As College students’ favorite Bernie Sanders loves to point out, the cost of a college education has skyrocketed in the last decade while wages have remained stagnant. It has become so much that many question whether it is actually beneficial to get a college degree as many have to spend the rest of their lives paying off the college debt. But, most of the costs related to college aren’t related to tuition as living expenses have also risen to insane levels. Design Major Joel Weber was also thinking along the same lines when he got admission into college, but guess what? He didn’t apply for dorm and made a cheap home for himself instead!
The average living expenses costs around 72,000$ over the course of four years. What Weber built just cost over 15,000 $. Let’s have a look at his den:
His good design skills are evident from the construction. He had it all planned out even before he got into college. It is built on the average four-wheeler trailer just like any other cheap home. It is a necessity since the building codes require proper homes to be larger and hence more expensive. He started to lay the plans with the help of a rope in his own backyard. He also saved cost by doing most of the work himself with only a little help from a plumber and an electrician. He even carved the bathroom sink from Mango wood and epoxy glue.
For a 25-year-old student, the trailer house adequately caters for the need of living quarters. He used all his life savings and emergency funds to make this house, and it is just an important investment. Not only will it see him through college, but he could also sell it at the end of his education and recoup his investment. Many people aren’t comfortable with this tiny abode, but since it is a choice between this place and going a hundred thousand dollars in debt, he gladly took it. He even had a plethora of offers for it, but he has so far resisted the idea of selling as it is vital to surviving in college financially.
He regards it as one of the best choices he has ever made and has even made serious attempts to make his house as eco-friendly as possible. He parks it at a family’s land outside the city in lieu of doing some basic cleaning services and occasional babysitting for the children. He is holding on to a better future and can sacrifice a bit of personal space to achieve it. Are you, too?