"I think that it would be more useful to build a home that can sustain itself"

Then I would suggest the following. Dig a large level area the size of your pad into a sloping hillside. Form it up with a 12" concrete forms and pour the walls. Lay your plumbing and then pour the pad. Leave only the front open. Cover the top with earth. Put in one flue for a wood heater. Place the cold air return right over the top of the woodheater(in the ceiling). Plan for one room to not be heated and serve as a 'root cellar' for storage of supplies,firearms,etc. The airhandler will distribute the heat from the woodheater and the backup electric or gas HVAC system is there until TSHTF.

You now have a home you can live in with or without heat or cooling. Its highly defensible and very economical to build and weather proof(tornadoes,earthquakes,etc).

As I was building my loghome on the identical foundation as above my neighbor came over and did exactly what I described above except that he has a storage space above instead of an earth covered top.

He can heat it easily. Its extremely comfortable. It fits well with the environment. It was not too costly to build.

I doubt many are going to go this way since they wish to have others ohhh and ahhhh over their visible lifestyles and tend to place them in plain view. I live way back up near the woods away from the plain view and not prone to being ripped off so easily. Ifen you wish to sneak up on me you have to outfox my dogs. Dogs don't do well near roadways either. You need to build with a view to the future and all possibilities.

As you said...'easier to roll over and pull the covers up(and over your head).

Airdale