Downsized, big-time

Add living space to your current dwelling—or dramatically simplify your lifestyle

Seth Reidy of Nelson, B.C., builds and sells tiny houses like this one. — Photo courtesy Seth Reidy

Need additional living space? Or a guest room for visitors, or space for a home office? If your present house can’t provide the space you'd like, moving house or renovating are not your only options.

“The idea came from our own need for extra space,” said Seth Reidy of Nelson, B.C. “When friends or the kids’ grandparents come to visit, we like to have them stay close, but our house is small. So I built a separate tiny house for visitors.”

Tiny is the key word. Nelson Tiny Houses come in two styles: the “V” (for Versatile) house, at 104 square feet, and the Acorn house, which is 136 square feet. Reidy’s clients have many uses for the structure; one client is considering the tiny house as a permanent dwelling after dramatically downsizing.

“Renovating a house is very unpredictable in terms of cost,” Reidy said. “There’s always something that costs more than you expected. With my tiny houses, the price is fixed and there are no surprises.”

Except, perhaps, how very adaptable these structures are, and how much interest they’re generating.