“Which comes first: the land or the tiny home?”
This is one of the first questions we get, and it is a fair one. Do you sort land first, or can you start your tiny home journey and find land along the way?
If you already have land, great! You can design with real site conditions in mind.
If you do not have land yet, you can still start! You just want to keep a few decisions flexible until the site is locked in. We have compared both paths below:
- Land first. This suits you if you are set on a specific area, or you have a particular piece of land that your tiny home dreams are set on.
- Gives the ability to design around the space. For example, you may want to place a picture window on a particular wall to best maximise the views
- Easier planning for delivery and services. For example, you may know for a fact that the place you will put your tiny has full sun, which will allow you to run your home off solar panels on the roof. Or perhaps, you will have to build a 2.4 meter wide home because the access is restricted.
- You can design for comfort in that climate. Wind exposure, shade, orientation, and local weather patterns may affect heating, cooling, and glazing choices.
- Tiny home first. This suits you if you are open on location and want to get the ball rolling.
- You can progress your build while you search for land. If you move ahead with the build, you can use that time to line up the right site while we get on with the hard part. That way, when your home is ready, you are ready to place it.
- You lock in a build timeline. You can’t exactly just sign on the dotted line and have a home ready the next day… as with all building companies, there is a lead and turnaround time to be mindful of. Especially nowadays (with the market booming), it is important to secure your place in the build queue, so that your home doesn’t get pushed too far down the pipeline.
- You can keep your options open. Starting the tiny home process does not lock you into one block of land, you can take your time finding the perfect place to live your tiny dreams.
A helpful option if you do not have land through friends, family, or your own property is to check out Park My Tiny House. We partner with Briony, from Park My Tiny House because she helps connect tiny home owners with land rentals and hosting opportunities across Australia. So many of our clients have gone both ways… some have the land sitting there, either in a backyard, or some land they have purchased as an investment property, while others begin their journey without having any firm idea of where they want to live in Australia! There is no right or wrong way to go about it.
Want to talk through it first? Give us a call, we can help you figure out which path will work best for you!