Teenager Raises $1,500 to Construct His Own Tiny House

Most 13-year-olds want nothing more than to hang out with their friends and buy the next hot toy. Luke Thill definitely stands out from the crowd. This motivated young boy decided he wanted to build himself a tiny house in the backyard of his parents’ home. 

Luke Thill is an ambitious middle school student from Iowa who decided he was going to do something different. Some kids ask their parents to build them a treehouse. Luke decided he would build a tiny house of his own.

Greg and Angie Thill saw that their son was on a mission. Though he was only 13, they knew he was motivated enough to actually deliver on this project. They decided to give him permission to build the tiny home on their property.

Luke could build his tiny home on their property on one condition. He had to raise the money for the project himself. Houses are not cheap to build! And Greg and Angie were not about to foot the bill.

Luke was determined to make the money he needed for his construction project so he mowed lawns around the neighborhood like so many other kids do to make money. He also traded some of his own personal items with the help of his sister and twin brother.

Most middle school kids would spend their money the second they get their hands on it. Kids at age 13 don’t typically have all that much restraint. And when they do spend their money, it’s usually on the next big toy.

Luke started construction on his home in June of 2016. Obviously, the kid needed some help to put the house together. His dad helped with much of the construction and his mom added input on the interior furnishings.

Even though Luke had an impressive work ethic, he explained that the project was no easy feat. Even with the assistance of his family, friends, and neighbors, he stated that “the process was not short or easy”.

Luke is very big on recycling and wanted to make sure that as many materials were recycled as possible. A friend of a friend offered a front door. His grandma brought some siding. Using recycled objects kept his costs down to $1,500.

When all was said and done the house measured at 89 square feet and 10 feet tall. It is a tiny house indeed! The home is complete with a fridge, a microwave, a T.V., and a video game console.

The 13-year-old was naturally proud of his incredible project. He explained, “Seeing everything come together was very satisfying. There were some very challenging times throughout the build but I never wanted to quit”. 

Luke is not the only one to fall in love with the concept of tiny homes. They kind of had a surge of popularity online in recent years. When people started posting their own tiny homes on YouTube, they only grew in popularity. 

Luke’s parents acknowledge how proud they are of their son for committing to such a project and following it through. His dad mentioned that Luke is extremely driven for a kid of his age.

Luke is obviously so proud of the space he has created for himself. He introduced minimalistic elements that he had seen in YouTube videos. The dining table folds into the wall to save space.

Despite the fact that Luke spent a year and a half on the build, he didn’t actually want to move into the home. You would think a young teenager would want to spend every possible second in this home away from home, but Luke saw it as more of a space to spend time with friends or have some alone time.

The tight quarters of the 89 square foot home did not stop the Thill family from gathering for special occasions. Luke hosted Thanksgiving at his place! Luckily, it’s in the family’s backyard so no one had to travel too far.

While Luke learned many things from his time spent on this project, he explained that his main takeaway was the value of community. The way his neighbors joined to help him make his dreams come true taught him this valuable lesson.

The Tiny Home Conference in Iowa invited Luke to come speak! He also recorded his construction experience on YouTube because he hopes it will inspire other kids to work hard to achieve their dreams, whatever they might be. 

Since Luke’s story went viral and many people have seen his YouTube videos documenting the experience, he has inspired tons of other kids to do the same.

Luke won’t be starting on another tiny house just yet. Right now he’s happy with the one he has. He actually is going to be helping his brother build a teardrop trailer. After that he is on to even bigger and better things.

Now that Luke has some experience with building projects, he shares the wealth with his brother. The two teamed up to make a trailer that costs a steep $2,500, but Luke explains that it’s worth it!

For Luke, the trailer project posed new challenges than his original tiny house project. He explained that he was surprised at how much more intricate this project was than his last.

As Luke continued to share more about his projects on his social media accounts, he started to gain a hefty following. This likely helped when it came to gathering resources. For the first build he was on his own with the help of some neighbors.

In 2020, about 2 years after the brothers originally completed the trailer, Luke decided to do some major renovations to improve the project. 

While Luke has a special place in his heart for his building projects, he surprisingly does not want to go to school for architecture or engineering. Rather, he “want[s] to work in a field that helps people”. 

Luke has continued to share his project and progress on his Youtube channel. He gained a following there that is interested in keeping up with the changes he makes to his projects as well as what he will build next.

In a Youtube video that Luke posted in April of 2020, he explained that his mother’s coworker’s son was inspired to make his own tiny house. Luke spent time on the phone with discussing plans and giving advice for the build.

He also explores other tiny home builds on his YouTube channel to gain more inspiration and show people the opportunities that tiny houses provide. He shows how different people build their own homes and the interesting features they have.

Luke is no longer a thirteen year old kid, but is a young man now. He, his brother, and his friends have chronicled theri camping trips in the teardrop trailer. They’ve gone to many different places in Iowa and in other states!

Anyone who has heard about Luke’s unique story and has followed along with the projects he completed after the original tiny house is likely wondering what he will do next!