Any Oregon yurt owners in the house (or yurt)?

[Bluecollarjohn]

My wife and I live in Portland OR. We are looking to buy property in columbia county to build a yurt for permanent residence. Are any of you permanent dwellers in Oregon? Im wondering what codes are like, difficulty in getting approved and if its even allowed?

Lemme know guys., Thanks in advance.

John

[tribri1]

I am in a similar boat, we purchased a property in Deschutes County. Based on my research I have been unable to find any yurt owners in Oregon who have been able to meet the residential dwelling energy codes. I have spoken with building code agents in Portland and Deschutes County and emailed with the state code people. I was told that if I can find a yurt that has been able to meet the energy code then to find out where it is and the compliance officer in Deschutes County will figure out how they did it and if I am able to do the same. I have also emailed with a few yurt owners in Oregon, all have which have given me vague answers that sound like they did not meet codes and built anyway and are currently getting away with it because their property is far enough off the grid for anyone to notice or complain. If there is anyone out there that can prove me wrong please do.

On the bright side, everyone I have talked to has been super friendly and helpful in trying to come up with a solution.

[Bob Rowlands]

Pretty good example of typical govt. run around bs imo. "Look dude, you find a yurt that passes code and our compliance officer will check it out." (said with feet up on desk and donuts and coffee brought in by a secretary. "Yep gonna have me a nice fat retirement check too.) lol

[Robink]

I’m new here and this question is a few months old, but there is a yurt motel in Veneta, a city about 25 miles west of Eugene. The yurts are soft shell and legal. Very nice owners who would probably talk to you about jumping through hoops in Lane County anyway.

Originally Posted by Bluecollarjohn

My wife and I live in Portland OR. We are looking to buy property in columbia county to build a yurt for permanent residence. Are any of you permanent dwellers in Oregon? Im wondering what codes are like, difficulty in getting approved and if its even allowed?

Lemme know guys., Thanks in advance.

John

[Clouse138]

I am buyimg land in yamhill county. I am looking to put a yurt on the property to live in for a couple years while i save money for a real house. Im just checking to see if any of you where able to get a yurt passed through inspections? Thanks.

[tribri1]

We ended up giving up, I had an engineer friend draw up some engineering documents and to get the yurt to meet Oregon building codes we had to basically build a round building then put canvas on it to make it look like a yurt. If you get any further than I did I would love to hear about it.

[Bob Rowlands]

Off topic.

This is a classic example of the down side of some of our nanny state government agencies. Folks of limited means that can afford a yurt need the shelter. It beats being homeless and I have been there.

Keep trying. Don't give up. If it turns out you can't build the yurt, you have to decide whether you really want to live there or not, and prioritize you goals. If you do like the area, you will have to figure out another way, or go elsewere that is more yurt friendly.

Yurts have been around for possible thousands of years and are fine shelters. I have built three, all very fine shelters. Good luck