WOODLAND FOOTHILLS: LOT FIVE

In 2016, we built our first speculative home in the Woodland Foothills plat off Mink Ranch Road in Lutsen: the Lot 5 House. It was a modest 786-square-foot, two-bedroom home—simple, efficient, and intentionally designed to be both attainable and durable.

At the time, the concept of building homes “on spec” in this area felt risky. We weren’t responding to a specific buyer, just to a growing need: working families in Cook County needed real housing options. The Lot 5 house didn’t sell right away, but what happened next reinforced exactly why we built it.

Over the years, three different local working families called Lot 5 home. It provided stable, long-term rental housing at a time when short-term vacation rentals were consuming the local market. Eventually, the third family decided to purchase the house after a few years of renting—proving that this kind of housing could be a stepping stone to ownership.

The Lot 5 house wasn’t flashy. It wasn’t oversized. But it was built right, priced right, and filled a critical gap in the housing landscape—what some call the “missing middle.” It stood as a quiet but important answer to a loud question: Where are working families supposed to live?

This house laid the foundation for everything that came next. It taught us that small, intentional housing can have a big impact. And it showed us that there is a market—not just in numbers, but in need—for homes that are grounded, livable, and made for real people.