The retirement home that Dotty Kyle and Eric Brattstrom built in Vermont is environmentally sustainable and, at 5,000 square feet, big enough to house their large extended family, but it is also complicated and labor-intensive to operate.
From the New York Times:
“Dotty Kyle and Eric Brattstrom had an ambitious vision for the home they would build when they sold their bed-and-breakfast here seven years ago and retired. . . .’We sold a nine-bedroom B&B and then pretty much recreated it right up the street,’ said Ms. Kyle, who is now 78, shaking her head with the kind of clarity only hindsight affords. . . . .’I was an idiot and built a house that was way too complicated and labor-intensive,’ said Mr. Brattstrom, also 78. ‘Only a masochist could enjoy it.'” ~ The good news? The house is very inexpensive to operate.”
An alternative approach (with its own perils):
How about surviving off the grid on a coastal island? Jack Soley, a commercial real estate developer, built a 1200-square-foot second home off the coast of Maine. The house consumes less power than a high-end refrigerator, but the living conditions can be rugged. Read the full story in the NY Times.
