Mission
My name is Rich and I am a Green Real Estate Consultant. I live in the foothills with my wife Ann who is a local high school teacher. With the real estate market a little slow I have lots of time on my hands to ponder the question of “How are we ever going to afford a house”. Less than 19% of Californians can and lets face it, right now a real estate agent and a high school teacher don’t rank in the top 19% on income earners. So with my new career induced free time I am spending it in the most efficient way possible, surfing craigslist.
It turns out craigslist has everything! I can make $6,000 a day through various get rich quick schemes from craigslist, gain valuable insight into the minds of disgruntled police officers, waiters and massage therapists and find any manner of free stuff! This is a bored internet searchers’ mecca. After wiling away a whole day (okay - three days) pouring through the free section at craigslit.org it hit me - the solution to our home ownership dillema - free stuff from craigslist!!! I know what you’re thinking, that there is no way you can get enough quality free stuff on craigslist to build an entire house, but I disagree and have never been one to back away from a challenge. So,
The House That Craig Built was born
Ann and I have 18 months and a large garage and workshop for storage. We intend to collect quality building materials and appliances from the free section of craigslist, freecycle and individual donations and build an entire house that way. We want to build a green home and what could be more green than a house built entirely from construction materials diverted from the waste stream.
So if you believe in our vision and would like to be a part of this intrepid adventure please:
- bookmark this page
- check back often to read our blog posts and track our progress
- donate free construction materials, appliances, landscaping materials or expertise
- tell your friends about our project and send them a link to this site
Thank you,
Rich and Ann
May 17th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
Hello Rich & Ann!
Congratulations on your epiphany! I, like you, am also a real estate consultant and am building a “craigslist-house” of my own -well, me and my boyfriend, that is. I am excited to have found your blog, and am interested to know how things are coming along.
Although I have always tried to maintain my eco-conscience, it was actually financing that was the deciding factor for us to build a home this way. Having gone through (most of) the process, though, I highly recommend it for all the reasons you stated in your blog!
We have been working on our home for over one year and are at substantial completion. Now, we have paid for some items (not all things were free…) but let me tell you it is truly amazing the amount of savings we have incurred in building the home this way! The home has granite counters in the “chef’s” kitchen (I plan to teach cooking classes here once the home is done…hey, us realtors need a second income source right now, you know???) It has hardwood flooring, tile, walk in showers, a bonus/ game room…all the “luxury” materials one could ask for. We paid $400 for granite that was worth $4000; a $750 sink (retail) was included with the granite purchase. For 400 asf of maribau hardwood we paid $800 (retails for $3200.) The list goes on…
In the Boise, ID real estate market, the median sales price is $210,000 for a 1750 asf, 3 bedroom/2 bath/2 car garage home. When our home is finished, we will have a 2500 asf 4 bedroom/3 bath/ 2 car garage on 1/4 acre lot. We picked up everything but the trusses from craigslist.
As a realtor, I estimate the home will be worth a conservative $230,000. We have mortgaged the whole project for $120,000. Sweet equity!
There is no way we could have built a home like this without the help of craigslist (and a bit of sweat equity!)
So, to stave off the doubters, here’s a few words of wisdom: not only can it be done…but we are doing it and doing it well! I’ll send pics if you’d like!
Good luck to you and hope to see your updates on your project soon!
December 3rd, 2008 at 11:03 pm
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