‘Precedent’ in tiny home case

A tiny house nightmare in the Hutt Valley could set a significant legal precedent, a lawyer has warned.

Taita resident Jono Voss built a small, temporary dwelling and registered it as a trailer before being issued an abatement notice by the Hutt City Council, which claims it is a house, not a trailer.

His story follows that of many tiny house owners owners crying out for changes to building rules.

At an Environment Court hearing yesterday, Judge Brian Dwyer said that when he heard the term ‘‘tiny house’’, he envisaged a small dwelling which could take on a number of forms, including being hooked up to usual residential amenities. ‘‘Let’s assume this was a garage or a workshop . . . I am sure the council would come along saying exactly the same thing.’’

The council has claimed Voss built the dwelling without the consents required.

Much of the hearing was dominated by the many definitions of a ‘‘structure’’, and how his tiny house could be removed from the property. Voss said it could move, on wheels, when it was complete. He maintains that the structure, which is sitting on a friend’s section, will have wheels attached and doesn’t connect to water, electricity or waste services, and isn’t a building. The house doesn’t have wheels yet, but it was able to be moved and was registered as a trailer with the NZ Transport Agency.

Lawyer Philip Milne, acting for Voss, said tiny home builders around the country could face similar scrutiny. ‘‘This case has some precedent implications ... in terms of the number of structures around the country.’’

Voss’s tiny house was built so that it could be a vehicle, and it was not immovable, he said.

Hutt City Council lawyer Stephen Quinn said there was no way to remove the house short of cutting down a fence and taking it through a nearby school.

The house differed from the case of a campervan parked in a driveway, and it also lacked motorisation or wheels to enable it to move, Quinn said. ‘‘It contains all the elements to be a self-contained dwelling.’’

After the hearing, Judge Dwyer visited the tiny house. A decision is expected in the coming weeks.

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