Barn Apartments

Posted on January 21, 2021 by blogeditor

Photo by Clark Van Der Beken on Unsplash

Barn apartments are living spaces built into or above barns. There are many benefits to having this type of living space. Barn apartments serve many purposes. They provide housing for caretakers. Barn apartments are often used as a study or recreational space. They can even be used as a guest house for visitors. Planning is an important process when building any living space. The following are a few things to consider when working on your own barn apartments. Also, if you are looking for a horse property for sale in Colorado, contact Colorado Horse Property today and speak with one of our horse-person realtors.

Barn Apartment Planning

The first thing to think about when building your barn apartment is noise. There’s no way around it—horses are noisy. This makes sleeping in an apartment that’s beside or above a barn challenging. When planning out the space, try to position the bedroom next to or above the tack or feed room. These types of rooms are typically more quiet than the rest of the barn. Unfortunately, some designs can’t accommodate this. If you have to put the bedroom above the horse stalls, remember to use sound dampening materials during construction. A well-insulated room is just as good at keeping out animal noises.

Like any living space, your barn apartment will need utility access. With careful planning, you can take advantage of the utilities that your barn already has. This is particularly good when it comes to plumbing. By positioning the bathroom and kitchen above or next to the barn’s bathroom, you can use the existing piping in your build. The same goes for installing heating and electrical systems in the living space. Piggy-backing on ducts or electrical lines that are already there could save you time and money in your build.

How to Prevent Barn Fires

Posted on January 8, 2020 by blogeditor

Winter is the best time to prepare your property for barn fires. Barn fires can be very devastating, not only to the owners but to the products and animals inside them. Take some time this January to think about what is in or around your barn that could be a risk of causing a fire. Here are a few tips when it comes to preventing barn fires.

Preventing Barn Fires

Smoking around barns is unsafe; it is also one of the most common causes of fires. Your barn and property must be smoke-free. Implement a “no-smoking” policy on your property and post signs. Enforce your policy actively. While many people cannot install sprinkler systems, everyone can and should install smoke detectors. You will need a detector that has the ability to distinguish smoke from dust. In order for your smoke detection system to really work, it must be installed by a professional who knows exactly what type to use and where to place individual detectors. Lightning is more common in some areas of the country than others. Strikes are more likely in exposed areas, particularly at high altitudes. Lightning is also common in some states such as Florida. Regardless of where you live, it is relatively simple to protect your buildings from lightning. Lighting protection consists of a rod and a grounding device.

Do not store combustible items in your barn. These include gasoline, volatile fluids, aerosols, paints, and compressed gases. If you must store these items, keep them away from people and animals in separate structures that are designated for storage. For more information, contact Colorado Horse Property. If you are looking to buy a horse property in Colorado, talk to one of our premiere horse person realtors today.

Building Tiny Houses in Colorado

Posted on March 6, 2019 by blogeditor

Making Your Tiny House Legal

In Colorado, tiny houses built on a foundation are more legal than tiny houses on wheels. But when it comes to building tiny houses on wheels (THOW), don’t loose hope. Some jurisdictions in Colorado consider THOWs as residents if certain conditions are met. Permanently affix your tiny house on wheels to the ground. Hook it up to utilities and built it to the necessary safety standards. Even if a THOW is legal where you live, you also need to confirm the THOW can be used as an additional dwelling unit. However, ADUs are not lawful in every zone.

If your local government does not allow THOWs for residential use you can change it. Start by asking about the process for amending the zoning code to make them legal. The journey to legality will be costly and time-consuming. However, enough political pressure on your local government will lead to change of the land use code to allow tiny houses. Know what building and safety standards will apply to the construction of your tiny house on wheels. You will have to self-certify that it will meet Recreational Vehicle Industry Association standards. These will need to meet the American National Safety Institute standard 119 or manufactured home building standards. You can also contact your local building department for the safety standards that apply to you.

Tiny houses pose unique challenges to local governments. It may be tempting to forgo the permitting process. A neighbor could file a complaint and your local government may force you to remove your THOW and pay a fine. If you are looking for a horse property in Colorado, contact one of our horse-person realtors at Colorado Horse Property.

Image by callmewillen on Pixabay.

Tiny House Regulations in Colorado

Posted on March 5, 2019 by blogeditor

Tiny House Building Regulations

Though the tiny house community continues to grow, it still isn’t legal to build them for full-time use. Zoning laws and tiny house regulations require a minimum square footage for new-construction homes. The journey to reduce this minimum is a slow and arduous one. But don’t give up just yet. You can count with your fingers how many cities have directly addressed tiny houses. Though there’s a lot of enthusiasm on tiny house living the zoning codes and tiny house regulations are often confusing. Most people feel intimidated to go to their local governments with their questions.

The recent activity in the community has been ran by grassroots organizers. They have pushed cities to accommodate tiny homes all by themselves. These small town groups asked their government officials for changes to local building and zoning codes. Therefore, new tiny house ordinances are very specific to the town or city they are approved in. We also now have the American Tiny House Association. This association has rounded up regulations for many states, as well as contact info for state chapter leaders. For the states without new regulations, your only option is to petition your own city for tiny house friendly zoning changes.

Tiny House References

We have gathered a lot of information on tiny houses for your convenience. In the state of Colorado, tiny houses on wheels are recreational vehicles in the eyes of the law. For more information on the legality of tiny houses on wheels in Colorado, read “Is Tiny House Living Illegal in Colorado.” Your other option is to build a tiny house on a foundation. For more information on this type of tiny house living, read “Additional Dwelling Units in Colorado.” If you are looking for a horse property in Colorado, contact one of our horse-person realtors at Colorado Horse Property.

Image by WinnieC on Pixabay.

Finding Tiny House Parking in Colorado

Posted on March 5, 2019 by blogeditor

Tiny House Parking in Colorado

As we discussed in “Is Tiny House Living Illegal?“, tiny houses on wheels (THOW) aren’t legal in Colorado as a permanent structure. However, you can always travel with your THOW and park it legally. This is a strategy that many THOW owners have adopted. So you’ve registered your tiny house on wheels as an RV and plan to travel with it, now what about tiny house parking? You could stay in a friend or family member’s backyard or park on their driveway. You could pay to stay at a camping or RV site. The latter will be temporary.

Also, Colorado prohibits RVs as full-time residences in zones other than RV parks. Rules are only enforced when your tiny house on wheels is reported or complained about. This rarely occurs. Building a tiny house on a foundation is more permanent. Zoning and building regulations will prohibit you from buying land and building your own tiny house on it. Instead, you’ll have to build an additional dwelling unit. For more information, read our article on additional dwelling units. ADUs are sometimes built around one larger structure. This is known as a tiny house community.

Tiny House Building Codes

Local building codes have been adopted from the International Residential Code (IRC) for one and two-family dwellings. This specifies that bedrooms must be at least 70 square feet, while ceiling height must be at least 7 feet. However, zoning regulations are based off more local factors, and determine the size requirements of your home based on what zone it’s located in. However, you will need to call your local zoning or planning department to find that info. Most local governments require a minimum size requirement of 1,000 square feet or more for construction of a new home on its own land. If you are looking for a horse property for sale in Colorado, contact Colorado Horse Property today.

Image by ArmbrustAnna on Pixabay.

Additional Dwelling Units in Colorado

Posted on March 1, 2019 by blogeditor

Additional Dwelling Units

Affordable housing is a priority for many Coloradans in this current economic climate. Tiny houses on wheels are not legal in Colorado. Good news, there is another option. You can take advantage of tiny homes built on foundations in your backyard, called ADUs. These Additional Dwelling Units (sometimes called granny flats) are self-contained apartments in an owner occupied single-family home or lot. Homeowners who want to make the transition into tiny house living can construct an ADU in their backyard, and live in the ADU while renting out the house.

The number of ADU permits issued annually in Colorado has risen and the trend is still on the rise. Make sure to research your city’s land use code to insure there are no hidden restrictions. In the past, cities have been known to ban ADUs. Likewise, some areas can have restrictions on size, owner occupancy, and parking. While many states are lagging behind, Colorado cities have adjusted their regulations to encourage more ADUs.

Benefits of ADUs

There are a lot of social and economic benefits of living in a tiny house. ADUs are great because they allow people housing flexibility over time. You can design your ADU to be more accessible to the elderly. This will allow you to stay in your neighborhood as you grow older, and at less cost. ADUs are also great for parents, caregivers, adult children, and grandparents. ADUs use fewer resources like gas and electricity due to their size. They’re often built in walkable and bikeable areas, so their residents generate less of an environmental impact. This includes traffic, harmful emissions, and noise pollution.

They greatly reduce the per capita residential footprint. ADUs help fill the need of one and two person households in cities. ADUs have a significantly less infrastructural impact on a city than most apartment buildings. Read more on Tiny Houses in Colorado on our blog. If you are looking for a horse property in Colorado, contact one of our horse-person realtors at Colorado Horse Property.

Is Tiny House Living Illegal in Colorado?

Posted on February 27, 2019 by blogeditor

Legal or Illegal?

The Tiny House Movement has been gaining a lot of momentum in the past couple of years. Many Coloradans are leaving the busy city life to a more quiet life in a small home. With fewer bills and material things to worry about, tiny house living might be for you. However, tiny houses are a controversial topic that begs the question: Is full time tiny house living illegal in Colorado? For some, the answer is just as controversial.

Despite the growth in the tiny house community in Colorado, is tiny house living illegal in Colorado? Technically, yes. If you have a tiny house on wheels (or THOW), Colorado considers that structure an RV. RV’s are not legal as a permanent address. Tiny house living is a legitimate means to address affordable housing problems in Colorado. However, they unfortunately have not gained widespread acceptance. A tiny house built on a foundation is legal, while a tiny house on wheels is illegal. You can still have a THOW, just not as a permanent address (in most zoning districts in Colorado). For example, in Parker, Colorado, a tiny house built on a foundation is legal despite its small floor size.

Land use codes differ by the district in the state of Colorado. If the land use code distinguishes between a THOW and one on a foundation, then the foundation option will be the legal one. For more information on tiny house living in Colorado, check out our article Build a Tiny House in Your Backyard in Colorado. Stay tuned to our blog for more information on tiny houses coming soon. If you are looking for a horse property for sale in Colorado or land for sale fit for a tiny house, contact Colorado Horse Property today!

Photo by Jessie Renée on Unsplash.

Build a Tiny House in Your Backyard in Colorado

Posted on February 26, 2019 by blogeditor

Backyard Tiny House

Do you own a house in Colorado? Need an extra space for relatives to stay? Wanting a detached home office? Looking to supplement your income by renting a space? Is your backyard large enough for a tiny house on wheels. If you answered yes to any of these questions, then there are some things you should know. There are some zoning regulations in Colorado that may effect your decision for building your backyard tiny house. Technically speaking, Colorado law does not define what a tiny house is. When it comes to zoning, tiny houses are usually considered a dwelling or an RV.

Tiny houses on wheels (or THOW, as they are known in the community) are classified as RVs in Colorado. Whether a THOW backyard tiny house is legal will depend on your local zoning regulations. Therefore, you need to carefully review the applicable zoning ordinance or talk to someone at your local planning department. Also, if this is not an option for you, try talking to a Colorado land use attorney.

Researching Tiny Houses

Colorado’s local governments individually set up zoning regulations. These development standards control the use of land in their area. These rules can be found in land use codes or zoning codes. For example, Fort Morgan’s zoning ordinance may be called “City of Fort Morgan Land Use Code.”

In other words, zoning is how land is separated into districts. Each zone has different regulations that affect land development. To determine what zone your property is in and what uses are lawful, review the appropriate land use code. The codes usually have zoning maps that shows the different zones in your area. To search through over three thousand homes and land for sale, check out Colorado Horse Property’s search page. Stay tuned to our blog for more information on tiny houses in Colorado.

Photo by Geran de Klerk on Unsplash.

Fireproofing Your Home with Aflecktos

Posted on April 4, 2018 by blogeditor

In 2012, 4,000+ acres in Black Forest near Colorado Springs burned. This occurred during the biggest wildfire that Colorado has ever seen. The local fire departments acted fast and contained the problem. This cost over five hundred families their homes. Nowadays, there are products out there that you can use for fireproofing your home in the event of a wildfire. Barricade II Fire Gel is one of the best out there. Recently, professionals tested and approved this fire gel for use in an array of firefighting functions.

Fireproofing Your Home

Getting your hands on some of this powerful fire-retardant gel is now extremely easy with Aflektos. Aflektos is the leading distributor of Barricade II Fire Gel in the state of Colorado. Aflektos is run by Stephen Tivy, a local that is dedicated to helping his neighbors with fireproofing and fire mitigation. Tivy is passionate about bringing the community together. He brings awareness to Colorado homeowners on how to protect themselves from wildfires. Tivy was living in Black Forest in 2013 during the fire that has left many areas blackened still to this day, therefore he has seen what can happen when homeowners do not prepare for future disasters by fireproofing your home.

Not only does Aflektos sell the Barricade II Fire Gel, but it can also provide you with the equipment to apply it to your home and property. During many wildfires, the flames spread through the crowns of the trees. With Aflektos, you are now able to pump the fire gel up into your trees where the fire spreads to stop embers from catching fire to your home. For horse owners, it is important to know how certain chemicals can potentially harm your animals. Also, you will be glad to know that the products you get from Aflektos are approved by the EPA and will not harm your horses or the plant life on your property.

Lowering Debt Rates for Horse Owners

Posted on April 2, 2018 by blogeditor

Here is some important information about lowering debt in Colorado. We all know that horse owners have a lot of financial things to deal with. The last thing you want to worry about is debt when running a dude ranch in Denver. Credit card debt in America is back to levels prior to the recession. The average credit card annual percentage rate, or APR, is just under sixteen percent. This is according to CreditCards.com and the site’s Weekly Credit Card Report, a trusted place to get information from many agents of the real estate business.

Homeowners have an advantage over renters when it comes to conquering debt issues. With a little basic money management, you can take those higher debt rates and replace them with lower debt rates. Credit cards and assets—such as personal cars, boats, motor vehicles, and other personal property—usually have interest rates higher than that of real estate loans.

Lowering Debt Rates

How can you get a low rate of financing? Did you know that borrowing against your home typically can give you the lowest rate of financing of anything else? An advantage of borrowing against a home is that the interest could be tax deductible. You could refinance your home mortgage to take cash out to retire personal debt as one option. Another way to do this would be to secure a home equity line of credit or HELOC.

Qualified mortgage interest includes acquisition debt. This can only be used to buy or improve a principal residence. Of course, this is only up to one hundred thousand dollars of home equity debt and it can be used for any purpose. We would all certainly like to become debt-free, paying the least amount of interest that you possibly can is a great first step to meeting that goal. Owning a home provides an asset that allows for options not available to renters. Seek professional advice from your friends at Colorado Horse Property.