Some people like tiny houses because they offer freedom — not only financial freedom, but freedom from being tied downtown to a specific place, freedom from having to work all of the time to pay an expensive mortgage, or freedom of material possessions. Some tiny houses are mobile, and they allow the owner to travel and take their house along. Other tiny houses sit in on an existing property, and some even sit in backyards and serve as an office or guest house. Because of their smaller size, they can offer a money-saving alternative to building a larger structure.
Like any house, however, a tiny house can get pretty pricey. If you go for a tiny house that’s more like a mini-estate or a luxury retreat, it may end up costing you a fat wad of cash, which kind of defeats the purpose. The cost of a tiny home can range from less than $10,000 all the way up to $180,000 or higher, depending the size and options you choose.
We went in search of some of the cheapest tiny house options available, and we found five options priced at around $15,000 or less. You can turn some of these structures into fully functioning homes, and others you can build into a backyard office, hobby cave, or a guest house. However, all of these options are exceptionally affordable when compared to most other tiny houses on the market.
Outdoor Living Today Studio 96-Square-Foot Backyard Structure
List Price: $7,934
This little structure can serve as a shell for a separate office, guesthouse, or backyard bar. It has paneled interior walls, pre-shingled roof panels, and two functional windows with screens. The shell takes about a weekend to build (two people can build it in about two or three days). If you add the living essentials like electricity, some insulation, and furniture, you can make this cheap little building into whatever you can imagine. Plus, you can buy it on Amazon.
Outdoor Living Today SR812 Santa Rosa 96-Square-Foot Backyard Structure
List Price: $6,473
This is another creative tiny house idea you can use in the backyard for whatever your heart desires (a Star Wars memorabilia room, perhaps?). It’s similar to the above option in that it provides the materials for you to build into a shell structure. However, this structure has a deck porch, and you’ll likely need to do a bit more additional work to this one (i.e. the windows and roofing will need more work to make the structure livable). You’ll also need to add the extras like insulation and electrical to make it into a place you’ll want to hang out. But, considering you can buy it on Amazon for under $7,000, it’s not a bad option for someone looking for a backyard DIY project.
BZBCabins Log Cabin Kit Pinecrest
List price: $6,580
This wooden structure is 123-square-feet. It’s ideal as a pool house, a home office, an artist’s studio, a hunting or fishing cabin, or a hobby room.
You can customize the home to your liking, and the model (as shown) is made of Nordic spruce wood. You get free shipping, but this kit doesn’t include foundation or roof materials (unless you add those on for an extra cost). It does seem to be a quality kit though, weighing in at 2,450 pounds.
BZBCabins Lakeview Log Cabin Kit
List price: $9,950
If you’re a fan of natural lighting, this Lakeview Log Cabin by BZBCabins might be for you. At 209 square feet, the studio-style layout gets plenty of sunlight flowing throughout the space. The kit includes the main components (think floor joists, floor and ceiling boards, doors, and windows), but it does not include foundation or roofing materials.
You can make this cabin into whatever you want though–anything from a hobby room to an office to a tiny home. This provides a solid base to work from for around 10 grand, and you get free shipping.
Jamaica Cottage Shop Vermont Cottage (A) with Loft
List price: $15,717
If you want something a bit larger, you might like this cabin by Jamaica Cottage Shop. The 16 by 20-foot cottage measures 15.4 feet in height and it includes a loft as well as a porch. The first floor has 240 square feet of interior space, while the loft has 96 square feet. You get an additional 80 square feet of porch space–not too bad for a tiny house that costs slightly more than $15,000. Plus, it includes all the lumber, metal roofing, single pine door, window and fastening hardware, free shipping, as well as step-by-step building instructions (yes, you have to build it).
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