- Home
After the completion of the build in the summer of 2018, Chris was extremely pleased with the final product. “I didn’t realize the home would be as big and comfortable as it was. I think anybody could do it, so I’m on board with the movement,” Chris said.
The Challenge
With a tiny home build, permitting is usually the hurdle that some people don’t get past. While the state of North Carolina allows much flexibility for tiny homes on foundations, the students need to build the tiny house on a trailer since they didn’t have a site to place it on at the time of construction.
Chris originally went to his local planning department, who told him that there is no permit for a tiny home for occupancy. Displeased with this, he decided to go to the state. Chris got a state representative to send an email to the city of Boone stating that the tiny home could be permitted as a regular structure, with the caveat that would be on a permanent foundation. The tiny house permit was obtained through the proper channels with inspections, rough-ins, etc. The town of Boone did the inspection itself.
The North Carolina Department of Insurance has distributed a memo to code officials, manufacturers, consumers, and other interested parties, which outlines building requirements for tiny homes on foundations. ASU’s tiny home build fits the needs of all of this document except for the foundation itself. When placed on a site in Boone, it will be attached to a permanent foundation to fit this requirement.
Through the challenges that Chris experienced through the permitting process, he also learned his most important lesson from the project.
“The biggest thing I learned is that the government is not against anybody; the rules don’t know how to deal with it. There isn’t a precedent. Even if it seems challenging, you can politely push the system, and you can change things. That’s the biggest thing-- don’t be afraid to talk to people. Reach out, if someone says you can’t do it, it’s not necessarily because the law says you can’t, it could be because they don’t know or they don’t have the precedent.” -Chris
Maria Saxton
Located in Roanoke, Virginia, Maria Saxton holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Design and Planning from Virginia Tech. She works as an Environmental Planner and Housing Researcher for a local firm specializing in Community Planning, Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Historic Preservation. Her dissertation explored the environmental impacts of small-scale homes. She serves as a volunteer board member for the Tiny Home Industry Association.
