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Comment by tmsh | Hacker News Reader

https://www.gofundme.com/f/tiny-tiny-homes-affordable-housin...

The cbc.ca article says that each home costs $10K but the GoFundMe page says this:

> Each unit costs around $5000 (not including sweat equity) to build, and I will ensure that every penny is spent wisely to create a safe and comfortable home for those who need it the most.

So it sounds like the cost of materials has increased or Donais puts aside $5K of funds for every house built for his own living costs. Or maybe after starting the project and getting the larger construction space they can now accurately estimate the overall cost at $10K.

Maybe your comment was meant to highlight costs and logistics or maybe it was meant to simultaneously undermine their project and projects like them, who can say? Do you think you'll be contributing or do you think there's fraud and you will dig into it? Hard to say you could have either motive, most any comment online could have either a good or nefarious motive. Maybe you're just wondering aloud or maybe you have an agenda.

People asking tough questions and being careful consumers are exactly what most good charities and other initiatives need.

So, I think comments like yours are the ones undermining those good initiatives, which have a hard time being heard in a sea of scams.

Accusing organizations of fraud without evidence isn't great.

I don't know why people are assuming malice in my comments. It's great work and I'm just curious about the cost breakdown.

I also figured that other HN visitors would have similar questions and I could save them a few minutes of digging around.

And yes, I did just donate.

Materials have gone up. But there are other costs involved than just raw materials. Transport, bought expert services (electrician, etc), tool wear, ...

He also has to live and cover unexpected costs.

> Materials have gone up.

The GoFundMe campaign was created on June 30th, 2024. Has Canada (or the world) had a big bout of inflation in the last 6 months? (Serious question, I'm not up-to-date with global macroeconomics.)

Canadian here. The retail price of a 2x4 has fluctuated wildly over the last 18-24 months, mostly disconnected from inflation and due more to global supply chain issues.

At one point my local hardware store in a medium sized city was selling a single 8-foot spruce 2x4 for upwards of $14, when pre-COVID it was probably closer to $4.

I remember when prices exploded during covid. Has that happened again in the last 6 months in Canada? Global prices look mostly flat over the last year. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WPU081

Maybe not in the last 6 months (haven't been to the hardware store recently) but the data in TFA could be from 2023, which would fit

Another possibility is simply that the CBC article is incorrect. Or, more generously, that he told them a rough estimate of, e.g. "about $5-$10k" and they went with the higher number.

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