When my husband, Brian, first told me he was from Laguna Beach, it took everything I had to stay calm. “Oh, is that near Los Angeles?” I asked.
Like most older millennials, I know exactly where Laguna Beach is. I’ve watched every episode of the reality show (I’m an LC with a Kristen haircut) and am a huge fan of The O.C. (Seth and Summer Forever!)
I don’t know why I’m pretending. It turns out that Brian is a fan of Seth and Summer as well.
I never thought we would end up living on the land of beachfront cottages and sun-drenched bays I saw on TV. But in 2021, we decided to leave the Bay Area and spend a few months in Brian’s hometown. We both work remotely — me as a writer, he in tech sales — so why not?
We’ve been here ever since. Today we live in an old 940 square foot aluminum trailer across from the beach.
Deciding to stay in Laguna Beach wasn’t hard – I mean, it’s beautiful, sunny, laid-back, and has a thriving arts scene. But finding long-term living in such an expensive area required us to get creative.
Find a creative lifestyle in Laguna Beach
The median home price in Laguna Beach hovers around $3 million, and the median monthly rent is over $8,000. Brian and I pay $6,200 a month for a short-term rental, a high price we can live with for a few months, but we can’t sustain.
Luckily, we discovered a quirky little community tucked into a picturesque canyon and across the street from the most luxurious hotel in town. It’s filled with mobile homes selling for as little as $150,000.
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Brian and I are no strangers to alternative living—we previously lived on a 46-foot motor yacht for three years—so the concept of a house on wheels didn’t intimidate us.
When you purchase a trailer in this mobile home community, the structure is yours, but you lease the land it sits on. We decided to consider purchasing a mobile home as a hybrid solution – part ownership, part rental – all at a lower cost than either traditional option.
After living on a 46-foot motor yacht for three years, the 940-square-foot vessel “feels like a mansion to us,” Bryan said. “We’ve always liked unconventional places.”
Courtesy of Jaclyn Westlake
We bought the trailer for $212,500, which was money we saved after negotiating a $5,000 credit line with the seller when the home inspection revealed some necessary repairs.
Living on the boat we had nothing but a TV and a mattress. We took out a $150,000 home equity loan against our trailer to rebuild the unstable back deck, fence the yard, redo the landscaping, renovate the kitchen, and renovate the house.
All in all, we currently pay about $5,148 per month, including:
- Land lease: $3,424
- Utilities: $394 (it fluctuates a little from month to month, but this is what we will pay for electricity, gas, water, sewer and internet in April 2024)
- pay debt: $1,330
We are eager to pay off our home equity loan to further reduce our monthly cost of living and hope to do this within the next two years.
Check out our “vintage” Laguna Beach trailers
Our two-bedroom, two-bathroom home was built in the 1960s. The look is original and we love the retro look.
There was no garage, just a carport, so we built a storage shed in the side yard to store camping gear and holiday decorations.
Jaclyn and Brian’s old 940 square foot trailer has wheels (although not visible) and can be moved. You can see the garage on the right and the storage room beyond the fence on the left.
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In our garage you will find a golf cart, which is our favorite way to get around the neighborhood, buy groceries, or cross the street to the beach. We had a regular car and a van to transport Brian’s surfboards around town when the golf cart wasn’t available.
We put our own stamp on the kitchen and added a butcher block, tile backsplash, dishwasher, and wine refrigerator.
When Jacklin and Brian purchased their trailer, they knew they wanted to update the kitchen. “It’s nice, but it doesn’t have a lot of warmth or character,” Brian said. Jaclyn added that it was “very white.”
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There are no closets—not a single one! – in this house, so we had to get creative with storage: my closet is in the living room, our towels are stored in the buffet in my office area, and the pots and pans are in the entertainment center.
It’s unconventional, but we make it work.
Jaclyn and Brian didn’t make any structural changes to the living room and dining area (to the left behind the couch), but they did have to figure out the right layout in what they call a “weird space.”
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Although I have a real desk, I often write on the couch with our 15-year-old dachshund mix, Indy (short for Indiana Jones).
Brian usually works in an office converted from the second bedroom so he can close the door while he takes calls. Sometimes he goes outside.
Jaclyn is a recruiter turned career advice columnist and novelist whose first book, Dear Dottie, was released in June. Her second novel will be published next summer and she is currently working on her third, often at her desk or couch.
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Our wallpaper is a little crazy (all things tropical!), including in the master bedroom.
It was so much fun knowing that the place was ours to decorate however we wanted.
Jaclyn and Brian have a king-size bed, “which is important when you have a puppy that likes to take up a lot of space,” Jaclyn said. There was a dresser opposite the bed, and a TV hidden behind the dresser that could be raised via an elevator when they wanted to watch TV.
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What sold us about this place was the yard. It has an outdoor shower and dining area, and enjoys plenty of sunlight. We added some tropical landscaping, a hot tub, a ping pong table, a pizza oven and a projector screen.
I love sitting outside and watching the hummingbirds dance around our plants.
Jaclyn and Brian spend most of their time in the backyard, working, reading, relaxing and entertaining guests.
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A “less stressful” version of the California Dream
Living in a house on wheels doesn’t exempt us from the typical homeowner headaches. Since moving in, we have dealt with an ant infestation, put up a termite tent, expelled a bunch of rats, and are currently dealing with a gopher problem.
But keeping our monthly housing costs low (for the region) reduces the pressure to address these issues.
We often enjoy morning coffee on the deck, walk to the beach, and relax with an evening dip in the hot tub.
The trailer is right across the street from the beach, where Jaclyn and Brian usually go a few days a week.
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We love watching Indy sunbathe on his favorite lounge chair, invite friends over for an outdoor pizza party, drive the golf cart into town for dinner or the annual Sawdust Art Festival, and turn on movies under the campfire Fire pit stars.
In short, we had a great time here. We have lived in this home for two years and we don’t plan on moving anytime soon.
Jaclyn Westlake Writing books about interesting, flawed women trying to find their way in the world. Her debut novel “Dear Dottie,” available wherever books are sold. She is a recruiter turned career advice columnist, and her work has appeared in The Muse, Business Insider, and Inc.You can follow her adventures in writing, beach life, and more on Instagram @jaclyn_writing or jaclynwestlake.com.
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