MOHAWK — A Mohawk Valley man has had enough of renting an apartment and paying a monthly electric bill. Matt Holleran, a resident of Mohawk in Herkimer County who works for Syracuse–based BlueRock Energy, has purchased a micro house and plans to live in the southern Adirondacks. Holleran pays National Grid an average of $55 […]
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MOHAWK — A Mohawk Valley man has had enough of renting an apartment and paying a monthly electric bill.
Matt Holleran, a resident of Mohawk in Herkimer County who works for Syracuse–based BlueRock Energy, has purchased a micro house and plans to live in the southern Adirondacks.
Holleran pays National Grid an average of $55 per month for electricity and natural-gas service and “can only control $5 of that.” The remaining $50 covers delivery charges, according to Holleran.
“I have a tough time rationalizing expenditures that don’t make sense to me and can be avoided … that’s kind of a catalyst behind why the tiny house is taking shape,” says Holleran.
He spoke with CNYBJ on May 26.
Holleran is still finishing final interior work on the home, which sits on a trailer. The home should be ready for occupancy in mid-June.
It’s currently parked on land in Mohawk with an eventual destination of Hinckley Reservoir in the southern Adirondacks in Herkimer County.
“Yeah, I’ll be there shortly,” says Holleran, noting he’s not currently living in the micro house but will be in mid-June.
Holleran is a manager of market development and retail analysis at Blue Rock Energy, where he’s worked for nearly eight years. He works in the company’s Syracuse office at 432 N. Franklin St. in Franklin Square.
Holleran is a 2002 graduate of Mohawk High School in Mohawk in Herkimer County. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Le Moyne College in 2006.
Securing the house
Owning a micro, or “tiny” home wasn’t something Holleran had “intentions” of pursuing.
However, a friend Holleran had met while a student at Le Moyne College started building the micro house two years ago.
“… before HGTV and all these blogs and the tiny home became the new fad,” says Holleran.
Cable and satellite television station HGTV broadcasts a variety of how-to shows with a focus on home improvement, gardening, craft and remodeling, including tiny homes.
Holleran refers to his friend as “Joe C.” in his blog https://tinyhomeadventure.wordpress.com. Joe C. built the house in Chittenango.
Joe C. has since re-located to Milwaukee, and had asked Holleran if he’d be interested in buying the micro house.
Holleran at first was “kind of passive” about the idea, but then “curiosity got the best of me,” he says.
He then read some articles on the topic and eventually decided to go look at the structure.
“I ended up purchasing the house and dragging it home,” says Holleran, noting the transaction closed in mid-March.
By the time Holleran starts living in the structure, he will have spent about $8,000 on purchase and preparation costs, he says.
The house’s interior measures about 15 feet long by 7 1/2 feet wide with 8-foot ceilings, covering about 128 square feet of space, he says.
The micro house sits on a trailer, and “always” will, says Holleran.
Since the micro house is a mobile unit, Holleran doesn’t have to pay property taxes on it, he notes.
The home will have heat, but he doesn’t plan to live in the house during next winter, although he believes he could.
“I just don’t have ways to remove the snow to get to the location that it’s at to drive in and out,” says Holleran.
When asked in a follow-up email what he’ll do for shelter during the winter months, Holleran replied, “Time will tell.”
Employer assistance
Holleran’s employer, BlueRock Energy, offered to provide and install two solar panels to power the micro house. BlueRock has launched a solar division and has been “supportive” of Holleran’s efforts to live in the house, he says.
“I’m going to actually have panels right on the house,” says Holleran, adding that his energy usage will be “pretty minimal.”
Holleran plans to vacate his current apartment, figuring he’ll save close to $600 per month with no apartment rent or utility bill.
“Hopefully I [can] work a couple more days remotely just because of the length [of the commute] to get into work [in Syracuse from Herkimer County],” says Holleran.
He also hopes to have his student loans paid off and be debt-free by September.
“Living in the Adirondacks in my tiny home to be debt-free was kind of a no brainer to me,” says Holleran.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com