Tiny houses have enjoyed rising popularity for the last several years globally. The demand for Tiny Houses in Aus is at an all-time high, according to Channel 9 News. They reported a boom in prospective tiny home buyers amid skyrocketing housing prices in Melbourne (2021).
Why? The flexibility to live on a budget, free up resources, and live modestly yet comfortably has become a popular way of life for singles, seniors, and expanding families worldwide.
Notwithstanding the arrival of the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme and the different First Home Owners’ Grants available throughout Australia, many prospective homeowners are priced out of the housing market. Homebuyers are shifting away from conventional homes in favor of ‘tiny homes’ as a more affordable option.
So how much does a tiny house cost? Here’s some insight on the pricing of the many Australian tiny houses for sale.
How much does a tiny house cost?
The price of Aussie Tiny Houses vary depending on whether you purchase it fully built or build it to some degree yourself.
Essentially your options are as follows (and do your research carefully because sometimes terminology around partial builds varies across tiny house companies so make sure you understand exactly what is, and isn’t, included with any particular build option.)
In order of price, from lowest cost to highest cost:
- Full DIY build, you orchestrate the build fully from scratch
- Prefab / Tiny House Kit builds – These are like an Ikea piece of furniture. You buy the pieces and assemble it completely yourself. The pieces will make up the frame and exterior of the tiny house and then it will be up to you how you choose to design and deck out the interior.
- Shell build / Lockup build — It’s at this level of build that there’s the most variation across tiny house companies in what is and isn’t included, so again do your research! At this stage, generally you get the frame, the roof, windows, doors and external cladding. You may also get things like insulation, interior walls etc Plumbing and electrical may or may not be included at this stage.
- Full build — You purchase a fully built tiny home ready to move in.
Below we explore each of these options in a bit more detail.
DIY Tiny House Build
Not for the faint hearted! Definitely the most cost effective avenue (if you do it smartly) but also the one filled with the most potential frustration and obstacles (particularly if you don’t know what you’re doing!). Speaking as someone who had previously done a cosmetic reno on a normal house but otherwise has little building experience and knowledge, who paid for a lockup build and is currently decking out the interior – it’s HARD… The builders did the hardest parts for me and yet it’s still difficult!
Yes, it is absolutely figure-outable… I am saving money by doing it myself, but honestly if I could go back in time, I’d pay for them to do a bit more of the work for me upfront. This is by far the most challenging thing I have ever voluntarily participated in. You also need a lot of tools that you probably don’t currently have if you’re not a builder and these will cost money and require a learning curve. I already know I will never do something at this level ever again (Hello qualified trades ladies and men!) and so I feel the time I’m spending to learn these tools and how to do every step of the journey isn’t necessarily a good investment of my time, I can’t see myself using these skills again in future. That’s not to say don’t do it!
Yes, it is absolutely figure-outable… I am saving money by doing it myself, but honestly if I could go back in time, I’d pay for them to do a bit more of the work for me upfront. This is by far the most challenging thing I have ever voluntarily participated in.
The DIY approach definitely has its advantages, just know that it’s not as simple and easy as many tiny house shows and articles might have you believe. If you are going the DIY route, consider working with a professional to design your build. There are many things you need to factor into a tiny house build that aren’t obvious such as which way doors open so that your kitchen still functions nicely, and how much various materials weight etc. You can check out our article on finding tiny house plans in Australia here.
Flat Pack / Prefab Tiny House
These are inspirational prefabricated small dwellings that can be constructed by the average person without any building experience or specialised tools. Even the most demanding customers will appreciate these small flat-pack designs. These range in price from around $12 000 up to $30 000 depending on the size and inclusions of the house. Check out our article on Tiny House Prefab kits here. Once you’ve assembled your pre-built frame and exterior, you will then need to build the interior from scratch yourself.
Shell / Lockup Tiny House
If you prefer to be hands-on throughout your tiny house build process but lack the construction confidence to accomplish a full DIY – A Shell build is the option for you. Purchasing a tiny house shell allows you to eliminate the safety issues associated with constructing a sturdy home while also eliminating the labour expenses associated with constructing the full home, by completing the less structural aspects of the build yourself. Shells range in cost from around $35 000 – $75 000 depending on exactly what is and isn’t included.
Full Tiny House Build
With a full build, all the work is done for you! You can choose an existing design, or work with the company to custom design your tiny house. In either case, the tiny house company then builds the entire house for you, and you get to move in to your beautiful new home without the hardwork and stress associated with doing it yourself.
These start from $85 000 and most are below $130 000 although you do find fully completed builds here in Aus costing as much as $150 000 if you go really upmarket or really big etc.
Aside from the option to buy or construct, the following things will also impact your overall cost:
- Tiny Home size.
- Your Chosen Tiny House Builder
- Design and type of building materials
- Whether you’re building on wheels or on a base (skids).
- The appliances that you choose
The Size: What Constitutes a Tiny Home?
A tiny home, as per the Australian Tiny House Association (ATHA), is a mobile residence of up to 50m2 in size that is appropriate for residential use. A tiny home is a compact dwelling that has a kitchen, living space, bathroom, and a bed or a sleeping loft It may be on wheels or on skids (discussed further below).
Most tiny houses here in Aus are 7.5m long though legally they can be up to 12m long. There are weight restrictions that must be considered however so as soon as you go above 8m long you have to very very careful you’re not exceeding these restrictions.
As the size of your tiny increases, so do the costs associated with buying/building it.
Your Chosen Tiny House Builder
As with any industry and product, different Australian tiny house companies offer different price points. Sometimes higher prices reflect a higher level of materials and quality, but not always. Sometimes higher prices are simply a reflection of a bigger profit margin or higher overheads and this is why it’s important that you really research and understand what is being included in a build before choosing who to build with.
Sometimes higher prices reflect a higher level of materials and quality, but not always.
Another important consideration in choosing who to build with is the location of your tiny house builder. Once your tiny house build is complete and ready to be delivered to you, you will probably need to pay a towing company to tow it for you. Towing of tiny houses is pretty pricey and is based largely on either the distance traveled, or the time taken for the delivery. In either case, the further your tiny house needs to be towed, the higher your delivery costs will be. Keep this in mind when choosing your tiny house builder.
If you can find a tiny house company that’s not too far from where you live you can also go down and see the build progressing in person which is exciting, and you may be able to work with the builder in person whilst customising the design of your build, which can be easier than communicating through email.
Tiny House Design and Quality Building Materials
What you choose to build your tiny house out of has huge implications for your overall costs.
Even when purchasing a full build from a tiny house company you often have the choice between different building materials such as different exterior cladding brands or different woods.
Living in a small space, aesthetics are often considered very important, you will be hanging out in the same 20ish square metres for a lot of your hours so feeling good in them is important. People often justify getting higher priced fixtures and furnishings in a tiny house because overall the cost are so much lower than in a conventional house and they feel these extra investments are worthwhile.
Whichever way you choose to go, your choice of materials and how smartly you source them, can make a HUGE difference to how much your tiny ends up costing you.
Tiny House on Wheels (THOW) vs. Tiny House on Skids (THOS)
While a tiny house on wheels is obviously moveable, a tiny house on skids appears to be a fixed structure. Skids are beams or rails that your tiny house slides onto. In actual fact Tiny Houses on skids are also transportable, they can be slid on and off their skids and transported on the back of a truck (as opposed to behind a truck like their THOW counterparts).
A significant cost in tiny houses on wheels is the trailer itself, often costing at least $14 000 so omitting this from the build can be financially appealing. If you intend to build your own tiny house on skids, you may keep your spending as low as $20,000, with detailed planning.
On the other hand, the majority of tiny home builders exclusively construct tiny houses on wheels in Australia. This is attributable to the fact that a tiny house on wheels is currently categorised as a caravan.
If your tiny house does not have wheels, it is no longer classed as a caravan and may be subject to the restrictions and costs associated with creating more standard housing.
The Tiny House Appliances you choose to include
Just as in a normal house, you need to choose the appliances that will go into your tiny house. There is huge variation in price across different brands and types of appliances and so these choices also have a large impact on your overall costs.
When choosing appliances for a tiny house, you must factor in not only cost but also the dimensions of the appliance, the weight, and how it is fueled. For example, will you go with a gas powered cooktop, electrical cooktop or induction style cooktop? If you have plans to take your tiny house off-grid, or want to at least keep that as a possibility for your tiny, you need to choose appliances that won’t add too much of a power load. You can read more about this in our article on solar panels.
There are a number of online retailers that offer appliances, furniture and fixtures at prices that are often better than what you’ll find in your standard retail store. Some of the best ones we’ve found are:
Key Takeaways
- It’s usually less expensive to construct a tiny house as a DIY than to buy one ready-made.
- In the case of shell build and flat-pack options, you can cut down on labour costs by decking out the interior yourself.
- The price of a tiny house will depend on various aspects, including the builders from which you purchase it, whether it is new or used, to what stage you get it built by someone else (prefab, shell, lockup, full build etc), the quality of materials you choose, and which appliances you opt to have installed.
- Your tiny house can be on wheels or on skids and this impacts how much your tiny home will cost + how it is treated legislatively.
Conclusion
No matter which way you choose to go with your tiny house build it’s going to cost you far less than a conventional build. That said, there is HUGE variation in how much Aussie tiny houses cost and the choices you make at each step of the way have significant implications for your overall investment.
One of the major drawcards of tiny house living is a reduction in lifestyle costs. If this is a motivating factor for you, it is worth doing your research thoroughly at the outset so you have a full and clear understanding of your options. The amount you spend to have the tiny house built needs to make sense financially in alignment with your overall life and financial goals.
Head over to our Tiny House Builders pages now and start assessing your options.
More Tiny Houses Aus Posts
Ready to read more about owning a tiny house? Check out these great posts!
- Looking For Tiny Home Financing? Here’s How You Can Do It. Click to find out more.
- Tiny house living in Australia – Is it for you? Click to find out.
- Looking for where you can get insurance? Check out the Top 5 Tiny House Insurance Companies in Australia!
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4 Comments
Hi Kathleen,
This is not something we’ve seen done npreviously but I certainly see no reason why it couldn’t be done. All tiny houses have bathrooms and toilets in them and so there’s no reason that they couldn’t have multiple basins/toiletse etc.
You could certainly reach out to some of the builders listed in our directory (https://tinyhousesaus.com.au/listing-category/builders/) around your area and ask them if this is something they would be willing to quote you on.
Cheers,
Jules and the Tiny Houses Aus Team
Hi good day. I’m Singapore citizen man Indian. Like to buy a tiny house in Australia. Pls tell me more
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Hi There,
I just saw your add on Facebook. I’m not interested in hiring a house, but your promotion sparked my curiosity about something else.
I am a member of a Sporting Club on the YP and I was wondering if you ever create small toilet/shower/change room blocks?
Thank you,
Kathleen