Katrina Cottage, were art thou? (Greenville, Travelers Rest: hardwood floors, countertops, houses)

[webley]

Had I a kingdom, I would gladly trade it for a horse were the horse the equivalent of solid KATRINA COTTAGE information. I would love to know whether anyone has personal knowledge of any such cottages that may have been errected in the Greenville area. I'm particularly keen to know if local building regulations pose an impedimet of any kind.

Only two years ago, one could have been forgiven for supposing there would have been thousands of those cute things all over the landscape by now.

[NoodlesKnowles]

Originally Posted by webley

Had I a kingdom, I would gladly trade it for a horse were the horse the equivalent of solid KATRINA COTTAGE information. I would love to know whether anyone has personal knowledge of any such cottages that may have been errected in the Greenville area. I'm particularly keen to know if local building regulations pose an impedimet of any kind.

Only two years ago, one could have been forgiven for supposing there would have been thousands of those cute things all over the landscape by now.

what????

[flgargoyle]

I imagine in a lot of areas, there are minimum house size rules. In the county, out where our property is, they would be legal, as long as they meet building codes (IBC 2006). We might build one, or something like it, for my mother if she decides to move to SC.

[webley]

Maybe your mother might be attracted to one of the expanded models. These cottages seem to have many virtues, practicality and safety to name two. Would you care to name the county where they would be legal as far as you Know? I'd also appreciate the meaning of your citation (IBC 2006).

[flgargoyle]

We are in rural Greenville County, out past Travelers Rest. Many lots we looked at had minimum house sizes, such as 1800 or even 2500 sq ft, but those were association or neighborhood rules, not county. IBC 2006 is the International Building Code. Greenville County is in the process of adopting this, up from IBC 2003. It spells out things like minimums for framing, dimensions, plumbing, fire safety, etc., etc. IIRC, the minimum size for a 'habitable room' is 70 sq ft., for example. I think a Katrina Cottage would be legal in most counties, except in areas with minimum square footage regulations. In CT, for example, it used to be something like 750 sq ft. They called them 'anti-shack' laws. We have gotten much of this information from the Greenville County Building Department, a very nice group of folks! My mother (82) currently lives alone in CT, and wants to live closer, so we might build a cottage on our property so she can be right next door. Her needs are simple, and she can store stuff at our place, so a 1 bedroom cottage in the 600 sq ft range would work well. Our build is still a couple of years away- we'll see what transpires in the mean time.

[theenglish]

good info. any idea of a ballark cost for something in that 1 bdrm range?

[flgargoyle]

Based on research I've done, you should be able to build for about $100 a square foot, or $60K for that cottage. That seems like a lot of money, but small houses are more per square foot than big ones, and that's based on paying someone to do all the work. I plan on building our own house, with a lot of 'sweat equity', for around $60 a square foot. If my mother builds a cottage, it will actually be the first building on the property, giving me a place to stay while I build the main house. She would pay to have the cottage built. I've read many articles by people claiming to have built for far less, as low as $10 a square foot, but that involves lots of scrounging for free materials, and I doubt it could be done in this day of strict regulations. It's very hard to pin down costs- some people think that granite countertops, exotic hardwood floors, and two story foyers are bare-bones minimums. Others (like me) are happy with just the basics. I read a lot of home building forums, and I'm shocked at the size and cost of many of the homes being built. Our own house will be about 1200 sq ft- more than enough for two people, IMHO.