Home ownership is a key pillar of the American Dream and, for those looking to achieve it, you can now buy your own premade house from Walmart.
Walmart is now selling prefab houses with a bathroom, bedroom, living room, dining room and kitchen. Priced at $15,900 for a 19 x 20 foot (380 square feet) home, it is considerably cheaper than the average U.S. house price of $359,892.
The house, manufactured by Chery Industrial, has an open-plan layout with a small bathroom, already equipped with a toilet and shower and kitchen cabinets, according to the original listing on Chery Industrial’s website; however, you’d need to supply your own furnishings, as it does not come with furniture, fixtures or fittings such as tables, chairs, curtains, carpets, kitchen splashbacks or appliances.
Tiny homes are classed as properties that come in at under 500 square feet. Typically, you would consider a mobile home a tiny home, but many modern offerings require solid foundations and cannot be moved around. In an era of high house prices and interest rates, these tiny homes offer an alternative path to home ownership—albeit sacrificing a considerable amount of space.
The Walmart offering includes a bathroom, with toilet and shower, and a kitchen with cabinets.
Walmart
The home has a lifespan of more than 20 years, manufacturers say, and boasts expanded polystyrene insulation in the walls and roof.
The listing advises not being inside the structure during “extreme weather conditions” such as storms, tornados, hurricanes, floods, and blizzards.
You will also need to build the home yourself, which is likely to add costs. “Due to the extra large size, the product will be shipped via flatbed trucks, and it is customers’ responsibilities to unload the product from the trucks,” the listing reads. “Please have forklifts or crane ready to unload. Please make sure the forklift has enough capacity to unload and balance the product when unloading,” adding that a crane is recommended for installation.
While living in a small space may not be for everyone, the popularity of tiny homes has increased in recent years. According to a report by Investment Property Exchange Services, 89 percent of Americans said the current housing market makes living in a tiny home more appealing, and 86 percent believe they are a good option for first time buyers.
“A lot of tiny house dwellers have a mindset that less is more,” Janet Thome, the founder and president of Tiny House Alliance USA, previously told Newsweek. “They are choosing the tiny house lifestyle because they are often downsizing from a large house with an unaffordable mortgage, high utility bills, and endless upkeep and maintenance.”
She said tiny living provides “a much simpler life which is much more rewarding,” adding that tiny home owners “can spend more time with their loved ones, and even afford a vacation, or better yet, create a life they do not need a vacation from.”