A savvy woman has ingeniously sidestepped the exorbitant rental market by taking up residence in a 1,200 sq ft underground bunker, claiming the move saves her a whopping $1.5k each month, reports SWNS.
Caitlin Johnson, aged 44, jumped at the chance to dwell in a friend's backyard subterranean shelter in Bakersfield, California, following her relocation from New York in April 2024.
For the modest sum of $500 monthly, Caitlin boasts a master bedroom with an adjoining bathroom, a fully kitted-out kitchen, a lounge area, 18 bunk beds, an extra bathroom, two additional toilets, and another shower.
Bunker discoveredThe bunker, a leftover from the previous owner, was discovered by Caitlin's pal who acquired the property in 2022 and realised it had been lying dormant for some time.
Caitlin suggested she could live in and look after the bunker and garden for just $500 a month - a steal compared to the usual $1.5k to $2k monthly rate for a one-bedroom flat in California, which she asserts she is saving, reports the Mirror US.
Content with her unconventional living situation, Caitlin has even asked her mate to prolong her stay for an extra year.
Working in the entertainment sector, Caitlin remarked, "On average, a one-bed rental in California is about $1.5 to $2k a month.
"I rent part of the yard and the bunker for $500 a month - I also don't pay utilities.
"The trade-off is that I take care of the bunker and yard so she doesn't have to take care of it," she elucidated.

"I could easily buy somewhere, but my job is constantly moving, and I don't know how long I will live in one location," she said.
After a nine-month stint in New York, Caitlin bounced back to California for work, just as her pal was settling into a new pad complete with a 1,200 sq ft bunker out the back, which led Caitlin to cheekily ask if she could shack up there.
Recounting the conversation with her friend, Caitlin revealed: "When she bought the house, she was saying how she didn't take any care of the bunker."
In fact, Caitlin persuaded her mate to let her bed down in the bunker and rent it: "One day I convinced her to let me move into it and rent it off her."
Four times cheaperCatching a bargain, Caitlin's been renting a slice of the garden and the bunker for just $500, and she's been there a solid year now.
Caitlin has found the bunker can boast more elbow room than some of the shoebox studios she's kipped in around New York.
To get to her subterranean digs, Caitlin breezes through a hydraulic door, trots down 15 steps, and waltzes past a blast-proof door.
Despite being underground, Caitlin remarked that her bunker pad is "super quiet" yet manages to feel like a normal apartment, complete with mobile signal and Wi-Fi; she said: "It was empty, I slowly filled it with stuff that would fit down there, and I popped the rest in storage."
And while sunlight never graces the interior of the bunker, Caitlin isn't fussed-it's a boon for her beauty sleep, and she's rigged up a bit of faux sunshine in her boudoir.
She admitted that the winter months can be more difficult due to the perpetual darkness both inside and outside the bunker.
Caitlin disclosed, "There are two 10-foot by 4-foot hydraulic doors into the bunker, so during the day when I'm home, I'll have them open to let light in.
"It's tougher in the winter for sure, but I work outdoors a great deal of the time.
"I'm out most of the day working, I return home when it's night time, I descend to the bunker and it doesn't feel odd as it is night time."
Caitlin expressed that the bunker isn't intended to be a "forever home," yet she's so enamoured with her underground living situation that she's negotiated with her friend to extend her stay for an additional year, which they've agreed to.
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