We sat down with our friends at Tiny Easy to pick their brains about their Tiny House plans and the Tiny House movement in NZ.

What got you into Tiny Home Design?

Back in 2016, we fell in love with tiny homes and the lifestyle they presented, so it was a no-brainer to make a move to go tiny.

We started our research straight away, collecting ideas, browsing the web, and reading tonnes of books. At one point, we realised there is simply not enough information on the web that helps you to design & build your own tiny house! Since we are based in the hive of tiny living (Auckland, New Zealand), we started working with one of the country's most reputable tiny house builders and learned invaluable skills.

Long story short, after we accumulated an incredible amount of knowledge about designing and building tiny homes, especially after we ventured into DIY’ing our own tiny house, we decided to pass on this knowledge to help others go tiny!

We're now building a platform of go-to resources of super-comprehensive tiny house plans, free resources, courses and trusted builders to empower those looking to start their tiny house journey, no matter if they are getting their tiny house built with a builder or set out to DIY their tiny house.

What is your favourite feature of a Tiny Home?

Our favourite feature is the amazing lifestyle tiny homes can unlock. Even though this is not a design feature, tiny homes can help you win back your time by having to work less since you’re paying less to get by every day. They empower you to create your financial freedom by living in a beautiful, low-cost home that doesn’t eat up your life savings! While tiny homes are great to create a life of freedom, they also enable you to have a small environmental footprint by living an eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle.

A large house requires constant heating or cooling, depending on where you live. Times that by the sheer amount of unused floor area, you can start seeing how much energy you are wasting only to keep your home at a comfortable temperature. When you live tiny, you adapt to a greener lifestyle by being more aware of the products you buy and use, which ultimately means less harmful chemicals and less waste! That's a win for mother nature!

What is the strangest feature you have seen in a Tiny Home?

There are no strange features! Tiny homes give you the opportunity to express your creativity and show off the amazing ideas you can come up with. 

What do you see as the future of Tiny Home's in NZ?

In the current (crazy) housing market, tiny homes give anyone the chance to start your life debt-free or ditch your mortgage by going tiny. Suppose everyone in the tiny house community sticks to intentionally designing and building beautiful tiny homes. In that case, we can see them becoming a well-accepted alternative to living in a regular home. 

What gets us up in the morning is creating an attractive alternative to regular homes to enable you to live a financially free and environmentally conscious lifestyle. Tiny homes can be and should be designed so you can be proud that you are living in a tiny house! That’s why we design all of our tiny homes following architectural principles, with clean lines, well-detailed facades and comfortable interiors. We aim that our tiny house designs become a part of the tiny house movement in New Zealand and the rest of the world to motivate more people to go tiny and see it as a great alternative to regular housing.

Why should more people consider Tiny Homes?

Imagine living a financially free life, giving you the time to do the things you love while doing your part to reduce your environmental footprint! If you live in a tiny house that’s designed to fit your unique lifestyle, you will not miss a regular-sized house where you’re paying for space that you’re not even using. 

What are your top tips for Tiny House living?

This is not necessarily a tip on tiny house living, but on how to start your tiny house journey the right way! 

Every tiny house project is unique, so before starting to find a tiny house design that’s right for you, you should first understand the must-have key points for your tiny house and your daily routine! We created a free document called the “Tiny House Wishlist” that we include in all of our Free Tiny House Plans, but here are the key questions that it will answer for you:

1. What are the main points of your tiny house build? E.g. what’s your budget, how many people will live in your tiny house, how many guests do you want to be able to host...
2. Analyse your “everyday” routine. What do you do in the morning, during your workday, at the weekend, in your free time and the evenings and at night! Your tiny house should be shaped around your life, and you shouldn’t shape your life around your tiny house.
3. Once you understand your project’s key points and lifestyle, you should understand what features you need and want to make your tiny life amazing!
4. Lastly, you get into the nitty-gritty fun stuff like what materials and finishes do you prefer! 

Of your Tiny House plans, which is your favourite and why?

We love all of them! We designed each of our tiny house designs to have a very specific purpose. 

Our smallest of the three is the Tiny Haus and is the perfect “entry-level” tiny house. We tailored the Tiny Haus to you if you’re a single or couple looking for your first (tiny) home. It’s your stepping stone to get your foot on the property ladder! The compact design has all the essentials to live an amazing lifestyle, while the small footprint keeps the build cost down…

Scandi is the next step up, giving you all the space you need if you’re a couple or small family! The exterior and interior don’t compromise on anything you’d find in a regular home. We designed a spacious kitchen (with an island!!), light-flooded bathroom, downstairs master bedroom, and a kids loft or spare bedroom loft. Scandi gives you an intentionally designed alternative to a regular home to comfortably go tiny!

We designed the Petite Maison (French for Tiny Home) for you if you have a small family! The layout is specifically tailored for family living, with separate spaces giving each family member the breathing room they need. When it’s time to hang out together as a family, the Petite Maison has a generous kitchen and spacious living room to spread out and relax. 

All of them are our favourites as they each provide a great option for someone to go tiny, no matter what stage of their life they are in.

As you supply Tiny Home plans internationally, is there a country that stands out to you as being particularly interested in Tiny House living?

New Zealand and Australia are crazy for tiny homes! Our housing market is expensive, and tiny homes simply are an amazing alternative to get your step on the property ladder. Our tiny house plans are designed to help you if you’re looking to get your tiny house built by a professional builder or you’re ready to take on the DIY adventure, which seems to be perfect for NZ and AU since there are incredible tiny house builders and a lot of tiny house enthusiasts who love the idea of building their own tiny home with their own hands!

You have just relaunched your incredible Tiny House plans, congratulations! What is the next step for Tiny Easy?

Thank you! It’s been an incredible journey to develop our tiny house plan framework. We are truly excited to help the tiny house community by empowering you to build your own tiny house with comprehensive, DIY friendly tiny house plans no matter what skill set you have!

Tiny homes are such a great way to unlock an amazing lifestyle, so we will keep creating more resources to help more tiny house enthusiasts go tiny; let that be with more DIY friendly tiny house plans & designs, free courses and guides! 

We are currently working on publishing a brand new blog on our website that helps you understand how to start your tiny house journey and take the overwhelm out of your first steps towards living tiny. So if you’re just starting your tiny house journey, check our website and socials regularly to find out when we release our blog!

We’re also working on directly helping our community get their tiny homes built with our amazing trusted Licensed Builders in New Zealand and Australia and are now seeing the first tiny homes being finished for their future owners! 

After all, it’s our mission to make going tiny, easy!