Ivan Gradoboev, 35, has revealed how YouTube tutorials helped him escape rent and utility bills by building his own off-grid tiny house near Sofia, Bulgaria.
The former renter spent six years transforming from a construction novice into a self-sufficient homeowner, completing two tiny houses and reducing his monthly expenses to a single phone bill. His journey began in September 2020 when he purchased a 200-square-meter plot of agricultural land with $11,000 in savings, despite having no building experience whatsoever.
“I just hated the feeling of being in a never-ending rat race, which I’m sure everyone who’s renting or paying a mortgage can relate to,” Ivan tells UNILAD. “You just can’t stop, because if you do, it’s only a matter of time before your life starts falling apart.”
“The only tiny little problem was that I couldn’t afford to buy even a small apartment, let alone a whole house,” he adds.
Without any knowledge of construction or off-grid systems, Ivan turned to online resources for education. He watched hundreds of hours of YouTube videos covering building techniques and modern off-grid technologies, gradually developing the skills needed to construct his first dwelling.
“I could tell you a beautiful story of me wanting to go all green, but the real reason behind that was the limitations of the property,” Ivan explains about his solar-powered setup. “It was simply way too expensive or impossible to connect to the grid.”
“I watched hundreds of hours of YouTube videos on construction, and funnily, the more I was learning about modern off-grid systems, the more exciting it all felt, as I realised I could actually become independent not only from rent, but from the monthly utility bills as well,” he says.
Ivan moved into his first house on New Year’s Eve 2020, as soon as it was “remotely liveable to use the money for the build instead of renting, and spent the next year finishing it.” The initial structure measured approximately 215 square feet. After living there for under two years and investing roughly $23,000 total, he sold it for approximately $63,000, nearly triple his investment.
The mental toll of the project tested his resolve during those early months. “I’d be lying if I said I never doubted the initial decision to get into all this,” Ivan tells UNILAD.
“Sometimes I’d look around and ask myself – man, what the hell are you even doing, building some house in the middle of freaking nowhere, completely on your own? It definitely wasn’t the easiest year of my life mental-health-wise, but it was totally worth it. And I am super grateful to my past self for what he invested in the life I have now,” he adds.
With the profits from his first build, Ivan constructed a second 420-square-foot tiny house, investing approximately $54,000. This time, he incorporated lessons learned and eliminated compromises from his previous design, adding a full-size kitchen with oven, dishwasher, and large refrigerator.
His current setup relies on solar panels for electricity, propane for cooking, and a private well for unlimited freshwater. Three years into living in his second home, Ivan has grown accustomed to monitoring his energy consumption carefully.
“My batteries almost never go below 80 per cent, but I still use A+++ appliances and turn on the water heater only when I’m about to use it,” he explains. “I finally have a well with unlimited freshwater, but I still use the urinal and close the tap while brushing my teeth, because it just feels stupid not to.”
The only monthly expense remaining is his 5G internet connection, bundled with his phone service.
“In many ways it actually felt better,” Ivan says about downsizing from conventional housing.
Despite now having the skills and financial means to purchase a larger traditional home, Ivan has chosen to remain in his tiny house and redirect his energy toward teaching others. He is developing an educational platform featuring free video lessons that break down each step of the building process for beginners.
“I am already working on an educational system that will help everyone to build their first tiny – or even not so tiny – house, that will include a series of free video lessons with every step explained and displayed so that everyone with little to no experience can follow along,” he tells UNILAD.
“I’m not saying that everyone should move into a tiny house. But for me it definitely was a turning point and a solution to a problem I thought was unsolvable – and something tells me I’m not the only one,” he concludes.