A Cross-Country Move for a Dream Home and Property

For the Paquettes, the desert climate in Arizona came with the challenges of drought and extreme heat. They wanted to fulfill their passion for gardening and living a more sustainable, fulfilling lifestyle, so they set out to move somewhere greener where they could have more land while also downsizing their home.

“We had a luxury home, but we knew we wanted to downsize,” Robert said. “Bigger homes have more maintenance, and that factor was one of many that played into [our move]”.

So, Angela and Robert sold their home in Arizona and drove their RV across the country, not knowing where they’d end up. They researched several places along the way and took their time there to see if each spot was a good fit.

“When we got to Tennessee, we realized that was the place for us,” Angela said.

They were looking for a place where they could take everything they learned from their homesteading experience and apply it to a ranch in a more suitable climate. Tennessee checked all the boxes. And once they found the perfect piece of land for them, it was time to find their perfect home to match.

“Location was the most important part of finding a new home,” Robert said. “We were not looking at getting a fixer-upper or a ranch that already existed.”

They were determined to build their home on their land from the ground up, but the process was far from simple. With the builders they talked to booked for two years and the price for a kit home soaring, they were faced with delays and challenges.

During their search, they then came across manufactured homes and Clayton. They were initially skeptical of looking into a manufactured home because of some potential older stigmas about their quality, but their perspective changed once they learned more about their options. They learned Clayton offers modular homes with options that would fit their needs and wants, including a raised roof pitch that would look more like the exterior of a traditional site-built home.

“We had limitations before, but the fact that Clayton had the options for modular [homes] is what opened up our minds to it,” Robert said.

Their choice to move forward with this home option led them to Clayton Homes of Sweetwater, where they worked with home center manager Darrell Waldrop and sales representative Albert McDonald, who both played pivotal roles in getting their home built.

Angela and Robert chose two Southern Charm home models one for them to live in and the other for Robert’s parents Maryann and Bob to live in on the same property. Angela loves the spacious primary bedroom and luxurious bathtub, while Robert loves the efficient layout that maximizes square footage.

Angela and Robert wanted off-frame modular homes. This meant the construction of their homes required extra certifications in the state of Tennessee because the homes were taken of their steel frame and placed on a permanent foundation and needed to comply with all of the local building codes. That’s where Darrell and Albert’s expertise came into play. It took about 5 months from the time the Paquettes put down a down payment to when the building plans for their off-frame home were approved and certified in the state.

Now that they’re moved in, Angela and Robert are focused on time with family, as their two adult children also live in their home, and using their experience from Arizona to build their sustainable ranch focusing on organic practices.

Currently, they have a greenhouse and an abundant vegetable garden. Their future plans include a chicken coop, a ranch, and regenerative farm where families can stay in log cabins in the property to learn about farming.

“We will have a regenerative farm, where we will reduce waste and utilizing our own materials,” Angela said.

What started as a cross-country journey to find the perfect piece of land has turned into a dream of sharing a home with family and sharing their passion of homesteading and organic farming with others.