Since its debut in 2013, the Minim tiny house has become one of the most iconic tiny homes in the U.S. Designed by Foundry Architects and Brian Levy, the 210ft2 Minim is the only micro house to win 3 American Institute of Architects design awards. No loft, no walls, and great vaulted ceilings lend it a modern spacious feel. A perfectly refined mobile tiny home, studio, ADU or AirBnB guesthouse.

Notes From the Designer

The philosophy behind the Minim is pretty simple: a contented life is largely independent from the size of one’s dwelling. We humans can and must live more sustainably, but not without style. Living in a small structure should never feel compromised- it should feel amazing.

With these principles we sought to re-imagine what the micro house can be, adding livability, streamlining construction with SIPs, modernizing aesthetics, increasing off-grid versatility. It took time- 7 months to perfect the plans, 1 day for every square foot! But this time and 6+ years of full time life testing, the design is now fully refined.

Features:

Minim features a full size roll-out bed (avoiding the many inconveniences of a loft), a highly functional 10’ galley kitchen with deep sink, 2 burner gas cooktop, full size microwave, 7 cu ft fridge/freezer. A moveable hydraulic table functions as a dinner table for 6, coffee table, extra kitchen prep space or a bar, or window desk (see pics).

For entertainment a large movie screen functions doubles as a window shade. The sofa is 8’ long, seats 5 and can double as a guest bed. On top of the bed platform is a separate 5’ desk and 5’ closet. The closet can be widened slightly if desired to accommodate a combo washer/dryer. Bookcases on 2 walls can hold over 150 books.

For heating there’s room for a Dickinson propane fireplace and wall panels, for cooling we’ve hidden a through-the-wall A/C into the desk shelving (you could alternatively put in a mini-split). The bath is a ‘wet bath’ and accommodates any type of toilet desired. We also include all the specs to make Minim fully off-grid with a solar array, battery bank, propane heat, and rainwater collection/storage/treatment.

Construction:

The house is built atop a standard 8’6’’ trailer. For ease of construction and much greater insulation (R-26 walls, R-40 roof), Minim is built using SIPs panels. There are SIPs panel factories across the country (https://www.sips.org/) that can take the included specs and deliver the panels- you can have the full insulated shell constructed in 2 days. There are also just 3 window panels and 1 door to install, and no interior or exterior trim work needed once in place. This greatly simplifies construction.

Wide vs 8’6’’:

Minim House is 11’x22’, with 210 ft2 of interior space.  Of course at 11’ wide, Minim House is a wide load. Since most houses spend less than 1% of the time moving, and 99% being lived in, we thought it made sense to go a little wider for extra comfort. Literally every one of the 6000+ folks who have toured the Minim in person just after visiting a standard width (8’6’’) tiny house preferred the wider space and greater resulting functionality. A few extra feet of width make a big difference. So if you don’t need haul it regularly, and really plan to live in it, we highly recommend going wider.

Basic Information

Designer

Brian Levy

Name of Plan

The Minim Tiny House

Number of bedrooms / sleeping areas

1

Square Footage

210 sf

APPROXIMATE Weight

14,000#

Approximate Cost to Build DIY

$35,000

Approximate Cost to Have Built

$70,000