Can you live in a yurt permanently? Of course, you can! People have been living in yurts since ancient times. Yurts originated in Mongolia where the climatic conditions and terrain were well suited to living in such a dwelling. Even famous personalities like Genghis Khan lived permanently in these dwellings.
Here, we feature real-life examples of people who have traded a conventional home to move into a permanent yurt. Even a family of five proved that it’s possible to live a sustainable life in a yurt. Read on to find out about life in yurts full time.
3 Amazing Permanent Yurt Homes
A Stunning Yurt Home Tour at a Virginia Homestead
Brooke and Chuck left the city in 2021 to start an off-the-grid life living in a yurt. They build their yurt and homestead on 285 acres of undeveloped land in Southwest Virginia. Brooke says it was a lot of hard work, but she proudly reveals the fruit of their labor in the yurt and the surrounding areas.
Brooke and Chuck aren’t entirely off-the-grid. They have external electric wiring. The couple hasn’t yet set up a self-supporting drinking water system but it’s in the pipeline, to coin a phrase!
Their yurt boasts a complete entertainment center with a smart TV and internet. The home is divided into a dining area, a kitchen with pantry and There are also two sections for the bedrooms and bathrooms.
The yurt has no doors. As Brooke admits they are not very good at making doors. So, they make do with curtains that serve the purpose. The bathroom is spacious, although they opted for a tiny shower cubicle. It makes way for their luxuriant bathroom with many shelves and pretty decor. It even has an Icelandic sheep rug to keep their “feet toasty,” as Brooke puts it.
Life’s good for Brooke and Chuck and they’ve only just begun!
Self-Reliant Family of 5 Thriving in a Yurt Homestead
Living as a young couple in a yurt is one thing. But what about a family with three small children moving into a tiny yurt? Mike and Lacie moved their family from their spacious city home of 2,600 square feet in 2014 to a tiny yurt on an undeveloped plot of land.
They started on extremely shaky ground (pun intended!). The first year was challenging beyond their imagination. But this plucky family embraced the challenges thrown at them and today they live off the land, grow their own food, and homeschool their kids, doing everything in an organized and efficient manner.
The family has a cozy living room area with a large smart TV and comfortable furniture. The dining area has a six-seater dining table where the family eats as many meals as possible together and where the kids do most of their home-schooling activities.
Beside the dining area is a beautiful laid-out kitchen. It has everything you would ever need to cook from basic to gourmet meals with regular kitchen equipment and even a dishwasher. The water comes from a nearby well. The bathrooms are basic but well-connected to the laundry area. The yurt is powered by electricity from the grid.
The children’s sleeping area has two bunk beds with plans for a third shortly. The master bedroom accommodates a cozy-looking double bed where Lacie works on their blog The Fit Farmer.
The family started with growing produce for their consumption but they soon expanded into growing produce for selling commercially. They also rear livestock, and Lacie has a quaint herb garden that she calls her “apothecary.”
What better way of leading a sustainable life by giving back to the earth instead of only taking and not returning anything?
14 Years Living in a 24-foot Yurt
So, Brooke and Chuck have lived in their yurt for a couple of years now, and Mike and Lacie topped that by thriving for 9 years in a tiny yurt with three small children. But 14 years? Although it seems incredulous, David spent 14 years in a 24-foot yurt! He worked for a corporate company in Toronto. But when his dad was diagnosed with cancer, he did some deep reflection and decided that city life was not for him anymore. So, he built a 24-foot yurt on his dad’s land with little or no knowledge about living off-the-grid.
There were many lessons to be learned but he succeeded in living a sustainable life in his yurt. Over the years, David added sections and rooms to his yurt and even impressed a woman enough to marry him and live in his humble abode!
Today, David’s yurt property is every person’s off-the-grid dream with composting toilets but with internet and Netflix! David’s only concession is the propane gas he uses to heat his hot water (propane, he says, is the off-gridder’s dirty little secret)! He even generates his own electricity through solar power.
But the long and the short of it is that David followed his dreams and made them come true. He had no idea how long he would last but ended up thriving in his yurt for 14 years!
Summing it Up
You can get all the material comforts of a traditional home far from the madding crowd in a permanent yurt. And like the people featured here who lived for prolonged periods in permanent yurts, you CAN live in a yurt permanently as a year-round home for years to come.
FAQs
Are yurts permanent structures?
A yurt can be a temporary, a portable unit, or a fixed structure with a solid foundation, in which the occupants live all year round.
Are yurts safe during bad weather?
A yurt is adequately safe from snow, rain, and high winds due to its circular profile and conical roof.
Who is a typical yurt dweller?
In ancient times, nomads of Central Asia used to live in yurts. Today, this type of dwelling has become popular in modern societies as well, including in the United States.
What is the reason for the rising popularity of yurts?
If you live in a yurt, you can follow a minimalist lifestyle. It is a cost-effective housing solution. Yurts are highly portable, enabling you to transport them from one location to another easily.