#tiny housing

This tiny home, a BB Pod, is made from shipping containers and had some different parts that folded out and expanded, so to move the home, you fold it back into regulation container shape and size, and then deploy to full-size at the destination.  That functionality was very clever and well-done.

Layout and fixtures were mixed.  And there are no actual windows to this box, just what winds up being one wall of doors/windows.  The rest are just trompe l’œil (faux) effects of the outside painting.  It could be stuffy in there.

In addition to lacking cross-ventilation, BB Pods also have a distinct lack of insulation.  Like the models we saw had zero.  I can’t imagine where you would want to live where you would want zero insulation from both heat or cold.

Data from four surveys of the tiny house community (the latest in February 2021) show the proportion of respondents living in tiny houses remains under 20% (fewer than 200 people). It hasn’t grown in the past seven years.

The surveys were posted as links to tiny house social media sites, so of course the findings cannot be extrapolated to the whole community. Nonetheless, most tiny house advocates in Australia belong to these groups.

What’s stopping people moving into tiny houses?

Some in the movement argue this is due to obstacles such as restrictive planning policies and difficulties in getting finance and secure access to land. In response, some local governments – Cairns and Byron Bay, for example – have published helpful fact sheets and guides.

However, in a recently published research paper in Housing Studies, we argue even if these obstacles were removed, we might not see a big increase in tiny house living, especially in tiny houses on wheels. We reached this conclusion based on what people who are part of the movement, including our survey respondents, said about their motivations and aspirations.

They had three main motivations:

having access to affordable housing

achieving a degree of economic freedom

What's life like living in a shed? I've lived in several. Here's my very personal perspective on Glastonbury's housing crisis.

My personal perspective on homelessness in Glastonbury

I have lived in a shed. Actually I’ve lived in several sheds. One was a homemade shed built on the side of a caravan on a traveller site on the Somerset Levels. I lived there for about two and a half years until the Spring of 2012. I had two wood-burners, one in the caravan, where I slept and cooked, one in the shed, which was my living…

Tiny Township: The Curious Adventures of Living in Tractor Trailers AKA The Hyper Cubicle 8

Tiny Township tour number 8 – The Submarine. We took special consideration for this Qoob and the uniqueness that the owner has included throughout his stay. One of those considerations was touring this Qoob – with the owners’ permission, of course -TWICE. Once during the day, and again…… in the evening. However, before our evening tour took place, we had to wait for the sun to set behind the…

Tiny Township: The Curious Adventures of Living in Tractor Trailers AKA The Hyper Cubicle 7

Welcome back to another installment of Tiny Township tours. We met up with Qoober, ‘Shirley’, in her Qoob, “Teapot”. From an earlier episode we met with Shirley’s neighbor, as well as bandmate – Mrs. Franz – who enjoys performing on weekends whenever possible. Practice and rehearsals are held inside of Shirley’s additional garage space behind the driveway. When not in music rehearsal mode, the…

Tiny Township: The Curious Adventures of Living in Tractor Trailers AKA The Hyper Cubicle 6

DJ E-Lectrolyte and his “digital hyper hideaway” What seemed to be a quiet residence, our next stop on the Tiny Township Tour, literally, blew us away – and our eardrums. DJ E-Lectrolyte is the newest Qoober in the township and has made his presence known from the others in the community. A MotoCross enthusiast, and amateur basketball player, this DJ has a portfolio that demanded adventure. We…

Tiny Township: The Curious Adventures of Living in Tractor Trailers AKA The Hyper Cubicle 4

Meet visual artist, song writer, storyteller, and chef – Mrs. Franz (pronounced FR-ah-nn-z) and her HyperQoob: Majestic In the span of 20 steps it took me to reach Mrs. Franz’s Qoob, I was greeted warmly with open arms for the tour. Some fun facts that were shared with me from this vessel of history before we begin the tour: Mrs. Franz was born 8th out of 9 other siblings Mrs. Franz speaks six…

Tiny Township: The Curious Adventures of Living in Tractor Trailers AKA The Hyper Cubicle 3

Third Hype Qoob tour: Pete and Anthony (College roommates) The “Pinto” ______________________________________ Two students share the expenses of a hyper cubicle during their studies abroad. Anthony provides us with a walk through of their house – with special emphasis on “basic essentials”. ‘Home sweet home’, pretty much. Truly not a lot of space, which makes you truly value just what you are…