Robert Lanter lives in a 600-square-foot house that can be traversed in five seconds and vacuumed from a single outlet. When relatives come to visit, Mr. Lanter says jokingly, but only partly, they have to tour one at time. Each of these details amounts to something bigger, for Mr. Lanter’s life and the U.S. housing market: a house under $300,000, something increasingly hard to find. Mr. Lanter’s house could easily fit on a flatbed truck, and is dwarfed by the two-story suburban homes that prevail on the blocks around him. For Mr. Lanter and his neighbors, it’s a chance to hold on to ownership.

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Persons: Robert Lanter, Lanter, Lanter’s, Hayden, it’s Locations: Redmond , Ore, Cinder