Let’s get small!
TINY HOME CRAZE REACHES INTO SOUTHERN ALBERTA, BUT REGULATIONS MUST STILL BE FOLLOWED
The tiny house movement is sweeping across North America and Lethbridge will soon have one of its own. Jennifer McCarthy started Teacup Tiny Homes because she saw a “real need in the marketplace for different housing options that have quality but are affordable.”
Her first project “The Not-So-Lonely Wanderer,” is a 300-sq. ft. tiny home that doesn’t skimp on style. Once construction is complete, it will feature a king-size loft, full bathroom and kitchen, living space with a sectional couch and 50-inch television, propane appliances including a washer/dryer combo, and plenty of storage space.
That all fits into a 24-foot long, 8’ 6” wide, 13’ 6” tall structure.
“The whole basis is they’re affordable, they’re sustainable, you can take them anywhere (they’re flexible), it lowers your cost of living, and they’re smaller — you’re making less of a carbon footprint when you’re living in them,” said McCarthy.
“It’s tiny living and that’s what’s so great,” she continued. “You can have all these fancy things you ever dreamed of and you just put it into a little package.”
This prototype model retails around $85,000, but McCarthy said tiny homes can be built for as low as $35,000. Teacup Tiny Homes will have several design plans to choose from or they can create something brand new.
“Affordability is really key. It doesn’t matter if you want a cabin or if you want a bunkhouse with an awesome kitchen and a toilet on the farm. The sky is the limit,” she said. “If there is something you think you want, let’s put it on paper and see what we come up with.”
With 14 years of experience in residential construction, McCarthy said her new venture is the perfect fit.
“I really love design and they are so design-savvy,” she said. “It was right up my alley. There was a need and I believe I can help people afford their dreams.”
Tiny homes have been popping up in larger cities like Vancouver and Toronto where house prices are high, and people are looking for an affordable option to own their own home.
McCarthy said there have been lots of inquiries locally so far, from country dwellers to city slickers.
“Lots of interest. They do want to be able to live in a smaller home in Lethbridge,” she said. “Due to our bylaws right now, there would be some working around to do but I’m really looking forward to working with the city and changing those so there are more affordable housing options.”
McCarthy has met with City of Lethbridge development officers to discuss some of the regulatory challenges her new venture may face.
She’s also been working with Tiny Home Alliance Canada over the past few weeks. THAC is comprised of tiny home entrepreneurs across the country who are working together towards common goals.
“There’s probably three to five different groups in Canada that are all trying to get tiny home codes changed, so we’re like, let’s come together and all work together instead of you guys doing it and us doing it, too,” said McCarthy.
One group has presented a formal document to the National Research Council, which is step one of getting new codes adopted into the national building code, she explained, and they’re in their “next step phases” right now.
“Tiny Homes are kind of a new phenomenon,” said Jeff Greene, director of Planning and Development for the City of Lethbridge. “They started out in a number of different cities and invariably what they discover is there is both land-use regulation and building code requirements they would have to attend to depending on how they want to introduce tiny homes to the market.”
As it stands right now, it would be up to the tiny home builder to follow the appropriate building codes for either a permanent residence or a recreational vehicle, he explained. In addition, the unit would have to meet the proper land-use and zoning regulations for a primary, secondary, or recreational residence.
Under the City’s Land Use Bylaw, a residential lot must have a “Principle” building/use on it (usually a single family residence). Any other building on the same lot would be considered an “Accessory” (or secondary) building/use.
If the tiny home were the “Principle” dwelling on a lot, it must be on a foundation and therefore must be serviced municipally and meet Part 9 of the Alberta Building Code. If the tiny home were an “Accessory” building, then it would also have to be on a foundation and serviced, but would be considered similar to a basement or garage suite.
“Depending on the zoning, it may or may not be allowed because in some cases you can’t do a secondary unit,” said Greene. “The other side is, if the unit is allowed, you can’t sell it to somebody, you can only rent it, because you can only have one primary residence on an individual property title.”
Then an owner would need to look at subdividing the lot in two, he said.
“Part of the challenge with a typical single family neighbourhood is when people buy their home, on their property there’s a set of rights that go along with it. If you start to look at subdividing it or putting in tiny homes or second residences, then the question becomes what does that do to parking? What does that do to infrastructure? Is the neighbourhood supportive?”
Aside from city zoning requirements, there could be “developer encumbrances” to watch out for, which could also limit what you can legally do with the land.
If the tiny home was placed on a lot with a “Principle” building but was left on wheels, it would be considered to be like a recreational vehicle but it wouldn’t be hooked up to municipal services.
“So the changes that some of the tiny homes companies have been advocating are changes to code that have a different standard and changes to land-use requirements,” said Greene. “We’d be prepared to work with anyone that comes forward with a new idea.”
Greene advises anyone who is thinking about buying a tiny home to consider where they’re going to locate it.
“Make sure you have the right legal advice so you can actually occupy it at the end of the day,” he said.
Another alternative that’s been popping up in some areas is the “tiny home village.” In this case, a larger piece of land could be purchased and subdivided to place a series of tiny homes, much like a condo development.
McCarthy admits this is something she has been considering. She has a realtor on board to help scout out any potential locations.
“That is my dream actually, is to have a tiny home community,” she said. “Finding the land is step one. Then coming up with a proposal. Everyday I’m working on that.”
Although it’s still under construction, MCarthy estimates the “Wanderer” will take a total of 12 weeks to build. However, she projects they could build a tiny home in as little as 6-8 weeks.
“There’s an amazing team of tradespeople that I’ve worked with for years,” she said. “We forge ahead together and we problem solve together.”
The “Not-So-Lonely-Wanderer” will make its public debut at the Home and Garden Trade Show from March 22-25 at Exhibition Park.
For more information on Teacup Tiny Homes, visit