Affordable TINY HOUSE in the Forest

It's pretty well known that the cost of buying a house has gone completely crazy in the last few years. In some countries the cost of buying a house has gone up 20 to 30 percent. I'm standing here in beautiful Portugal, the sun is shining, the breeze is just right and you'd think this place is paradise but Portugal is no exception. The housing market in Portugal went up by 38 percent between 2019 and 2022 and so many people from renters to potential buyers are left without affordable housing. While I was looking for a solution to the problem I became obsessed with something called prefab homes. Prefab is short for prefabricated. These are houses that are pre-made. Most of the construction work happens in the factory or in a workshop. Then they're shipped to the location where they're put together like a giant puzzle. One particular prefab house that I couldn't stop thinking about was the beautifully designed indigo house. I did some research and I discovered Lia who's living in one of these indigo houses out in the forest. I was so curious that I booked myself a ticket to the Netherlands and today I'm on a plane flying to check it out and I'm taking you along with me. But before I head over to the indigo house I'm making a quick stop. I'm meeting with a dreamer and the innovator behind these amazing indigo houses, Daniel Veneman, the founder of Wood Pioneer Studio. As a kid Daniel used to build tiny houses made from blankets and boxes just like the rest of us. But while most of us moved on Daniel just kept on building these little houses until he became an architect. The purpose of the indigo house is to build in a way that treats the earth kindly. It's not just about appearance. The indigo is sustainable and eco-friendly. It's about using materials that are renewable and that won't harm the environment. This is the Netherlands which happens to be the flattest country in the world and that's because a big part of their land used to be underwater. And here's the road to the house. I'm getting really excited to finally see it in real life after looking at the photos of it for such a long time. As we get closer and park the car I realized that Leah's house looks like something out of a fairy tale. It's surrounded by forests on all sides and Leah herself is a bit like a forest fairy too. So she went online and found a small piece of land up for sale with an old house. She cleared out the old house and then she got in touch with Daniel to design a prefab house just like the ones she saw on YouTube. Here's her house from the outside. The beauty of this thing is that prefab homes are typically built in sections which are designed to fit together once they reach the building site. Just like a giant lego. Walls, floors, ceilings and even entire rooms are pre-made and ready to slot into place which makes the process much faster than traditional construction. So let's talk about the wood they use for the indigo houses. It's called spruce wood and it comes from places like Sweden and Finland where they're really careful about the forests. After they chop down the trees they plant new ones so it's a sustainable source. Now let's take a tour of the indigo house. But first if you're getting value from this video so far and you're inspired to chase your dream please do me a quick favor. Just click on the like button below. It helps with the algorithm and the ranking and why not subscribe to the channel and follow if you haven't already done so. It's time for a little tour of Lia's place. Lia's house is a cozy one bedroom, one bathroom and a studio for her artwork and it's just 69 meters or 226 feet. The house is split down into two areas. One part is the living area which includes a small living room and a kitchen and then there's this other part that is her artist atelier. Okay let's check out the bedroom upstairs. There's no door and you've got these big floor to ceiling windows which have beautiful views of the forest to both sides. The wall and the roof are made from carved wooden beams that fit together really tightly and the cool part is you don't need any extra pillars or beams to support the roof. So it makes the space inside feel much larger than it is. The windows bring in a lot of light. The glass goes right to the bottom and right to the top and that makes the space very bright. Lia's house is right in the middle of a forest and with all these windows it feels like you're almost outdoors. Wherever you look all you see are these tall beautiful trees. Just imagine waking up in the morning and finding yourself completely surrounded by this forest. The walls of the ceilings are curved which means there are no sharp angles. It's a very special feeling. It makes the room feel softer and more calm and with the warm color of the wood it makes for a very cozy feeling. Okay let's talk about the insulation in this place. To make sure the wood stays in good shape they treat it on the outside so it won't get moldy. In between the panels of the wood there is recycled paper treated with salt to prevent from mold and rotting and to minimize the risk of fire. And because paper and wood are natural fibers they are breathable so they help balance the moisture level inside the house and they're also soundproof. In terms of energy the indigo house has solar panels working hard to power everything and it's got a smart heat pump that keeps the place warm in the winter. Plus the roof has these awesome windows and when the sun comes out it adds some extra warmth. Okay every house needs storage right? But what happens when you don't have a lot of space for storage? Well you get creative and you build drawers right into the stairs to make the most of every inch. And here's the bathroom it's made of thin layers of pigmented concrete it's very minimalistic and it's like being in a cozy cave. The kitchen is part of the living area it's very minimal and straightforward. It's got these super deep built-in cabinets for extra storage room. And this is the living area and here is Leah's art studio. It's pretty awesome because it's got these huge windows that go all the way from the floor to the ceiling. They bring in a lot of natural light which is just what you need as an artist. So to summarize if you think about it the way we usually build houses is not very efficient. With traditional construction you bring everything to the side, machines, dumpsters and workers of course. It takes a long time and it makes a lot of mess and a lot of noise. Prefab houses are much quicker to build it takes about 12 weeks to build them in the factory and they're less expensive than traditional building. The lifespan of the indigo house is just like the lifespan of a house that was built in a traditional way and they can be shipped right to your door no matter where you are. If you think about it it's more like the way cars are built in a factory on a production line. Now let's talk about the big question that's on everyone's mind the cost. We often hear that prefabs are a budget friendly option but here's the thing there's a big difference between prefabs in terms of quality and in price just like traditional houses. You might come across some prefab home kits that look like an incredible deal but when you dig deeper you'll find that they don't include some basic stuff and that's most of the expenses. They're basically selling just the structure when the real costs are insulation, windows, plumbing, electrical wiring, a foundation to put the house on and paying someone to put it all together and hooking up the utilities. So just make sure that you're reading the fine print and you know what you're getting into. With the indigo house they do all that for you. It's a turnkey house and the cost is between 1000 and 1200 euros per square meter. The indigo house comes in three different sizes. Lia's house is the smallest and they've got this beautiful two-bedroom version which is just stunning. Prefab houses definitely feel like the house of the future because they're eco-friendly and because they can be more affordable than traditional construction and I think because it's made entirely out of wood and it's in the middle of the forest it would also make the coolest airbnb situation. I can totally see myself booking a spot like this for the weekend. Comment below if you'd like to see more videos about alternative ways of living and go watch my other video about how I retired early and the seven habits that actually made it happen and I will see you again very soon. Take care!