by Greg Parham
Tiny or small houses in America are nothing new. Even before European settlers arrived, small and/or portable architecture could be found among the hundreds of Native American tribes scattered across the continent. Most everyone is familiar with tipis (teepees), but Native Americans also lived in humble structures such as wigwams, longhouses, waddle and daub, chickees, grass houses, and small adobe structures, to name a few. Pioneer settlers usually adopted the tried and true log home with chinking. Apartments in crowded cities during the industrial revolution were often Historic Stanley houses and very small. Tiny Houses in olden days were much more a factor of necessity rather than of choice.
Since making the switch to a Tiny House, I have no debt. I have hardly any bills. I have very little house to clean and maintain. I don’t own any furniture, and own very little housewares. I have to write one check a month, to rent the land that I park my Tiny House on, and if I really wanted to I could get creative and find a land sitting situation to live on some land for nearly free. If I don’t like where I’m out, I can hitch up and move on along.
It is with great pride that I announce the completion of the first model for sale, the long awaited Boulder. I began formulating the concept for this tiny house over the summer, particularly during my trip across the Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming rockies. The desire to build a house with a more modern flair was in my head long before that trip, it just began to manifest itself more completely during that time. So many tiny houses stick with a tried and true gable design with cedar siding, similar interior layouts, tongue and groove pine walls, etc. They’re very “formulaic” if you will. I don’t think there is anything wrong with this, after all, my personal tiny house more or less fits this bill, but, I feel like a lot more can be done in the realm of tiny house design/construction, and the Boulder was a good opportunity to explore new possibilities.
The other HUGE design goal of this house was to see if I could build a quality, desirable tiny house for around $25,000. There a lot of tiny houses on the market in the $45k-60k range. I understand why, but at the same time I have a deep desire to make Tiny Houses more affordable. All those comments you see about RV’s being so much cheaper just drive me crazy. It’s not my goal to compete with RV’s, after all, I am providing a MUCH higher quality product, but, the whole goal of a tiny house is to own it outright, not have a mortgage, and live simply. For a lot of folks, $50k is just not feasible. $25-30k, well, most cars cost more than that these days so something in this price range is much more likely to get someone who is on the fence about going tiny to jump in!
I have triple checked my numbers and paperwork, I have cut no corners, left no stone unturned, and it is with abundant joy that I am offering this hand made custom designed Rocky Mountain Tiny House at $27,350. It’s a tad bit over what I was aiming for, but, this being the first build of this model, I had some kinks to work out. I also wanted it to be just a little nicer than had I stuck to a strict $25k budget.
Click here to get all the details and learn more about it.
The bookshelf/stairs is pretty awesome. very nice design, solid idea.
truly awesome job! the design is impeccable.
I like this one! Well I like most of them but I particularly like this one 🙂
I’d be wanting another few feet of length though for a decent couch along one wall.
very cool!!! i love the little table and the steps that double as shelves! great job, you must be so proud!
This is a wonderful house! I love the bookshelf stairs! Linda
What type of waste system are you using? Toilet? Gray water? Heater? I am most interested in the bath area and those logistics. I am in northern NM and it get’s pretty cold. Is the building insulated at all? I really like the steps up to the loft. Dual purpose for sure.
I totally admire the modified Monk/Storage Stairs System in this beauty. There is nothing as wonderful as an exercise in ingenuity! I am amazed at some of the unique features many of the small/tiny homes use through out this website! Great work, keep the ideas flowing, please?
At first glance, I thought this was another article about Laird Herbert’s Leaf House, which is still one of the coolest and best laid out tiny houses I’ve seen. It’s nice to see other builders using a similar modern exterior.
Love this house! Just curious what it would cost not being on a trailer? Simply site built?
Thinking about putting something on top of my flat roof garage. Which has concrete block walls and steel roof.
I wonder if it’s best to test out living in a small space before committing to it? The lure of tiny bills definitely attracts me, and I’m researching all the options available. But just how small can you comfortably go, especially with a family?
HELLO DAVID,
I am putting the finishing touches on a 10ft. x 10ft. house I live in Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico. The house will be available for people who want to combine a vacation in Oaxaca and experience living in a tiny house.
The rent is $10/ day or $100/ two weeks or $150/month. it is located 10 minutes from the city center.
I agree with you it is a good idea to test living in a small space before committing to it.
Best regards,
Paul
Paul, I am very interested in finding out more about your tiny Oaxacan rental! How can I do this?
I like the trim lines of this wheeled house; the stairs to loft/bookcase combination. Really nice. I’m curious if there might be a problem with the height of the loft, especially when going under some bridges, railway underpasses. What is the back height of this house. I also like the windows you’ve chosen. Is the toilet in with the shower and sink? What heats this house. I really like the plan. All the best.
I’m curious about your heating method, since the rockies (where I live) get very cold at night. Also about insulation?
People looking for more info should follow the link provided just below where the price is. Lots of detail there.
First of all I would like to say that I do like the design of this little house, however how can you ask that kind of a price?? $27,000 dollars can buy you a fancy used RV, a fixerupper regular homestead, or/and pay for the cost of a fancy large cobb house. Tin sheds start out as little as 3,000 and that is basically what your little house is….the small log cabins are even cheaper. Sorry …..just curious:))
While it’s possible to compare apples and oranges, it’s not very productive. Yes, you may be able to find a used RV, even a fancy one for $27k, but is it built for year-round living. I’ve been in the housing market recently and I’ve seen a $27k fixerupper. If you’re looking to do a whole lot of work, have property taxes and utility cost of a full-sized house, and be tied to one place, then great. As far as a large fancy cobb house, does that price include the labor to build it? I’m guessing not.
Not everyone who wants a tiny house has the time or the skills necessary to build one, and some people who want to scale down, have the money to pay for someone to do the building for them.
The 3k for that tin shed you mentioned might pay for the trailer this tiny house is built on. So, what would you consider a fair price for this, including all materials and labor?
I was always dreaming of living “on the road” but my lifestyle changed a lot since I have a family: we need more space, a place where we can feel comfortable and a quiet neighbourhood. Fortunately, we were lucky enough to settle in one of the oldest neighbourhoods of Toronto what was also possible because we found a great possibility to apply for a grant that helped us to preserve the heritage house we bought. So my dream came partly true and I can live in a house that has a soul but I’m still missing this kind of adventure… Hopefully I can make true also the other part when Sarah and Pete grow up…
I really like the exterior design, its modern and eclectic (my favorite combination!) My biggest gripe with other tiny homes is that they look like blown-up doll houses too “cutesy” for my tastes – this one does not. Really like the bookshelf stairs its ingenious. I’m looking to buy a tiny home in about a year or so and this design is the coolest so far. My biggest obstacle is living in South Florida these type homes are not allowed due to the very strict building codes due to hurricanes. The way around it is if the tiny home meets criteria to be considered an RV but you will need to have parked in an RV park. I
The downside of these is that our society is already very mobile, we don’t have strong ties. I don’t want tied to debt but as someone who grew up following my dad’s job from state to state, I don’t have the deep community ties I see in folks around me. On the positive side, I am always up for a new adventure. Right now I am digging in to five acres and planning to see my fruit trees grown. What I see is that the land is already starting to feed me (and others) and although I am still on grid, living in a smaller space, passive solar, wood stove, feeding chickens from my own land, etc. I am using almost no cash. I am 60 and moving toward a very rich retirement. Downsizing, no matter the particulars, is liberating.
Love the simplicity of it… we never dreamed of building trailer cabins until we built a half cabin from our Nova… since then everyone who sees it says… How can I get one? We trailer ours with a diesel F250. Cute, Non-Toxic, and lots of light… and the porch off the back is brilliant for quick stops! I designed in a loft into our trailer home cabin for more function/useable space… and with the metal roofing… “Wagons HO! ” Blessings, Happy Trails… and have a wonderful independence day!
May I obtain more details for our toilet,sink,shower set up? Pls let me hear from you asap! I have a small house (cabin) at the present time. Need this information pls! Will be waiting for your response! Much thanks. Congratulations! A tiny house is the way to go these days! Caroline s