Tiny House, Big Idea
Hand to chin, Jennifer eyed the space where her silver SUV was parked.
“Could I build a tiny house right here?”
Last year, she fell in love with the house in Kenilworth and its view of the lake. After moving in she added an outdoor room — the perfect playroom for her two-year-old grandson.
Gazing from this room at the pines reflected in the water below, she smiled. “Blissful.”
But living here could be even better, she mused, if her daughter, son-in-law, and baby grandson were right next door.
She makes a good point.
With scant rentals available, and costs prohibitive for many first-time homebuyers, a tiny house may be a smart option. Costs can be kept low, around $15,000, but quickly rise with the quality of materials used.
Smaller homes are catching the imagination of many, including downsizing Boomers and Millenials just starting out.
Where did tiny houses start, and just how tiny are they?
‘Wee Houses’ began in 2003 as affordable alternative housing.
In North Carolina, a tiny house must be at least 120 square feet, but anything under 500 square feet is considered tiny. A typical storage shed is 100 square feet.
City of Asheville rules allow homeowners to build a small house next to the main one. However, zoning regulations, HOA bylaws, environmental, and other restrictions apply, so if you’re thinking about building a tiny home, do your homework and ask your real estate agent for more information.
Tiny houses can be site-built and made to be “grow-able,” to accommodate the homeowners’ changing needs.
For Jennifer, building a tiny house at the top of her driveway would mean a visit from her grandson could be only steps away, not a half-hour drive. And that could create a living arrangement to benefit the whole family.
Written by Suzanne Arthur, Broker, REALTOR, and Kenilworth neighbor. Connect with Suzanne at [email protected] to see if a tiny house may be a good (and legal) choice for your property, and keep up with all of Asheville’s local happenings by following @suzannearthur_realtor on Instagram.
