Georgia Couple Converts 25-Year-Old Bus Into Fully Functional Home

The couple spent just over $1,000 on renovations to make the bus a home.

ByABC News
November 17, 2015, 3:48 PM
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Courtesy Samuel Laubscher

— -- Georgia natives Julie and Andrew Puckett are currently living in their dream home, which just so happens to be a renovated school bus.

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

The couple runs the blog House Bus, which documents their lives and adventures in their humble abode, a 1990 Blue Bird bus.

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

Julie, 30, explained to ABC News that the couple decided to move out of their 1,000 square foot apartment in Atlanta after their landlord wanted to raise their rent by 25 percent.

"We didn't see the purpose of continuing to empty our bank account for something that we were not buying any equity in," said Julie.

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

The Pucketts had originally planned to move into a "tiny house," which they assumed would be more affordable. The couple soon found out that purchasing a "tiny home" was not as cheap as they had expected it to be.

"Since the whole purpose of purchasing a tiny home was to avoid going into debt and freeing up our finances, I decided to look into alternate living situations," Julie said. "I then found out about school bus conversions, and that seems like the appropriate fit and choice for our lifestyle."

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

The Pucketts purchased the bus for $10,000, and began working on renovations to convert the school bus into a livable home.

"The renovations cost us just over $1,000, and took about five months," Julie said. "We were able to create lots of custom furniture that houses storage for the bus, and all of our personal touches really took it from a bus to a home."

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

Julie said that while their family and friends were surprised at the drastic housing change at first, they were ultimately supportive of the couple's endeavor.

"My parents helped us tremendously with the renovations, and we really couldn't have done it without them," said Julie. "We feel very lucky."

PHOTO: Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.
Andrew and Julie Puckett live inside of a 1990 Blue Bird bus that they transformed into their home with $1,000 of renovations.

The couple updates their blog regularly to document their day-to-day experiences living in the house bus and they give advice on how to downsize your own life.