A spare room for small change

cabins and sheds throughout the North Island. Pike says the biggest shift he’s noticed is that people now want to turn them into self-contained units so they can rent them out.

‘‘We’ve noticed real growth in the number of people who want a self-contained unit and so are prepared to go down the building consent route,’’ Pike says. ‘‘They want to put the ensuite and cooking facilities in there and list it on Airbnb. It’s all about getting that extra bit of income.’’

But the cheapest way to add a sleepout is to avoid the need for building or resource consent altogether.

The Building Act exempts them from this requirement providing they are no bigger than 10sqm in floor area, are a single storey less than 3.5m tall and less than 1m off the ground and be placed at least the equivalent of their height away from the boundary.

They also can’t have sanitary or cooking facilities or a drinking water supply, but instead must have an associated dwelling on the property that provides these things.

If someone’s sleeping in them, smoke alarms and a hinged exit door must be included, and any electrical work be done by a registered electrician.

Other rules such as maximum site coverage can sometimes apply so it pays to double check with your local council about the rules for your particular property.

Wanaka interior designer Anna Begg of The Workroom transformed what was a tool shed at the bottom of her garden into a cosy guest sleepout. The DIY project gained her a finalist spot in NZ House & Garden magazine’s recent Interior of the Year awards.

Armed with plenty of white paint and ingenuity, Begg and her boyfriend refurbished the space for under $2000.

Half of that cost was for the grooved ply she used to line the walls, which she says ‘‘adds a subtle detail to the walls and gives it that feeling of a cabin’’.

She insulated the sleepout with pink batts and added a rug for extra warmth and texture.

The door to her shed was so tiny, a $75 vintage spring bed with fold-down legs was the only bed option that would fit.

And while Begg’s mini gingerbread house had plenty of character from the get go, she says even a new, kitset sleepout can be made homely with a few finishing touches. ‘‘