Buying a home in the Bay Area is not only competitive – it's incredibly expensive.
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It's so pricey, in fact, that Kim Hoang has been living in an East Bay school bus for over three years in order to make her dreams of home ownership a reality. You read that right.
Hoang's home is a big school bus. She calls it "Frankie."
"It's just like living in your room," she told KCBS Radio. "It's comfortable. It's warm. I have TV. I have Netflix." She bought this 25-foot school bus for $3,400 and spent $10,000 renovating it.
"Basically, everything (from) new paint, new floors, new cabinetry, new bed platform with storage, plumbing electrical system," she explained, walking us through the bus. Hoang also installed solar panels on her bus.
This all started after she had an altercation with her landlord in 2016.
"After that issue, I decided I'd rather couch surf (and) live in a bus in order to afford a house."
That's exactly what she did.
Hoang was able to save money living in her bus, showering at the gym, using public restrooms and washing her clothes at the laundromat. "The only adjustment was the emotional one," she said. "Bathroom showering situation was different."
Eventually, she saved enough money to buy a home in 2018 in Oakland – a fixer upper for $800,000. She calls it her compound.
"It's retirement income," Hoang said. "I want to rent it out, pay for expenses, but there's so much outdoor space. All I want (is for) it to feel like a community space to everyone I want to rent to too, outdoor space for barbeques, a gym, what not."
She lived in the "compound" for two years while she got her plans and permits in order to renovate it. Once the renovation began 15 months ago, Hoang has been back living full time on her school bus, behind her home. She even built a temporary bathroom.
"There were many times I was second guessing myself, but the money I was saving and drive to get the house and put down some roots was the driving force," she said. "I could come back to that and that thought to calm me down and keep moving me forward."
Renovating the entire home will cost her about $650,000.
Her sister, Dorothy, is helping her design it and she plans to rent some of the units and live in one. She also plans to eventually rent "Frankie" the bus.
Whether people think it's creative or crazy, Hoang is now not only a homeowner but an investor in one of the most expensive areas in the country. "If my crazy idea can help inspire a female scared of getting out there then I'm one person who has done it and I'd love to be a resource to help someone else that would want to do it as well."
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