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The Best Tiny Home Builders of 2020
If you’re thinking about downsizing to a tiny house, it can be tempting to try to build your own. However, with complexities like trailer selection, framing, and plumbing to consider, construction of your new house may be best left to the experts.
The best tiny home builders offer a range of floor plans, high-quality building materials, and beautiful interior finishes at a reasonable price. While these characteristics can be hard to find in a single builder, we reviewed over 20 options to find the best tiny home builder to fit your unique needs.
Final Verdict
Due to the popularity of the tiny house movement, there are a number of excellent tiny home builders to choose from. That said, the best builder ultimately depends on your needs, style preferences, and budget.
Our best overall tiny home builder—Minimaliste—stands out because of its modern and space-efficient floor plans and high-quality finishes. While the base prices of its models are somewhat higher than some options on our list, the houses are sustainable, customizable, and can accommodate up to eight people.
What Is a Tiny Home?
Tiny houses are classified as homes that are less than 400 square feet in size. These homes may be on wheels or built on a foundation—though size and local zoning regulations may restrict where you can park a tiny house. And, while some tiny houses are built to remain totally off-grid—with features like solar panels and compost toilets—many are built to hook up to standard utilities.
Is It Cheaper to Buy or Build a Tiny Home?
Generally speaking, it’s cheaper to build a tiny house than it is to buy one from a builder. On average, tiny houses cost between $30,000 and $60,000 when purchased from a builder, but the price can increase to well over $100,000. Alternatively, it usually costs between $12,000 and $35,000 for first-time builders to build a tiny house—and some can be built even more affordably.
Can You Build a Tiny Home for $5,000?
It usually costs at least $10,000 to build a tiny house, but it is possible to build one for less. In fact, there are several tiny house kits, DIY plans, and YouTube videos that make it possible to build a tiny house for around $5,000. What’s more, some DIY tiny home builders opt to save money by converting shed kits into tiny houses.
To identify the best tiny home builders, we compared over 20 companies based on a number of factors, including cost and the availability of various floor plans. We also considered the quality of materials used by each builder, the number of home models, and the extent to which customers can customize their new tiny house. Finally, we evaluated factors related to customer service, such as construction times and the availability of online quoting tools and financing.
Based on this analysis, we chose Minimaliste as our best overall pick because of the builder’s selection of beautiful, high quality, and customizable tiny homes that are available at a range of price points. Likewise, Rocky Mountain Tiny Houses is our top choice for budget-conscious buyers because its totally customizable tiny houses make it easy to find a home in an accessible price range.
Source: The Spruce
