Building a low cost eco-home can be a budget friendly alternative to buying into the red hot housing market.
A recent Grand Designs UK episode showcased an eco-house that Simon and Jasmine Dale of Pembrokeshire built for just NZ$46,000 (£27,000).
The show’s presenter Kevin McCloud, called it the cheapest house in the Western Hemisphere", according to a Fairfax article.
Not unlike a hobbit house, the owners had just NZ$855 to work with when they started the eco build, using large branches for a pergola and trees with branches fitted as structural supports.
The couple intends to be running a fully sustainable property within five years, having built the three bedroom home themselves along with help from many volunteers.
Many of the fixtures and fittings are second hand but they splashed out on the wool insulation and weatherproofing which cost $9000.
They harvest their food from greenhouses at the front of the house which also keep the house warm.
Through the construction process they also kept to their budget, which included spending $8500 on vegetables to feed their 277 volunteers.
The show’s presenter Kevin McCloud, called it the cheapest house in the Western Hemisphere", according to a Fairfax article.
Not unlike a hobbit house, the owners had just NZ$855 to work with when they started the eco build, using large branches for a pergola and trees with branches fitted as structural supports.
The couple intends to be running a fully sustainable property within five years, having built the three bedroom home themselves along with help from many volunteers.
Many of the fixtures and fittings are second hand but they splashed out on the wool insulation and weatherproofing which cost $9000.
They harvest their food from greenhouses at the front of the house which also keep the house warm.
Through the construction process they also kept to their budget, which included spending $8500 on vegetables to feed their 277 volunteers.
