Necessita Casita
We live on 2.5 acres of boulder-strewn hillside. We are on top of the hill, perfectly situated for views in all directions and the boulders create a lovely landscape to create nice spaces in various area of the lot, The Patio is nestled amongst boulders. The hot tub is perfectly sited in between and shielded for privacy by several large boulders. The newer Cecil Garden is framed by the boulders which form the base of the bonsai rock garden. Even the back side of the garage where we keep our tools and garbage bins is nicely surrounded by boulders. The back hillside is sprinkled with boulders, some of which I have latched onto for artistic endeavors (rock paintings and Bison Boulders, with more likely to come as the spirit moves me). The area of the property with the fewest boulders is the front Northwest quadrant, where I built the games area last summer on Cecil’s old dog run. There are a few smaller boulders, but generally its a flat area with lots of varieties of cacti and succulents as well as a meandering stream bed made of large grey rocks (most of the indigenous rocks are beige or rust colored). It continues to amaze me that someone thought it was a good idea to import a bunch of non-indigenous rocks to this rocky hillside to create this faux creek bed. But it is a feature that I will just work around in my planning and gardening.
Some time ago, Kim and I discussed whether we would ever build an addition to the house. This house was built originally with about 3,000 square feet. The second owners added a dining room and enlarged the office and master closet, taking it to 3,700 square feet. Our kitchen renovation added about another 100 square feet of what used to be deck. The only thing we could conceivably need for this house is some added guest space to supplement the two bedrooms and full bath we already have at the south end of the house. At first I thought the logical place for added space was over the garage, which has a footprint of 700 square feet. I learned that the garage foundation could easily take the added weight, which was good and the two challenges with the idea would be the stairs and the septic. The views would be marvelous, but the profile of the garage would perhaps stand out too much for the skyline, especially for the southern neighbor. When we invited the original builder over for a talk, he suggested we use the space between the garage and house, what is now the Cecil Garden instead. That would reduce the problems to the septic, but there would still be the stairs, which are decidedly less age-friendly.
Last week when I was out for a ride I passed an SUV hauling a classic Airstream trailer and the idea hit me that maybe it would be kitschy to place one of those just above the games area and use that as a combination playhouse and guest quarter. Since those trailers are more or less self-contained, that would eliminate most of the issues of septic, and would only require water and electric hook-up. Naturally, that led to wondering if a modular or tiny house alternative might be better. My mind began reeling with all the options I suddenly had for the idea. The one thing I have become convinced about is that the spot in that area of the lot is the ideal spot for a casita of whatever form I decide I like best.
I have a bead on the used Airstream trailer market at this point. I have also looked up Granny Flats (which is an official California regulatory designation) and Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU’s) and it all seems to be a huge market out here. People use this loophole to get approval to build added living capacity, rentable space, in-law residence units and just backyard playhouses. There is a prefab or modular housing play, a design and build-to-suit market and a full range of cost and quality approaches. You are allowed to build up to 1,200 square feet of space but it has to have full bathroom and cooking facilities as well as proper electrical, plumbing and septic hook-up (though it does not require separate metering for any of that). There are generally three types: primary residence expansions, above garage build-outs and free-standing units. Having been down the first two paths and decided that they are suboptimal for our purposes, a free-standing unit is what would work best for us down on that front lot location I mentioned.
The biggest question is whether or not we really need this. And that is hard to say in an environment when no one can travel too much. We keep telling ourselves that it would be fun for when the kids come to visit and bring their kids along. But when will that be? And will they really prefer to stay a hundred yards downhill from us and from the kitchen? I can see arguments for both side of that, but really think a casita may or may not find productive use by us in the near term. I think it was that issue which has caused me to reverse myself on my direction…once again. This all began when I saw an Airstream trundling down the road and my wondering how I might use one of those way-cool vehicles. I understand why Airstream led to Tiny House led to ADU and/or Granny Flats, but I suspect that the initial thought may be a more valid starting place than not.
My reasoning goes that to get a used 30-foot Airstream costs about $50-60k versus a standard prefab unit that looks to cost about twice as much to purchase. Of course, it has more space, but does that really matter? If this was a full-time Granny residence or something intended to generate rental income, it would certainly matter. But as a guest overflow facility, it might not matter at all. Additionally, the beauty of a trailer is that they have honed the concept of making everything needed fit into a smaller and more efficient space. And then there is the kitch…I honestly believe that young people will get a kick out of staying in an Airstream. It’s simply more fun. As for the look, I think a nicely set Airstream with nice plantings around it (a foregone conclusion in the middle of our cactus garden) will be an even more interesting architectural statement, one that is VERY California in my opinion. And finally, there is the infrastructure cost and permanence. An Airstream is self-contained and needs only a gravel pad and perhaps a small stoop and an electric and water hook-up. A proper casita takes a foundation, utilities including septic and generally much more. As an example, a $150k pre-fab unit is estimated to cost $250k all-in. That simply would not be the case for an Airstream.
The upside is that a casita should raise the value of the home, but since we are already at the high-end for the neighborhood, I’m not sure that ordinary calculus works as well for us. If this whole concept is a bust and we don’t use the space as intended, the cost of selling the Airstream and replanting the gravel pad is minimal.
I’m not sure I’m at the end of this casita road, but I think its safe to say that the “necessita casita” factor is weighing heavily on the concept and needs to be resolved before we can make a final decision. The longer this deck renovation drags on the less I’m anxious to jump into another construction project…but then again, my history with RV’s (remember my Sprinter van debacle) is such that I need to be cautious in all directions right now.