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After finishing grad school, Sam decided that a tiny house would be a perfect fit for her lifestyle. She wanted to remain in Vancouver, BC to be near work, family and friends; but the cost of living in the city was incredibly high.
She also wanted to be able to work a not-for-profit job without worrying whether she’d have enough money for rent each month. Last but not least, tiny houses were a housing solution that fit well with her environmental sustainability values.
Image © Exploring Alternatives
She knew tiny houses weren’t legal in the city, but she went ahead and hired a builder, and began construction on her tiny house in 2016 anyway. After a few months, she realized that it was harder than she thought to find an urban parking spot for a tiny house.
Image © Exploring Alternatives
After meeting other people in the tiny house community who were encountering the same issue, she co-founded the BC Tiny House Collective with Anastasia Koutalianos to try and legalize and legitimize tiny houses in the province of British Columbia, and in Metro Vancouver.
Image © Exploring Alternatives
For the time being, Sam isn’t living in her tiny house. She’s waiting for a pilot project opportunity so that she can legally live in her home. The tiny house is 10 feet wide, and was built using some reclaimed materials for things like the trim and the cork flooring. The house is designed to collect rainwater for landscaping and gardening, it has a vermi-composting toilet, full kitchen with a propane stove, two electric heaters, and a 120 Volt extension cord to power the house.
Check out the video below for a full tour!
VIDEO: Woman Builds Unique Tiny House for Affordable City Living
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What a nice place! Sam has kept things spare and open, which makes her tiny house seem larger than it is. Building a legal community is the way to go, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that she is successful. Hope that you move in, and soon!
What a lovely home! I applaud your efforts to establish legal tiny house in BC. My best wishes go with you.
It could use a layer of fresh paint.
I didn’t mean to comment on this article! Sorry…
Well it is a uphill battle. The composting toilet is not helping.
Thinking on bytes here back to the days of zoning cluster homes it became simple when the price per sq ft went up, and mixed with a community as a section. The problem is the unwanted loafers bring the values down, i.e. the tax base down. As soon as the cluster home project went from 600-1200SF at $150.00 a foot to 600-1200SF to 250+ a foot they passed. It is all about the money…and the clientele.
Just love Sam’s Tiny House! She has it fixed so cute! Love all of your ideas! I like how you are reusing your waste products for use in making soil for your garden! Great idea, regarding trying to get tiny homes legalize! I hope it all works out for you! Thank You for sharing your adorable home! Enjoy your new place!🏡🏘🏚🏠
Thanks Carol glad you enjoyed it 🙂