A woman living in a 1,200-square-foot underground bunker says it’s “worth it” to save $1.5k a month on sky-high rent.
Caitlin Johnson, 44, snapped up the chance to live in a friend’s underground bunker in their yard in Bakersfield, California, after moving from New York in April 2024.
She pays just $500-a-month in rent for the bunker – which has a master bedroom with en-suite, a full kitchen, living room, 18 bunk beds, a separate bathroom, two more toilets and another shower.
Caitlin’s friend, moved into the property in 2022 and discovered it had an underground bunker originally built by the previous owner – which had been empty for some time.
Caitlin offered to move in and take care of the bunker and yard for just $500-a-month – and says she saves $1.5k a month on the average cost of renting a one-bed property in California, which she says is $1.5k to $2k per month.
Caitlin doesn’t plan on leaving the bunker anytime soon and has just asked her friend if she can stay another year.
Caitlin, who works in entertainment, said: “On average a one-bed rental in California is like $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.
“I could easily buy somewhere, but my job is constantly moving, and I don’t know how long I will live in one location.”
After nine months living in New York, Caitlin made the move back to California for work.
At the time, Caitlin’s friend had just moved into a new home with a 1,200-square-foot bunker in her backyard, so Caitlin asked if she could move into it.
Caitlin said: “When she bought the house, she was saying how she didn’t take any care of the bunker.
“One day I convinced her to let me move into it and rent it off her.
“I rent a part of the yard and the bunker for $500 and I have been doing it for a year.”
Caitlin says the bunker was larger than some studio apartments she had lived in during her time in New York.
To get into the bunker, you have to open a hydraulic door, before walking down 15 stairs, and entering a blast-proof door.
She added that the bunker is “super quiet” but feels like any normal apartment, as she is still able to get a phone signal and internet down there.
Caitlin said: “It was empty, I slowly filled it with stuff that would fit down there, and I popped the rest in storage.
“It just feels like an apartment to me.”
Caitlin says getting no natural light in the bunker doesn’t bother her – as it helps her sleep better – and has installed artificial sunlight for her bedroom.
She admitted the winter months can be tougher as she’s constantly in darkness, whether she’s in the bunker or outside.
Caitlin said: “There are two 10 feet by 4 feet hydraulic doors into the bunker, so during the day when I’m home, I’ll have them open to let light in.
“It’s harder in the winter for sure, but I work outdoors a lot of the time.
“I’m gone most of the day working, I come home when it’s night time, I go down to the bunker and it doesn’t feel weird as it is night time.”
Caitlin says the bunker isn’t a “forever home” but she enjoys living there so much that she has asked her friend if she can extend her stay for another year – which they agreed to.
When she first moved into the unusual abode, Caitlin said her friends weren’t shocked by her decision and said it was “on brand” for her.
Caitlin said: “The bunker is obviously not a forever home, but I love living here.
“I have had way worse apartments in New York.
“For my friends, this feels very on brand for me, so it is not a massive shock for them.
“I’ve done a lot of crazy things in my life. I work in entertainment, so nobody I know is shocked.
“But it does shock a lot of strangers.”
Caitlin says there’s no specific pros about living in the bunker, but a silver lining is if there’s a zombie apocalypse or world war, she feels safe.
She said: “The silver lining of the situation is that if anything goes wrong, I’m safe.
“I’ve always joked it would protect me from a zombie apocalypse, and then the world started turning, and I was like ‘wow, I’m set up here’.
“I don’t live somewhere that would get bombed, but if there were looting or riots, I would be safe as nobody can get into the bunker.”
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