At the age of 13, Luke Thill purchased a home.
A middle schooler in Dubuque, Iowa, had finished building an 89-square-foot tiny house in his parents’ backyard.
Having earned $1,500 performing neighborhood chores at the age of 11, he worked on the project for a year and a half.
It was only the beginning of Luke’s trip.
Luke Thill, 17, has built a teardrop camper with his brother Cole, adding to their growing collection of tiny homes. Insider reported that Luke plans to make tiny living a way of life.
Luke told Insider that building the little home was “a huge experience.”. My life was forever changed by it.
Luke’s summer 2016 was going to be dull. In search of projects to work on since he had no plans for the near future, the 11-year-old discovered the small home movement on YouTube.
After being persuaded, he decided to build his own modest cottage.
Before they started building, Luke and his father calculated how much $1,500 would be needed to build a simple little house.
Luke began saving by working odd jobs in his neighborhood like many young people.
Luke’s plan was to mow lawns and do other small tasks for his grandparents and neighbors during the summer to earn money.
Not long after that, he began building his future house.
While Luke claimed to have experience with home improvement tasks, this was by far his largest project.
According to Luke, many of the building materials were recovered, and windows and doors, in particular, were donated by friends, neighbors, and family members.
It took Luke approximately a year and a half to complete the project with the help of his parents.
The interior design was done by his mother, while the construction was done by his father. Luke had his own house by the time he turned 13 in the fall of 2017.
Luke claimed he didn’t intend to live in the little house permanently, so he avoided installing plumbing, which would have been costly, time-consuming, and difficult.
It was intended to serve as a getaway and a gathering place for friends.
This is illustrated by the plain design of the house. There is a tiny living room with a drop-down dining table, a tiny kitchen with a micro fridge, an electric burner, and a countertop.
A ladder leads to a lofted area where Luke spends some nights sleeping and hosts guests for movie nights.
One year, Luke hosted Thanksgiving dinner for his family.
After finishing the tiny house, Luke was ready to begin a new project.
At the time, Cole, his twin brother, was building a teardrop camper from scratch.
About halfway through the project, Luke stepped in to help. According to Luke, the brothers had spent around $2,500 on the 36-square-foot teardrop camper by the time they were 14.
According to Luke, this project was surprisingly more difficult and detailed than building a tiny house.
Luke replied, “You really have to do things right. When you’re driving at 75 mph, you don’t want anything to fall apart.”
Thanks to the camper, Luke and his brother were able to reunite. Since the pair finished the construction in 2018, they have gone on over 50 camping trips around Iowa and neighboring states.
In 2020, Luke made significant changes to the teardrop camper. In addition to redoing the camper’s woodwork, installing new cabinets, and staining the interior, he also refinished the exterior.
Luke’s main takeaway was the importance of community.
A little house Luke built early in life taught him valuable life lessons, such as the importance of hard work and financial responsibility.
Luke, however, believes that belonging to a group was one of the most important lessons he learned.
During construction, Luke said he relied on his neighbors for support. For instance, he would swap items with a neighbor or exchange electrical assistance.
“A simple project in my backyard brought my neighborhood and community together,” he said.
Now that the camper is finished, Luke is prepared for the upcoming venture. His priorities as a junior in high school include hanging out with friends, working, and completing assignments.
Although Luke is now focusing on high school, he said compact living will remain an important part of his future. It has even crossed his mind to build a bigger little house when he goes to college.
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