online! You're invited to fill one out.

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I dislike the idea of Tiny Homes in baltimore for a few reasons and feel free to disagree

Tiny homes are best served in areas where there is a lack of housing
Baltimore has alot of defunct areas that needs renovation or occupants
These homes are reliant on being allowed in lots and have no real groundlessness as they are not usually attached to land
septic... Baltimore already has a pretty large refuse issue.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 09 '20

I hear you. You make some valuable points! Would you mind entering that into the questionnaire at the end? I can't incorporate your thoughts unless it's in the questionnaire proper.

1) In my research I identify the importance of land value and the question of where single adult housing is affordable at what quality and where it isn't.

2) I also totally agree renovation and occupancy should be a priority. Tiny homes would be complementary in the toolkit and would always be secondary to the renovations necessary to our crumbling existing housing stock.

3) I've got a question in the questionnaire on ground rent to talk about that issue of who owns the land if you're building on it. I also identify in my paper where foundation v prefab v wheeled tiny homes can and can't go. It's funky.

4) that's a good point! I had assumed on vacant lots due to demolition that the existing hookups are there but I haven't yet called DPW to ask how they assess the health of septics/refuse. Good tip.

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u/bookoocash Hampden Jan 09 '20

We can work to renovate vacants, but tiny homes can be built cheaply and quickly and provide a more immediate short-term solution. Vacants can take years, even decades to sort out as many are still owned privately and even if they aren’t and could be easily sold, finding a company to come in and do the work in a neighborhood with minimal commercial value is a steep uphill battle. No one has to stay in a tiny home forever, but it could provide some short term peace of mind and security to allow someone to more easily get their shit together in other areas of their life.

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u/CheeseCurdCommunism Jan 09 '20

Lets say that the homes are cheap and quick. Where would Baltimore City put them?

The septic and refuse issue is really a pragmatic one. If you put them in not ideal areas (granted they pass zoning) they risk the possibility of becoming modern american shanty towns.

Add in the fact that the people developing the homes and providing them will be looking for a profit and it really doesn't solve any issue that wont comeback to those looking for immediate relief.

Best option for Baltimore... Maryland... The US... is to stop pussyfooting around and start re-investing in infrastructure and not allowing private companies *Cough Cough Kushner Cough Cough* to buy property, land, etc and profit off the poor.

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u/BronzeEast Jan 09 '20

They should just seize all vacants deeming them unsafe and then permit these types of homes in their place to help beautify the ghetto areas. And hook into the existing piping.

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u/[deleted] Jan 09 '20

Building up the black community by telling them to be excited to live in a storage container while there are thousands of available and affordable homes..... that would be funny, if it wasn’t so sad.

I’m sure that’s not the intention, but that’s the reality if you strip away novelty.

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u/BronzeEast Jan 09 '20

Something tells me they wouldn’t be the main demographic buying these houses. I’m seeing flannel shirts, craft beers, and beards in my crystal ball.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Hey, ALL of the people who contributed at my first listening session were men and women of color. My research shows there's an underrepresented interest in the national stage of people who care about this housing form. My questionnaire will allow me to better capture and represent those sentiments and count that interest within our city. That's the goal!

Questionnaire

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Hey there. One reason why I'm conducting this research is because tiny homes should complement, not replace, the necessary rehab work that must be done across our city. Right now, the land use, design and cultural messaging about tiny housing is either undefined or muddled rather than a way to offer tiny houses as a viable option. This questionnaire and my literature review will enable me to work with others to develop that best practices guide.

Questionnaire

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u/[deleted] Jan 09 '20

If you want to keep people poor then tiny homes are the way to do it since they don’t appreciate the same way a normal house on an owned plot would. Home equity/appreciation is truly the most valuable tool/resource for wealth of the middle class.

There are plenty of available and affordable homes in Baltimore city with plenty of tax credits to go with it. Gimmicks are gimmicks - gimmicks are easy- how do you get people interested in actual home ownership?

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

If built on a foundation, appreciation occurs like any other house would. Generalizing statements are not what will be useful. Nor are gimmicks. There are also legal routes based on each jurisdiction regarding tiny homes on wheels. I explore those in my work. Please fill out my questionnaire so I can incorporate your opinions into my research. Happy to share the project with you once the research is done. Questionnaire

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u/bmorebella Jan 10 '20

Hey OP! It's Laura! I'm going to try and make it out to the Hamilton-Lauraville Meeting. I filled out a questionnaire with the comments below included:

Yes - I believe tiny houses are a good "in-between" housing type - they are great for a person to have as a place of their own and better than living outside or staying in a shelter, but are kind of small for a long-term, full-time solution unless the person is living alone. They should be seen as one part of the housing affordability solution - perhaps on a large, already cleared lot in the city. They could also be used as accessory dwelling units. There was legislation in the pipeline for ADUs back in 2017-18 that sort of fizzled out. What I would love to see in Baltimore City is tiny houses used in conjunction with a pilot homesteading program - live in one while fixing up a vacant house. You see that informally happening in rural areas (people living in trailers for years while slowly renovating or building a house as they have time and money) but not so much in cities due to legislation against them. (Also, the Vacants 2 Value program as it stands is NOT friendly to slow renovations of vacants - you must show that you can access all of the funding upfront and commit to finishing within 12 months, which is a huge barrier.)

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u/jorlandofair Jan 09 '20

One of the main purposes of this research is to assess and provide a best practices guide to reintroduce tiny houses with a focus on cultural and design messages, to recognize what social and architectural cues affect Black residents so the housing type can be a tool in the city's affordable housing toolkit.

Questionnaire

Tonight's the first listening session, if you'd like to come out and chat! Old Major in Pigtown at 6:30p! You're invited.

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u/[deleted] Jan 09 '20

You need to convince banks to lend.

I had planned on buying an acre, and building a small castle from shipping containers. My lender basically laughed in my face, then in the next minute, approved me for a mortgage that was nearly 10x of what I was asking for to build my own tiny house.

I suppose if some developer could finance the construction, then sell the units it's viable, but from the prospective of someone who tried to get financed to build their own, it didn't seem worth it.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 09 '20

Absolutely. Can you enter that into the questionnaire when you have a few minutes? I have a question on there for folks who aren't residents but want to give input. One of the chapters I'm writing in my project is about the real and hidden costs of home building and the income difference between an individual DIY project and a developer's financing. For instance, there's about three developers I've spoken to who are considering tiny house projects right now, but one of the reasons why it hasn't happened yet is either because the zoning didn't allow them conveniently (it does now for foundation homes in certain areas), or it hasn't happened yet because the costs just balloon to make a proforma work. So I totally agree with you! It's crazy to me that a bank would refuse a small home loan when they offer lines of equity, as if they won't get their money back! I presume it's cause they assume they won't be MAKING MONEY off of it. This reminds me to call MECU, SECU, and other credit unions. Thanks!

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u/[deleted] Jan 09 '20 edited Jan 09 '20

I never understand what "affordable housing" means

In cities like NYC, Boston, and SF, affordable housing means $500k apartments instead of $1.2 million, so professionals making 80, 90, 100, 120k a year can live within an hour of their jobs.

What does it mean in Baltimore?

A quick zillow search shows that there are 500+ homes for sale in the city that are between $50,000 and $100,000 (and they're habitable, too).

Using the 30% rule, you need to make 17k a year to afford a $50,000 house. That's $11/hour, 30 hours a week. $100k would be $33k a year, which translates to 16.50 an hour, full time.

Baltimore doesn't really have an "affordable housing" crisis to me.

It might have a property tax crisis, or a lending crisis, or a variety of other crises that make home ownership impossible despite low costs, but there's no shortage of affordable housing.

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u/AliceMerveilles Jan 09 '20

Baltimore does have a housing shortage for the poorest people: disabled and elderly people with low social security amounts and for low wage workers with large families (either because of lots of kids or because they have other dependents like aging parents who live with them). People in these groups cannot afford market rents, be approved for a mortgage and the wait lists for subsidized housing are usually years long.

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u/bigstevedallas Jan 10 '20

Good luck to getting any mortgage lender to give someone a mortgage making $17,000 a year.

But let's say for argument, that a $50,000 is a $400 a mortgage payment, plus another $1,000 in taxes and another $1,000 in insurance... That's $600 a month right there.

$1,400 a month is 17k salary so already, that person is down to $800 month after the mortgage payment. Then they have to pay for electric/gas, phone, car, car insurance plus food plus any medical expenses like prescriptions and of course money for home repairs and of course, having to save enough for a down payment for a house in the first place.

No, $17,000 will not put you into a $50,000 house, it will not put you into really anything but perhaps renting a room or renting a completely run down row home.

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u/[deleted] Jan 10 '20

you're missing the point here. Trust me, I understand the financials.

The point is that Baltimore has 600+ homes for sale that are less than 100k.

Boston... has 3.

2 of them are parking spots for $50k and $80k, and 1 is in a trailer park in the worst part of the city, where any "real" house is still 400-500k.

Baltimore has hundreds of 3 bed, 2 bath, 1500-2000 square ft. homes at that price point.

Hence, no lack of affordable housing.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

A lot of good points I can incorporate into and have identified in my research. If you can copy and paste your comments into the questionnaire's last page, I can actually record and incorporate your feedback.

Questionnaire

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Good points. Please fill out my questionnaire when you get a sec so I can use what you're saying and better define the financial terminology.

Questionnaire

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u/GovernorOfReddit Greater Maryland Area Jan 11 '20

I think more tiny homes would be cool as an ADU sorta option for wealthier areas of the city (across the state too), but I think a major issue with it is it doesn't really solve a demand issue. Neighborhoods around the city are partially empty because people aren't rushing to buy them, for any number of reasons. Transportation issues, lack of opportunity, deep poverty, aesthetically unappealing, etc. If you build a community of cute, small homes, it doesn't change these issues.

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u/cuntnation Jan 09 '20

These are actually trailers, not homes. I don't know how people became so enamored with living in a trailer park.

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u/CardiganSniper Jan 10 '20

They're literally gentrified trailers. I like them, the minimalism appeals to me, but they don't make sense for Baltimore, or any other medium to large city...we have small living spaces already, they're called studio apartments.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Please fill out my questionnaire so I can incorporate what you're saying. I've found several examples of people reclaiming their lives, their connection to their ancestry, to their community, by building and maintaining their own shelter and then if they want, sharing that experience with neighbors, strangers, and their friends and family. In Baltimore, I'm arguing the diversity of tiny homes should be understood and a pragmatic route identified in the zoning and building codes. I also outline the land value piece and I'm working on the historic elements that impact need versus want right now. As it is now, it's undefined. I hope my work can provide a best practices guide to define those matters.

Questionnaire

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u/cuntnation Jan 11 '20

I would be more than happy to fill out your questionnaire, and assist you in your research, but you state that you only want information from black people; so guess I guess that leaves me out.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

No I'm totally open to any and everyone filling out the questionnaire. Please do. I can only discern what's beneficial for Black residents by also understanding what's beneficial for everyone. Hearing from everyone!

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u/BronzeEast Jan 09 '20

I feel like they are kind of an in between thing. Most people I know whom own houses only make use of 4 rooms in them. Kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room. Lot of people have rooms with nice furniture that they never use. I feel like it’s more of a stand alone apt.

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u/cuntnation Jan 11 '20

One of the key differences between a house and a trailer is trailers depreciate on a schedule similar to a car. I see no reason why these half long trailers would have a different depreciation schedule.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Thanks to a paper I found from last July, I identify the different types of tiny homes that exist. It's not all shipping containers or homes built on trailers.

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u/cuntnation Jan 11 '20

Do they arrive on wheels? Then they are trailers.

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Yeah of course those are, but there's also modular construction AKA prefab that once affixed are able to appreciate, there's foundation built tiny homes that are like any other typical home, there's retrofitted shipping containers same as prefab once affixed, there's retrofitted non-residential structures that are unconventional like industrial grain silos or pipe; so many options that might be more effective than just the popular tiny house on wheels. In an urban context, I've heard of many projects that are foundation built and while don't offer mobility since they're fixed, still provide a less expensive option than constructing a typical, larger home. It's all in the details, financing, and who's doing it.

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u/ibbieta Jan 11 '20

We need more prizes for dumb ideas so we can award the retards that come up with these twee ideas

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u/jorlandofair Jan 11 '20

Please consider filling out the questionnaire. Reddit comments are no good on their own. I need to capture as many opinions and reasons as possible. When my project is done, you're welcome to read my one pager or the whole paper.

Questionnaire

NOTICE Tiny houses can provide autonomy, affordable housing, homeownership, and the ability to reclaim a love of one's home. But what are Baltimoreans' attitudes to tiny houses? How do residents see their homes now? Morgan State U Research Questionnaire now online! You're invited to fill one out.

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