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Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART House


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Looking for a tiny house design that will work for you even as you age? This 10×28 Willamette Farmhouse model was specially-designed by Tiny SMART House for a client who wanted a wheelchair-friendly aging-in-place tiny house!

All the door frames fit a wheelchair, and there is proper space for turning everywhere. The counter tops are built to sitting height, and the client opted for a Murphy bed that transforms into a desk during the day time so her bed could stay on the ground floor. The walk-in shower features two shower seats and a grab bar. And there’s even a doggie door so her pets can get in and out without her straining!

She has her own independent space parked behind her family’s home. Perfect solution for getting older! What do you think?

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Tiny SMART House Builds Aging-in-Place Tiny House!

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

The kitchen is created with counter tops that are at sitting height.

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

Here’s the Murphy bed folded down for sleeping.

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

And here it is in “desk” position.

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

The bathroom is spacious to allow for wheelchair turning radius.

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

The shower has a grab bar and two seats.

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

The exterior is clean and simple, but Tiny SMART House can customize it to your tastes!

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

What color would you want your growing-older tiny house to be?

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

Such a great option for a “granny flat.”

Aging-in-Place Tiny House on Wheels by Tiny SMART Home

Images via Tiny SMART House

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Natalie C. McKee

Natalie C. McKee is a contributor for Tiny House Talk and the Tiny House Newsletter. She's a wife, and mama of three little kids. She and her family are homesteaders with sheep, goats, chickens, ducks and quail on their happy little acre.
{ 18 comments… add one }
  • PMHTX
    May 21, 2020, 8:04 am

    Very nice but with all the universal design choices I’m puzzled why she wouldn’t have opted for a barrier free shower. Also, I didn’t see a ramp or mention of one but that can be readily added at a later time as needed.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      May 21, 2020, 1:23 pm

      Sorry there is a ramp where it’s parked now. Should have mentioned that!

      • PMHTX
        June 8, 2020, 7:36 pm

        I understand. Ramps aren’t for everyone and they can detract from the appearance of any home.

    • June 8, 2020, 4:41 pm

      Thank you for the compliment. We understand about the shower. However, in this case, this client searched for exactly what she wanted and had us install it. We are here with our expertise, not to override the client’s desire in her home.

      • PMHTX
        June 8, 2020, 7:45 pm

        I knew it had to be a client choice but I still wonder about it. In my opinion barrier free showers are simply more attractive, easier to navigate and clean in addition to providing better access to people with mobility or other issues.

        I think it’s great that their tiny house is built using universal design and gives hope that tiny houses are adaptable for many.

  • Dyan Guarrera
    May 21, 2020, 2:00 pm

    How is a person in a wheelchair supposed to get a murphy bed up and down? I can barely do that myself! PS- barrier-free shower entry is the way to go. I have one and love it.

    • James D.
      May 21, 2020, 9:17 pm

      Murphy beds depend on the hardware used, so can be easy to hard, full manual to automatic/motorized. But the better ones tend to jump a lot in pricing as the trade off.

      While there’s a few things to consider with a curb-less.. In addition to the added cost, which can be an additional $500 to $700. There’s also what it can mean to the design of the tiny house itself.

      Mind, it’s on a trailer and that means you have limited space in the floor to work with to provide the proper slope for the water on the floor to flow everything to the drain, in addition to fit the plumbing beneath with insulation, etc. So the floor may need to be raised/thickened to make that all work. Especially, in colder climates where the floor has to be thick enough to enclose the plumbing and not just have it hang below the trailer and the drainage lines have to have room for the slope needed for gravity to draw everything down and that’s usually the most significant design limitation that has to be worked around…

      While to avoid any step ups/down, it could mean the entire floor for the whole home may need to be uniformly raised, and that can start making the cost difference more significant, which can also effect available headroom as max road legal height caps the max height and thus the thicker the floor, etc. is then the less max headroom will be available.

      Though, not an issue with a single level home, but can be for those who want to make the most use of vertical space with lofts, etc… Or alternatively, the bathroom can have its own ramp…

      Everything has trade offs…

      • May 22, 2020, 12:40 pm

        Thank you for your well-versed response. We agree. In this case, we worked with what the client wanted. And the custom-designed Murphy Bed is easy for the client to pull down. It also has a desk when upright that she doesn’t need to clean off each time she moves the bed.

  • Larry Burns
    May 21, 2020, 9:35 pm

    To put all that money in a nice deck and no roof over it makes it not a retirement home. Retired people don’t want to sit out in the hot sun. It rains a lot in Florida. You need a roof over the deck.

    • May 22, 2020, 12:45 pm

      It rains often here in Oregon too! It may be hard to see from these photos, but there is a roof over her deck. However, since she is right next to her family’s home – she most often goes over there to socialize.

  • Jane
    May 22, 2020, 4:48 pm

    I like the low fence close around the house. It almost acts like a skirt, hides all the “life support” for the house and hopefully keeps the tiny house peepers at bay.

  • Bruce
    June 5, 2020, 8:45 pm

    I would have expected to see grab bars next to the toilet for someone who wants to “age-in-place”.

    • June 8, 2020, 4:36 pm

      Thanks for your suggestion. Tiny SMART House is a custom builder, and we put in what the client wants. I believe more useful items were installed later. And more to be installed as the client’s need grows.

  • Maryanne Simmons
    June 16, 2020, 8:20 am

    I would like to see the price. I need to be near my daughter. This is the best design that I have seen. Delivery charges, permits for travel. Etc.

  • June 17, 2020, 2:51 pm

    Hi Maryanne,
    Thank you for the compliment! We would love to help you out. Each tiny home we build is customized for each client’s needs. As Natalie suggested, check out our website to see the models. Please fill out the contact form (and feel free to let us know you saw the house here!) and I will send you pricing (based on model and length, to start).
    Best,
    Stacey
    Project Mananger

  • Sandra Hooks
    July 17, 2020, 12:38 pm

    I am looking to have a small house built in my backyard for me, so my daughter and her family can live in the “big” house.
    I like the tiny house concept, but I d like an additional room for an office/ craft room/storage area…probably two of these together.

    • Natalie C. McKee
      July 17, 2020, 1:09 pm

      That would be cool! Or sometimes people have smaller 10×10 structures that could act like a she-shed of sorts.

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