People line up to see tiny house at Regina trade show

Just how much space do you really need? That’s a question many people are asking at the Spring Home Show this weekend after stepping into the Dragonfly tiny house.

“We’ve got everything you see in a regular house, just smaller and less of it,” said John Robinson, co-owner of Robinson Residential Design.

The average home in Regina is 1,190 sq. ft., but this prototype is only 8’x20′, or 160 sq. ft. On the outside it looks a bit rustic, with natural wood siding, but with a more modern shape and stained glass in the windows on one side, and a deck in the rear Inside the building space is certainly at a premium, but there are things like a dining table that folds away, disappearing stairs, and hide-a-bed or loft bed so space is maximized.

“We tried to give it all the feel and the features of a real house, but it’s about a tenth the size.”

Robinson said the kit costs about $75,000, plus utilities and the land to put it on. He said, at first they didn’t know what kind of feedback they were going to get, but there’s been incredible interest. The exhibit was certainly one of the most popular at the show, with the line to look around growing throughout Saturday.

Robinson said they were trying to get as many people through the building as possible this weekend, the goal being 10,000. He said they’re trying to start conversations, and have people think about opportunities for affordable housing.

After looking around a bit, some people said they thought they could do it.

“It’d be a little tight though,” said one woman.

Other felt they might need a bit more space.

“I think I would have to go with at least 300 square feet, at least double,” said another woman.

The buildings could be used for semi-permanent living for someone waiting on another residence to be built, or it could be an option for people who can’t, or don’t want to, shell out hundreds of thousands for a regular sized home, explained Robinson.

“(People in these homes) just don’t want a lot of space to have to look after, but they want to do things with people and they want to travel, and they’re quite content getting away with less.”

Robinson Residential Design isn’t a home building company, but Robinson said they’re looking at the options for these tiny homes. He listed off one possibility of having a group of them together with another shared outbuilding for things like washing machines and exercise equipment.

The tiny house movement has gotten bigger and bigger. There are dozens of blogs, some builders, HGTV has not one, but two shows about tiny houses: Tiny House Hunters, and Tiny House, Big Living. And last year the first ever Tiny House Festival was held in Quebec.