Have you told your dad you want to buy a tiny house?
Did he respond with a dad joke? Something about you needing a small suitcase to move into one?
If your dad is anything like ours, he probably had a few such jokes. And he probably followed them up with a ton of questions about tiny houses!
Here at Mint Tiny House Company, we’ve dedicated the past seven years to understanding what makes a high-quality tiny home. And fortunately for Dad, we love talking about tiny houses almost as much as we love building them! So we’re prepared to answer any questions Dad has to throw at us!
So, dads, are you ready? Let’s hear ’em!
A tiny house is like a regular house; it’s just smaller and built on a trailer. Here at Mint, we build two types of tiny homes: RVs and park model homes.
As for the tiny house lifestyle, it’s all about intentional living. The tiny house lifestyle encourages us to hone in on what’s important and say ‘no’ to what doesn’t serve us, so we can say yes to what we love. Each person defines the tiny house lifestyle slightly differently, but freedom, flexibility, and abundance are frequently cited markers of the tiny house lifestyle!
Correct!
Tiny house RV and park model homes are both built on trailers. The short answer to this question is that park models are wider.
Our tiny house RVs are 8.5′ wide, whereas our park model tiny homes are 10′, 12′, or even 14′ wide, although those last two sizes are only available in Canada. The other difference has to do with certifications. Tiny house RVs and Park model are built to different standards.
You got it. Here we go!
As we said before, our tiny homes are certified as either RVs or park model homes.
For people who want to park a tiny house in Canada, our RVs are built to meet CSA Z240 RV standards, and our park model homes are built to meet CSA Z241 standards.
For our tiny home clients in the USA (and there are a lot of them!), we build our tiny home RVs to meet NFPA 1192 requirements and our park models to meet ANSI A1195.
Our facility also has regular inspections by RVIA and Intertek, and anything certified as an RV or Park Model will come with an official RVIA plaque!
Finding parking for a tiny house can be tricky, but people do it every day! Each country, county, and city is subject to its own rules, so it’s best to double-check the details for a specific area.
What we can tell you is that RV parks and tiny home communities are great places to start looking!
Is that another tiny house dad joke??
OK, since Father’s Day is just around the corner, we’ll let it go, but just so you know, we use regular-sized PEX!
Oh, and for insulation, we used closed-cell spray foam to give our tiny homes an R-value of R21.
That’s not a question. 😉
Tiny houses cost less than many traditional houses, and they offer more flexibility! Our tiny home designs start at about $86,000 USD or $115,000 CAD and go up from there, depending on which tiny house upgrades you choose.
Here at Mint, our whole thing is offering support at every stage of the journey. That’s why we’ve created a whole slew of guides to help our clients through every step!
Our Financing Guide will detail how to find financing for a tiny house. A tiny home loan is not the same as a traditional home mortgage, but tiny house financing is available!
Insurance is similar in that with tiny houses, you can’t just go get a traditional homeowner’s policy, but yes, you can insure a tiny house!
Our Insurance and Registration Guide will detail this part of the tiny home buying process. It also includes a list of places to buy tiny house insurance in Canada and the United States, so be sure to download that one.
And finally, transportation. Don’t worry about that one. We work with a company that will deliver your tiny home right to you!
Tiny houses hook up the same way RVs do, so if you’re familiar with those, you’ll know the hookups are pretty plug-and-play!
Water comes to a tiny house via a garden hose connection, and getting electricity is as simple as plugging your house into a 30-50 amp electrical outlet.
As far as wastewater, most people use flexible RV hoses that just twist and click into place. One end of the hose will connect to the tiny house and the other to a sewer pipe or septic tank. Easy peasy.
DAD!
(But, yes, thank you, we’d love to!)
To all the dads out there, we see you. And from the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for all you do! If someone special shared this tiny house blog post with you, maybe it’s a sign you or a loved one needs a tiny house!
Do you have more questions? We thought so! And we’ve got more answers! So just set up a consultation, and we’ll tackle your next round. Until then, thanks for reading, and we wish you the best Father’s Day ever!
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
Recreational vehicles (RVs) and park model tiny houses are both popular options for those seeking a mobile lifestyle. While they may seem similar at first glance, there are some key differences between the two.
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