Dream Home

I'm sure the two of you who read this will not be surprised to find out that I have odd dreams. When I was in college my dream car was a VW GTI hatchback. Now it is a Honda Fit that runs off of compressed air (it doesn't exist...although there is a car in India that runs this way). When it comes to my dream house, my hopes are equally odd. I have three aspects that shape my dream home 1) functionality 2) sutainability 3) affordability.

I thought I'd list my top 5 house concepts:

5) Houses from Straw:
My sister turned me on to some straw house building websites. Here is one that I just found http://www.houseofstraw.com/. While I love the concept, I am terrified that my house would be overrun by rodents and/or eaten by cows.

4) Log Cabins from Scratch:
I once read a book about how a guy moved to this 100 acre farm in Montana and built a house using resources found on his property. He spent $10,000 on a 1,000 sq ft home. He, his wife, and his father-in-law built it. It also had a cool water system that recycled waste water into water for plants. I can't remember the name of the book...my sister took it from me a year ago and hasn't given it back. My only concern about this type of home is that I wouldn't be able to build it in the city. I'd have to live out in the woods where the building codes are relaxed.

3) Tiny House:
Apparently, there is a Tiny House Movement happening these days. There are individuals living in homes as small at 100 sq ft. I found a company not too far from me that makes these houses using 95% recycled wood and fixtures. They are pretty sweet. Check them out: http://www.tinytexashouses.com. My concerns about this one are a) they are still pretty expensive if you buy them from somebody else b) can I really raise a family in 100 sq ft?

2) Idea Box:
I LOVE this house. It is a prefab, modern, green, affordable home built in Oregon. Check it out http://www.ideabox.us. I have two concerns with this house a) it wouldn't be cost effective to ship a house from Oregon b) it would be tough to get a permit to have a prefab house placed in the city limits.

1) Cheap run-down home:
In reality, I don't have the space or the money to do my other ideas. I simply want a home with character that is in an ok neighborhood. I'm tired of being a slave to my stuff. So why not buy a cheap house in a poorer part of town and live debt free? Here's a house I found for $24,000 in a neighborhood that has an annual pushcart derby. Who doesn't like pushcart derbies?
http://realestate.mysanantonio.com/homes/listing/10901-743313

p.s. Did I mention that I want to build my own Alaskan Skiff boat? More on that later.