2m x 6m with a composting toilet: New Zealand embraces tiny home living
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Housing affordability and desire for a movable home among the reasons growing numbers are opting for petite dwellings across New Zealand. Two years ago, when New Zealand school teacher Liberty Van Voorthuysen was looking for a much-needed break from teaching, she ditched her classroom and signed up for a free construction course. Van Voorthuysen had set herself a fairly low bar: learn how to use power tools. But she left with much more – the skills to build her own tiny home.
![[Liberty Van Voorthuysen’s tiny home near Nelson in New Zealand.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/6be050f805c67dac32379b6f72c0dff54df4ced5/0_903_2200_1320/master/2200.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The 34-year-old bought the shell of a small house, parked it in a Nelson paddock at the top of the South Island, installed solar panels and added a composting toilet. The dwelling measures 6m x 2.4m and is 4m tall. The space took a bit of getting used to and the outdoor shower is “pretty gnarly in winter,” Van Voorthuysen says. But she has learned to be resourceful.
![[Adrian Ashdown’s tiny home.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/41a6943eb25a2295903851c73e8298b06a0e4e98/0_164_1512_1633/master/1512.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
“It’s opened up a whole world of barbecue baking. I baked a pretty amazing carrot cake,” she says. Van Voorthuysen is one of a growing number of New Zealanders choosing to downsize their lives with tiny homes – small, fully functional dwellings with a floor area of up to 60 square metres.
![[Kate Rowntree has moved her home twice on a trailer in New Zealand.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/16f24c9c7a306e04135685b29a49cc1b0758c6d5/0_416_2448_1469/master/2448.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Some cite environmental reasons for living with a smaller footprint, but many have made the shift for affordability reasons. New Zealand has long been plagued with one of the least affordable housing markets in the world. While recent figures show housing affordability has improved slightly since 2022, the median house value is still 7.7 times the median household income.
