I have a girlfriend of mine who's mother in law lives in a yurt in their backyard. This is up in Maine. Given the NE climate, this isnt something I would want to dwell in permanently. I am assuming that it is on an elevated platform of some sort, simply due to the fact that, to my knowledge, she has been living there for several years. She has lived off the grid most of her life (as has my friend, with her family), so this isnt anything new to them.