Five printable guides · one toolkit
The Going Tiny Toolkit
Find what’s really holding you back from a smaller, simpler home, and get a plan for it you can start this week.
Instant download · 5 PDF guides + bonus floor plan book · 30-day refund
I asked you what was holding you back. 684 of you answered.
On New Year’s Day 2015, I asked Tiny House Talk readers a simple question: what’s really stopping you from going tiny, going small, or simplifying?
The comments kept coming for weeks, and they were honest. I read every one again this year, and almost all of them came down to five things:
“My biggest fear is that I will never be able to afford to make my tiny house dreams a reality.”
— Charity, 2015
“The only thing stopping me from going tiny, preferably on wheels, is where to park it.”
— Wendy, 2015
“Climbing ladders and stairs is in my past, not my future, so, rather than tiny, I’d need to look small instead.”
— Lis, 2015
“What is holding me back is different goals between my husband and myself.”
— Bev, 2015
“All I know how to do is make tiny sketches on random scraps of paper each time I have another idea.”
— G.E., 2015
“My biggest challenge in one word is fear.”
— Rebecca, 2015
Money. A place to put it. A body that can’t do the loft ladder anymore. A partner or family who isn’t sure. And not knowing where to start. I wrote one short, practical guide for each of them, with printable worksheets and a plan in every one. Together they’re the Going Tiny Toolkit.
And just so it’s said: you don’t have to go tiny. Smaller, simpler, and happier counts too. A park model, a backyard cottage, a cabin, or a smaller house in town are all in here.
What’s inside: five guides, one for each blocker
Start with whichever one is stopping you. Each guide stands on its own.
Guide 1 · Money
The Tiny House Money Plan
For the most common answer by far: I don’t have the money.
- ✓Real 2026 cost ranges for tiny houses, park models, ADUs, cabins, and conversions
- ✓The cheapest legal way to live smaller, based on your situation
- ✓A savings plan that works on any income, and the real math on selling the big house
- ✓Every way people actually pay, plus insurance and how to spot scams
52 pages · 7 printable worksheets · a step-by-step action plan · $17 on its own
Guide 2 · Land and zoning
Where Can I Put It?
For I have nowhere to put it, the second most common answer.
- ✓Why “RV or house?” decides everything, and who controls what
- ✓How to research your zoning in one afternoon
- ✓Call scripts and email templates for the zoning office
- ✓Parking and land options ranked, a land-buying checklist, and what to do when the answer is no
52 pages · 7 printable worksheets · a step-by-step action plan · $17 on its own
Guide 3 · Lofts, aging, and accessibility
Tiny Without the Ladder
For I can’t climb a loft ladder, and for anyone planning a home to grow old in.
- ✓One-level layouts that actually work, and how to right-size honestly
- ✓The accessibility dimensions that matter: doors, turning space, showers, reach
- ✓Safety: egress, alarms, falls, and staying near care
- ✓Comes with the bonus One-Level Floor Plan Idea Book (below)
50 pages · 7 printable worksheets · a step-by-step action plan · $17 on its own
Guide 4 · Partners and family
Bringing Them On Board
For my spouse isn’t on board, written so nobody has to win.
- ✓What’s really underneath the “no”
- ✓How to start the conversation, plus low-risk ways to try tiny before anyone decides
- ✓Designing a small home for two or more, with kids, teens, or grandkids
- ✓Extended family, caregiving, and what to do if you still disagree
45 pages · 7 printable worksheets · a step-by-step action plan · $12 on its own
Guide 5 · Where to start
Your First Tiny Steps
For I don’t know where to start, and the sketches on scraps of paper.
- ✓The five big decisions, and why the order matters
- ✓A space-needs calculator and a guide to picking your kind of small
- ✓Build, buy, or in between, and how to choose a builder without getting burned
- ✓Systems basics (power, water, waste, heat, air) and a 90-day roadmap
51 pages · 7 printable worksheets · a step-by-step action plan · $17 on its own
Two bonuses, included
BONUS 01
The One-Level Floor Plan Idea Book
43 pages: 18 to-scale, one-level floor plans with no loft required, plus 40 layout patterns for kitchens, baths, and bedrooms you can mix and match.
BONUS 02
What’s Really Holding You Back? Quiz
A 10-minute printable quiz. Your highest score tells you which guide to open first, so you don’t have to read all five at once.
In every guide
- ✓Printable worksheets (35 in all) for budgets, zoning calls, room-by-room needs, family conversations, and builder interviews
- ✓A step-by-step action plan at the end of each guide, so you finish with something done, not just something read
- ✓More than 40 real homes and families from Tiny House Talk, each with a photo, credit, and a link (or QR code) to the full story
- ✓Vetted outside resources for codes, ADUs, financing, and accessibility, so you know where to look next
- ✓Plain language, no jargon, and phone scripts with an email version beside every one
All five guides + both bonuses
$47
The five guides are $80 bought separately. One-time payment, yours to keep.
30-day, no-questions refund
Prefer to read it free? Please do.
Starting October 19, I’m publishing every chapter of the Toolkit free on Tiny House Talk, one a day for 45 days. It’s called the Going Tiny Series, and it’s the same writing.
The Toolkit is for you if you’d rather have it all now, in clean PDFs you can print and keep, with the worksheets, action plans, and floor plan book that aren’t on the blog. It also helps keep Tiny House Talk going, and I’m grateful either way.
This is for you if
- You’ve been dreaming about a tiny or small home for a while and want a real plan.
- You’re stuck on more than one thing, like money and land, or design and a skeptical spouse.
- You like to print things out, write on them, and check boxes.
- You’d consider “small,” a backyard cottage, a park model, or an RV, not only a 200-square-foot tiny house.
It isn’t
- Construction plans or carpentry instructions. These are planning guides, not blueprints.
- Legal or financial advice for your county. It shows you how to find those answers and who to ask.
- A promise that tiny will change your life or save you a fortune.
- A decluttering guide. That’s Tidy to Tiny (Or Not).
Questions
Is this one big book?
No. It’s five short guides, each about 45 to 52 pages, so you can start with the one that matters most and leave the rest for later.
Is it current?
Yes. It was written in 2026, with current codes (including the 2024 IRC tiny house appendix), ADU trends, and financing options.
Is it printed?
It’s digital: PDFs you download right away. Print them at home or at a copy shop. The worksheets are made for printing, so print as many copies as your household needs.
Isn't this free on the blog?
The writing is, and I mean that. Starting October 19, every chapter runs free on Tiny House Talk, one a day, in the Going Tiny Series. The Toolkit is for people who want it all now in clean PDFs, with the printable worksheets, the 30-day plans, and the floor plan book, which aren’t on the blog.
Is this legal or financial advice?
No. The guides show you how to find the answers for your county and your situation, and who to ask. They don’t replace a local official, lender, or attorney.
I already bought one guide. Can I get credit?
Yes. Reply to your receipt email and we’ll take care of you.
What if it isn't for me?
Email within 30 days for a full refund. No questions asked.
Take one step this week
Take the quiz, open the one guide that fits, and do the first worksheet. That’s it. The other four will be there when you’re ready.
Secure checkout · instant download · 30-day refund
You don’t have to go tiny. Smaller, simpler, and happier counts too.
By Alex Pino · Published by Tiny House Media, LLC · © 2026
