An increasing number of New Zealanders are embracing the tiny home lifestyle due to affordability concerns and a desire for a more sustainable way of living.
Housing affordability and a desire for a movable home are among the reasons growing numbers are opting for petite dwellings across New Zealand . School teacher Liberty Van Voorthuysen was looking for a much-needed break from teaching, she ditched her classroom and signed up for a free construction course. Van Voorthuysen had set herself a fairly low bar: learn how to use power tools. But she left with much more – the skills to build her own tiny home.
The 34-year-old bought the shell of a small house, parked it in a Nelson paddock at the top of the South Island, installed solar panels and added a composting toilet. The dwelling measures 6m x 2.4m and is 4m tall. The space took a bit of getting used to and the outdoor shower is “pretty gnarly in winter,” Van Voorthuysen says. But she has learned to be resourceful. Van Voorthuysen is one of a growing number of New Zealanders choosing to downsize their lives with tiny homes – Some cite environmental reasons for living with a smaller footprint, but many have made the shift for affordability reasons. New Zealand has long been plagued with one of the least affordable housing markets in the world. While show housing affordability has improved slightly since 2022, the median house value is still 7.7 times the median household income. Expensive construction costs, and regulatory red-tape have added to the woes of would-be homeowners’ looking to build, rather than buy. The tiny home movement is growing in other places including the US, Europe and Australia. In New Zealand, Sharla May, director of Tiny House Hub – a network connecting builders and buyers of micro-homes – estimates there are “tens of thousands of tiny homes” across the country. May works with about 300 builders and says some of those build 60 homes each quarter. She also runs an annual Tiny House Expo – five years ago, 350 people were at the event but last year, more than 10,000 people attende
TINY HOMES AFFORDABILITY ENVIRONMENTAL NEW ZEALAND DOWN SIZING
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