I didn't read all of the comments, so I hope you haven't already answered this...But roughly how much did you spend to construct it?
It looks like it's 3-400 sq ft is that right?
Also, where are you located?
The yurt is in Maine where there can be 3-4 of snow. It is about 310 square feet. I think it ended up being close to 16k for all the construction costs. (not including stuff like the wood stove which I bought used and installed or the insulation under the floor which I also did). That cost includes the platform it sits on which was 1k in materials and close to 1k to pay a contractor to build. The canvass type roof is guaranteed to last 15 years and I forget what they told me a new roof will cost, the canvass type wall will last 10 years. I think I had figured the cost to replace those after the 15 years will be around 2k or 3k.
It has a kind of reflective insulation on the walls. Using the wood stove plus a portable kerosene heater, I think I can raise the temperature inside the yurt 40 degrees or so from the outside temperature. I bought a small Jotul wood stove which is not very big. In the summer you can remove
some of the insulation panels to open windows, and it has a couple of large 8 foot windows so that it can start to almost become part screen house in the summer .. but you have to get on a ladder and if it rains, a little water comes in through the window.
The yurt was kind of a novelty, what I did like about it is that the whole thing arrived pulled in a utility trailer with a small truck. If I ever bought land in a different part of Maine or anyplace really, the yurt might be easier to move than a cabin. Though it would still take work to move it. Potentially the yurt could also be sold separately if I ever wanted to sell the land or move someplace else.
It took a contractor 2 days to build the platform and the yurt went up in one day once the yurt company assembled all the materials at their shop. It did seem it needed a little bit of expert skills for them to put the yurt up. It is based on a Colorado yurt company yurt. The canvass wall and roof are made by Colorado yurt company. The yurt company (White Mountain Yurts in Wakefield NH) basically builds the lattice wall and rafters in their shop and orders the canvas from Colorado yurts. They are a small company run by one guy and his nephews on the side. It seems his business is doing well and he has been very busy putting up yurts everywhere in New England from what I hear.
Also, in regard to spending money or borrowing money to build stuff on your BOL. I regard my yurt as sort of my second home or a place that I live or may potentially live even though it is a 3.5 to 4 hour drive there (200+ miles). I own a small 500 square foot condo which I could refer to as my base camp rather than my home. I paid about 50k for that in 2000 and still owe money, but my mortgage payment is about $375 a month right now. It is a place to live in an area that has a hi tech job market, but I am not %100 satisfied with living there in many ways. I have no yard and no porch and one large window that is about 10 x 4 and that is it. I spend alot of time at my friends house and my mother's house or away at the yurt when I can. For many years my truck camper was my second home and I spent alot of time in my camper that way. I have always felt a need for 4 vacations a year, typically a week to 10 days for each - one for each season (spring,summer,fall,winter) for some reason that seems to help keep my stress at acceptable levels. Having the yurt can potentially fulfill that need and more (such as between jobs) without having to drive very far or spend extra money on accommodations and travel costs. The truck camper is not really that great for winter vacations in New England, so I often had to drive the camper to North Carolina or fly someplace in the winter. The yurt seems suitable for a 10 day winter vacation though it can be a little cold there as well, but I used to get a little bummed out contemplating winter vacations in the little popup camper. One trick is doing the vacation either in December or March when it is a little warmer than January of February
Those are some of my considerations when people may say it's ok to borrow money to buy a "home" but other types of debt are highly questionable .. because what is a home really ?
