This is the Blue ADU Tiny House (384 sq. ft.) near Downtown Asheville. It features a wonderful first-floor design (no upstairs or lofts) and is built by Nanostead.
What do you think? Would you live in a tiny house on a foundation kind of like this one? How would you customize it to make it better for yourself?
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Blue ADU Tiny House Built by Nanostead

Photos: Nanostead
So many wonderful details to appreciate in this Nanostead cottage. The built-in desk in the kitchen, the Dutch Door, the windows…

Photos: Nanostead
The couch looks really comfortable. This little cottage is so cozy and livable!

Photos: Nanostead
There’s a mini-split air system and ceiling fan for air circulation.

Photos: Nanostead
It also has the perfect built-in entertainment center in the living area. Very nice!

Photos: Nanostead
Can you see yourself getting cozy in here?

Photos: Nanostead
The bathroom is basic and functional.

Photos: Nanostead
Fully tiled shower. Looks super-nice!

Photos: Nanostead
The bedroom is on the main floor, and as you see, is open-layout like a studio. How about that awesome dutch door? I LOVE these…

Photos: Nanostead
It’s 384-sq.-ft. of bliss in this Nanostead cabin…

Photos: Nanostead
Highlights
- Single-story 384 sq. ft. ADU tiny home
- Built by Nanostead
- Takes about 4 months to build
- Dutch entry door
- Painted white pine board and batten siding
- Clerestory windows
- Hickory wood flooring
- Tile bathroom and shower
- Built-in media center
- Work desk built-in to the kitchen
- Built for $70,000.00
Description from Nanostead
This house is a single story 384 square foot accessory dwelling unit. It takes about four months to build and has some interesting things happening with it. Notice the timber frames eyebrows, the painted white pine board and batten siding, Dutch entry door and the many clerestory windows above. It has beautiful hickory flooring a tile bathroom and shower along with a media nook and work desk built into the kitchen cabinets. This home was built for $70,000.00.
Learn more: http://nanostead.com/
Can you see yourself living tiny in a cabin like this?
Enjoy these other Nanostead cabins…
- Custom Tiny House on a Foundation Built by Nanostead
- Hawk Creek ADU Tiny Cabin by Nanostead in North Carolina
Our big thanks to Jeramy Stauffer of Nanostead for sharing!🙏
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Love this model! I would however not need the high end finishes shown. My goal is to have a small home with no or little mortgage to pay. Downsize and get rid of all the things I thought I needed. I have discovered over the years there are certain things I do not need including wood floors, tile, SS appliances, beams, built-ins, expensive cabinets or fixtures. I have done my due diligence in shopping for comparable items and know I can make this look fabulous. I do however love the Dutch door and awnings? on the exterior. With that being said, what do you think the base price would be without the upgrades? Again love it and thanks ahead for your reply.
Nancy, just thought I would tell you that I stayed in the cutest AirBnB that was so similar to this unit and it was more like what your thinking and it was fab!! Finished concrete floors that looked just fantastic and the finishes were not fancy but perfectly lovely and everything you need. It was a little bugger than this spot but was also an accessory dwelling with the shed roof. I loved it and could absolutely see myself in that type of small home too. Simple, easy to maintain and clean, affordable, and lovely. Perfect!!
It was a little bugger than this spot… well bugger me down. Who knew that a bugger was a thing… LOL
Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments. We are still working on our website and we will have floor plans to view soon!
Please contact Nanostead for any further information about this home and others!
Thank you
With a finished wall to the ceiling, it becomes a one bedroom instead of a studio. All you have to add is the Barn Door in the area behind the TV wall to slide over the entry. Some photo’s without the fisheye would help a lot with scale and proportions for most of us. The idea that you have to make the rooms bigger is not where your market is, (an old real estate sales trick) that probably detracts from your market. Another shot from the other bedroom corner showing the Bath entry would help a lot for the unimaginative viewers.
Hey can u put in floor heating in this? I live in Wisconsin and love the design
I love this! Aesthetically pleasing and looks really comfortable. And well built. The location in that pretty garden doesn’t hurt, either! It would be great if Nanostead would share the floor plan for this. My biggest question is whether there is a clothes closet.
I would bet the two sliding doors in the bedroom are for at least one closet if not two. This is a very well thought out house. Kudos to the designers and builders. I know of homeless families who would be delighted to live in a house like this.
I’m thinking those sliding doors next to the bedroom area are the access doors to the bathroom rather than closets.
Bathroom isn’t that big… So one for the bathroom but the other should be a closet…
Sliding doors are for 1 closet and a bath!
I like it but would prefer that the bedroom had 4 walls rather than be a studio.
I think a small island near the kitchen would fit in there also…
Are the plans for this home available for purchase ?
Wish I could have seen the floor plan. it’s not even on their website
Wow. This is really nice. I could easily live here!!😍
the term is board and batten, not baton, just FYI.
Fixed! Thanks Mary! 🙂
Kelli, do you have the listing # for the AirBnB? Would love to see this one.
Love this !! Just wondering what size this is and where could I buy one !!! Very serious and have 10,000 to put down
They’re a builder so you could see about ordering to have one build by them, depending on where and what the local zoning allows…
I believe this model is listed as 384 sq. ft. and they have at least two other models… Apparently, they’re still working on the website… So details are limited for now…
A full size fridge would be better if one is planning on living there full time rather than as a rental unit. Otherwise, I like everything else about it even if the bedroom area isn’t sequestered with 4-walls and a door. A nice drape curtain would look just as nice to set the bedroom off from the rest of the open rooms.
full size fridges are for people who keep food in the house. some of us don’t. we don’t cook. The fridge is great for yoguart, a few veggies, cheese and creamo.
Would want a full size fridge and room for a washer/dryer but otherwise PERFECT!
Agreed! i couldn’t live here more than several days without a full-sized refrigerator and washer/dryer. I do cook. You might be able to afford a house if you did cook instead of eating out all the time.
Whatever is “creamo?” Never heard of it.
I agree with you, Vicki and Catherine. I would want a full size fridge , room for washer/dryer, and somehow find space for a drop-leaf table. Otherwise, than that, it’s ideal.
I love this layout of this tiny house.
Very pretty. I like the extra living space a lot.
I live in Asheville and while there are special zoning regulations here that allow the construction of these ADU (Accessory Dwelling Units), which can be up to 800 SF, they can only be built on property that already has a primary residence on them. You can not build these on a residential lot unless you already own a lot with a residence on it. In essence, this allowance was created in 2015 so that current homeowners can build a rental unit for additional income on their property.
In order to build your own small home on a residential lot here, the home must be on a solid foundation and be at least 600 SF and conform to all NC building codes. Also, neither Asheville nor the surrounding county (Buncombe) allows tiny houses to be placed on a property as a permanent residence.
Regina, it’s a given that a ADU has to be placed on a property that already has a primary residence on them.
That’s the issue with designating them as a ADU as legally, designating something as a “Accessory” means it can’t be by itself and must compliment something else, regardless of whether it can exist and function on its own or not.
The heart of the problem is the system is heavily geared to the protection of property values vs the realities of the housing market and how it is becoming unsustainable and no longer meeting the needs of everyone.
Allowing just ADU’s is thus a loophole that allows the optional co-existence of Tiny Houses that doesn’t directly threaten property values but still allows some of the benefits of Tiny Houses to be realized.
This can be seen in other allowances for tiny houses in other states, like in Aiken County, SC they will allow even a THOW as long as the property is at least 2 acres with 50 feet distance from the public road and it’s the only home on the property… While this offers a lot more freedom of choices than you see in your state it similarly is still a compromise, as this was set up so as to ensure the Tiny Houses would not threaten local property values and as a more viable option than setting up more RV parks as the alternative.
Between 30%-40% of the total wealth of the nation is stored in real estate… This is why the last housing bubble crash had such a massive effect on the economy but also why there is so much resistance to reforming the housing market despite how bad it is getting in many parts of the country and the fact the next housing crash will be a lot worse.
That said, there are ways you can still make a ADU your primary residence by either…
A) Rent out your big house and live in your ADU…
B) Have an employer who will let you place an ADU on company land…
C) Land share with someone who already has a primary residence on the property…
D) Rent, instead of own, an ADU as your primary residence, like you would rent any other house or apartment…
Though, you can look to see if they allow co-op overlays as that would allow the property to be split up and the section the ADU is on can then be it’s own separately owned property, but that can take many years and even decades, as again, to protect property values…
Needless to say, we’ll eventually will need better solutions than they’re allowing now but advocates are slowly chipping away at that and are making slow but steady progress so far…
Absolutely beautiful interior and exterior. This one’s a winner!
Wanted to say thanks again to everyone!.. We are still working on the site and will have a ton more information in the coming months. These are actually custom builds but could easily transferred as models. The pricing is based on our work with our clients to help with affordability!.. We build anything from THOWS, cabins and ADUs to homes maxing at 1200 sq. Ft. Our reach is limited but as we grow we will expand our reach. We help with DIY projects and do design and consultation for people all over!
Have a great day!
I really like this house!
The kitchen is nicely laid out.
The living room shows just how much impact something simple like a little stub wall can be, especially in a small living area.
A master execution of “painting in broad strokes”.
The bathroom is to die for! Very well done, boys.
My only gripes with this place would be the bedroom needs some kind of divider to set it off from the kitchen (a simple draw curtain would be perfect in this case) and I think the “work area” could be better used as extra counter space for the kitchen. This would also allow allow room for a larger refrigerator.
…anyway, consider the gripes, “food for thought”. Overall, however, I think nanostead should pat themselves on the back for a very well thought out and livable, space. Good goin’, guys. =)
The interior photos are not of the same house as the exterior. The windows on the ends are not the same at all. Its hard to tell due to the distortion from the wide angle photography, but the inside also looks much wider than the outside would allow .
No, the photos all match up… It’s just a open concept/studio type layout…
On the left side, from entering the front door, is the kitchen and living room… You can see the two exterior front windows in the photo showing the kitchen… While the bedroom has one window on the right side of the door, matching up exactly to the exterior photo of the front of the building.
The living room is deeper than the bedroom because it’s not sharing the space and goes all the way to the back of the building. While the back side of the building for the bedroom is taken up by the bathroom and closet… and there’s a dividing wall separating the living room from the bedroom/bathroom/closet side of the house, but there’s no wall separating the kitchen from the view of the bedroom and you can see the front door as the only separation point there…
Cute! Lovely!
As I like this builder thought process and with his location, I am thinking it is time to build some ADU structures with a dome or arched roof systems. We are going to be having a LOT of wind issues for the world east of the Rockey Mountains and building for that is probably an open market as most builders STILL have not seen the paradigm shift to small homes. I have been designing some of these at 4Fathoms Designs and taking the skills of this builder and Ideas of Van Zyle we could be at the forefront of some great ADU magic.
I REALLY like the layout of this house. One thing i would do is build a raised floor in the bedroom area that had a roll out bed under it. Then have a nice office/den above.
Is this unit available for rent? We would like to try this out before committing to a purchase. Could you put us in touch with the owner?
Like this home alot, especially it’s on one floor. The bathroom is nicely laid out. Bedroom with a closet, awesome. The desk and Dutch door are unique in a tiny house and both nice features. I would love to live in such a sweet home.
Stunning!! Really love the design and the furnishings.
CAN THESE BE MADE WITH 2 BEDROOMS ONE LARGE AND ON SMALL 8FT BX10 OR 12 FT.
Is this all one floor? What is the houseplan? Does the price include landscaping?
Thx!
I love this house, and I’m more than willing to pay the high end prices for a forever home. In the long run, it’s still easier to maintain, and still keep that smaller footprint. I’m older, and this is all I need. Love the 1st floor bedroom!
really nice but just a few changes – larger refrigerator – eating area instead of desk area and one larger window in kitchen instead of 2 smaller ones which would allow for a larger refrigerator – perhaps a washer/dryer combo in kitchen/desk area or in bathroom if space?
Its fabulous! Loved the windows. Having seen a house, big one, with these types of windows, I know they let in a lot of extra light, without sacrificing privacy. It also allows for more useable wall space. The décor is lovely. Moving in would not be a problem. Just need a garage of appox. 1000 sq. ft. for my “stuff”. Its very nice. Exterior is welcoming. Could be plopped down on a piece of land and you’re set for life. Price point is excellent. I live in B.C., Canada, where it costs $45k to purchase a parking space with your new condo of $600K and is 400 sq. ft.
This is really beautiful.
How wonderful that more and more communities are approving ADU’s to help solve the housing shortage and/or provide a way for senior citizens to be close to their children while retaining some of their independence. I LOVE the cathedral ceilings in this one as well as the wood floors throughout because it makes it feel so spacious. In tiny/small homes, the main challenge is storage so even though I understand that many would love having that small desk by the kitchen, I think that putting a corner base cabinet in that corner with a carousel inside would not only provide more storage but also more counter space. Heck, you could put another drawer base cabinet to make a nice L-shaped kitchen. I’ll find another way to have a small desk…maybe a coffee table with one of those lift up table tops? Move that window over a bit and maybe put the full-sized or RV-sized refrigerator at the end of that short part of the L. Make those kitchen windows bigger, too, please. More light adds to the feeling of space or at least not being boxed in. This one is well done, for sure, but a few tweaks would make it just a little more livable. I’m sure other people will see other things they would change to make it work for them. The good thing is that each person can make those changes when ordering their own tiny/small home. Thanks for a nice share.
Love this home. I would remove the desk and put in a 10 cu ft refrigerator as drawers where the small refrigerator is.
If it had a larger frig and either a double sink or a drawer dishwasher, it would be perfect for this old lady.
Yes I’m all about dishwashers! Our little home didn’t have one when we moved it and we rearranged until we could squeeze it in haha.
I do like this house. I like how the entertainment center creates a separate living room. Love the blue with the wood floor, and of course the one story is so much nicer than having a loft. I just moved to a 400 sf retirement efficiency and the house is more nicely spread out.
The Hickory flooring is exquisite, it would be my number 1 choice also. I preferred the original exterior of the bus, it ideally suits my taste. In 1974 I built a 470 ft2 cabin in the woods, electricity, water and septic. Most material was bought new, a salvaged piece (windows and doors) here and there. Electricity installed by professional. It cost a little over $3,000 (yes, three thousand dollars US). Amazingly how the economy has changed, the poor are taxed so multi-billionaires can get tax breaks, such is the policy of the current political party in power.
Oops! Got confused from having just looked at a post on a double decker bus. This place is CUTE! and well planned, looks spacious. I’m old and the prices of things are a constant shock, $70,000 seems pricey to me, plus land. It DOES sure as hell beat what McMansions cost.
This is outstanding especially for the square footage. Ideal for 2nd home or rental.
Love the living room configuration! I Keep looking at the picture and I cannot figure out where the bathroom is located.