Wrapping up lunch at Denver Biscuit Company on Colfax Avenue, I said to my companion something about my latest living situation, a rented yurt. She teased, “Way to bury the lead! You live in a YURT?” It was just that we had a lot of other neat stuff to catch up on, so housing didn’t come up earlier. But in general, it is useful to mention to people that I live in a yurt. It might explain why I’m now completely unfazed by large spiders and really appreciative of kitchen sinks.
By “yurt,” I mean the round, tent-like dwellings commonly associated with nomadic people of Central Asia. My Craigslist rental yurt is made of high-tech fabric instead of animal skin. It has electricity, but it does not have running water. I have a bathroom across the chicken-filled yard in the back of the yurt-owner’s home. I didn’t set out looking for this living situation, but when I saw the ad, I knew it would be the perfect place at this point of my own somewhat nomadic adventure. And it was.
The main things I like about living in a yurt:
1. Exploring the “tiny house movement” even though I have been doing it for years, when it was just called “living within your means.”
2. Lower rent cost. Denver rent has skyrocketed. The average monthly rental price for a one bedroom apartment was over $1700 this summer when I rented the yurt. Although that average price has dipped to around $1400/month now, that’s still nearly a $400/month increase from when I moved to Denver just four years ago.
3. As a longtime practitioner of feng shui, I am fascinated by the space itself. Living without corners seems to make for some interesting energy flow as well as furniture arrangement. I adore the aesthetics of the wooden frame and beams.
There are a few downsides, but those are worth the experience of yurt life. I can say that now, at least, because my time living in a yurt is coming to an end soon. I might feel differently if I faced the entire Colorado winter in a yurt! I will write about those downsides in another post.
Use the form below to let me know your questions and comments, especially if you’re considering the yurt life too!
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