I bought LAND from eBay and built an off-grid hobbit paradise with tires and mud

A HIGH-FLYING city lover has told how he left his busy corporate life behind to build a ‘hobbit house’ on land he bought on eBay.

The former elevator engineer has been building an impressive home for five years – and says he has never been happier.

Kris said he was tired of the city grind because he felt like everyone had their “hand” in their pocketCredit: YouTube

Kris spent anywhere from £3 to £4,000 building his hutCredit: Barcroft Media

Kris grows his own vegetables and has a gang of chickens that lay his eggsCredit: Barcroft Media

36 years old Kris Haven was a two-home homeowner and enjoyed a busy social life in the capital – but despite the success, the direction his life was taking didn’t feel ‘right’.

The former city slicker said the pressures of living in London – one of the most expensive cities in the world – left him feeling “tired and unfulfilled”.

After moving his house – and a buy-to-let flat – he was able to take out his £400,000 mortgage and spend what was left on 18.5 hectares of land in South Wales.

When he moved to his new plot, he was forced to live in a tent, but fast forward five years, his empty plot of land is the envy of anyone who dreams of taking the leap into off-grid living.

Standing in the middle of his new home, he explains that what was once an open lawn is now home to his own hobbit-style hut, a workshop, a greenhouse and “miscellaneous other things.”

He said: ‘My family probably thought it was a bit crazy. At first glance, I did quite well. I was successful, I owned two properties and had a good job in London.

“But I wasn’t happy, so I think they thought it was a bit crazy and I was a bit stupid for selling it because it was a bad decision financially.

“It was a very good decision for my well-being and it didn’t take long for my family to come around to the idea.”

He went on to say that the idea of working “two or three-thirds of his life” just “wasn’t a good fit.”

And when it came to the costs of city living, he said that “all the bills”, including “mortgages, electricity, water, internet, a TV license and insurance” made him feel like “everyone had their hand in their pocket” .

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The clever craftsman has come on leaps and bounds since the decision and after spending around £4,000 to set up his home, he is now making money from his woodwork and has built several impressive additions to the property.

He said: “It has been a huge improvement in my life in general, my wellbeing is much greater than ever before.

“My mental and physical health and my construction abilities have improved enormously.”

BUT HOW DID HE DO IT?

The house has a round timber frame, a reciprocating round timber roof, with cordwood walls sitting on gravel bags and stones.

The wood he used was free and the binding agent between the tree trunks is a mixture of clay, sand and straw, which he mixed together with his feet.

He said: “It was incredibly cheap, it was built on the small budget I had.”

He built everything by hand, and it took him six months to finish the house before he could finally call it home.

However, he did admit that it was not built to last a lifetime and that it will rot at some point, but he “built it with the intention of making it last thirty years.”

He then built a shed built for “almost nothing” – cutting down trees on his land – to house his hydro, electric and solar power.

He then built his “dream workshop” which has two floors, one for metalworking and a second for wood.

He said: “It has a lovely verandah at the front where we sit under and store our firewood, and is accessed through a small ‘hobbit door’.

In addition to all that, he has a garden where all his vegetables are grown and which he says produces almost all the vegetables he needs for the colder months. He also built a greenhouse to “his own design” which cost about £2,000.

To maintain his food supplies, he has fenced about 1.2 hectares of his land where he houses chickens and sheep.

He said, “They better start laying, I want my egg sandwich in the morning.”

He’s not the only Brit hungry for the slow life and has traded his busy life for a spot in the great outdoors.

HE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE

A man who worked 60 hours a week and made six figures now lives off-grid in an old school bus full of genius features.

And a dad has revealed he was forced to live in a caravan with his six-year-old twins after losing all his money in a divorce.

While this guy also revealed how trolls call him an “unemployed sponge mess” and would rather not date their daughter because he lives outside.

The die-hard nature lover said he enjoyed the outdoors so much that instead of going there on his day off, he wanted to live there permanently.

And finally, a couple have left their home and hit the road in a converted van costing £600 a month.