These ingenious movable homes could set you free
Roam sweet home

Casa Ojalá

This award-winning transportable cabin may look like a digital illustration, but it's very real. Designed by Italian architect Beatrice Bonzanigo, Casa Ojalá highlights just how clever modern tiny homes have become. Perfect for a holiday retreat, this unusual mobile home can be quickly assembled, while its minimal footprint means it can be positioned in far-flung locations on an array of challenging terrain.
Casa Ojalá

Inspired by Beatrice's travels across the Northern Andes, she wanted to design a refuge where visitors could soak up their surroundings in an environmentally responsible way. The finished design blends the luxuries of home with a smart, adaptable structure that can accommodate almost any environment. To ensure this, Beatrice opted for rollable walls that open using a series of ropes and pulleys, creating a seamless connection between inside and out.
Casa Ojalá

The movable property made its debut at Milan Design Week in 2019 and the prototype was completed at the end of 2020. Constructed from steel and wood, the tiny home offers just 291 square feet of space, but features more than 1,000 interior configurations, so you can select one that works for you and your chosen location. Beatrice has described the cabin as "the future of luxury travel".
Casa Ojalá

No matter which layout you choose, there's enough space for a bedroom, bathroom, kitchenette and lounge. Fully customisable, you can choose your own finishes, too. Eco-savvy buyers can opt for grey water storage and treatment facilities, a rainwater harvesting system and solar panels. Each Casa Ojalá also comes with a circular roof terrace, where you can soak up vistas of the Sahara or the sea.
Scandinavian modular home

For this modular home, UK-based architectural firm Koto teamed up with US-based backyard home-builders Abodu to design a Scandinavian tiny home with a Californian twist. The picture-perfect micro-dwelling can be delivered to sites across the states in as little as two weeks, making it both beautiful and highly efficient.
Scandinavian modular home

Perfectly designed to slot on the back of a truck, the Koto x Abodu One model has a width of 14 feet and various installation methods can be used in order to move the house into position. Plus, thanks to its petite size, the modular pad can be installed without the need for planning permits, making it an easy and speedy way for homeowners to build their dream home.
Scandinavian modular home

Each cabin is clad in weathered timber siding and topped with a sheet-metal gabled roof to increase the interior space. Inside, the turn-key timber-framed cabin is chic and stylish, with a definite Scandi vibe. A monochrome colour scheme, streamlined work surfaces and Nordic furnishings make the interior simple, practical and elegant. Prices start from $199,000 (£146k) and custom-design elements are available for buyers seeking a truly bespoke finish.
Scandinavian modular home

Offering 500 square feet of inside space, the cabin features a light-filled open-plan living area with a dining room and a galley kitchen, as well as one bedroom and a bathroom. There are plenty of clever space-saving elements such as hidden bench storage, while a floor-to-ceiling pivoting glass wall allows the lucky occupier to create a seamless flow between their interior and exterior spaces. What's more, the home has a 60-year lifespan and comes with a 10-year warranty.
Prefabricated treehouse

This prefabricated treehouse was designed by Bali-based architect Alexis Dornier, who along with seasoned start-up entrepreneur Florian Holm set up a company dedicated to the creation of beautiful, movable homes. The pair founded Stilt Studios after Florian hired Alexis to design and build his new home in Canggu. During the design process, the duo realised there was a gap in the real estate market for stylish, custom-designed homes that were also affordable.
Prefabricated treehouse

The partners designed four models for people to choose between and this one, Treehouse A, is one of their best. The sky-high, single-level structure offers a clever interior that maximises space. There's a bathroom, a kitchenette and a lounge, while the bedroom is elevated off the ground on a centralised mezzanine level. 360-degree windows allow for light and airy spaces, while the exterior balconies enlarge the living space and create a seamless transition between inside and out.
Prefabricated treehouse

Starting from just $50,000 (£37k), these prefab structures are created offsite and can be erected and dismantled in a short period of time. They can also be built on awkward plots with difficult terrain, thanks to their stilt legs. This makes them ideal for remote locations and means their construction has minimal impact on the environment. If the need arises, the treehouse can also be taken apart and moved to a new plot.
Prefabricated treehouse

Spanning just 387 square feet, the prefabricated treehouse is also entirely eco. Sustainable features include the exterior overhangs that minimise solar-heat gain, cross ventilation, rainwater harvesting and energy-generating solar panels. Food can also be grown beneath the house, allowing the resident to live completely off-grid. Currently made from steel, Alexis and Florian hope to move towards cross-laminated timber (CLT), to make their creations even more environmentally friendly.
The Plain House

Japanese retail company Muji is known and loved for its innovative homewares and clever life-hack consumer goods. Yet the company has now branched out into property, creating a prefabricated micro-home to encourage indoor-outdoor living. The property was launched in January 2020 and has been named Yō no Ie, or Plain House. Smart, sleek and simple, this movable dwelling is anything but ordinary!
The Plain House

Inside, the Plain House features 796 square feet of living space. Segmented into a lounge, dining area, kitchen and bedroom, the property has no fixed divisions, but instead boasts shifting walls that can be moved to zone-off areas for different tasks. The compact single-storey home was designed with complete flexibility in mind, allowing the owner to reconfigure its layout to meet their changing needs, making the property ideal as a forever home.
The Plain House

In keeping with the company's characteristic pared-back style, the home's interior is finished with natural timber and sleek white accents, while built-in storage and multi-functional furnishings maximise the inside space. Designed to be installed almost anywhere, including urban spaces, the property is available in different shapes and sizes, to suit a range of plots.
The Plain House

The home's living space is extended further, thanks to its spacious exterior deck, which comes complete with a seating area and a sunken fire pit for cosy nights under the stars. Currently only available in Japan, the Plain House could be yours for just $152,000 (£112k).
The Lee by Movable Roots

Offering style and substance inside its compact frame, The Lee is one of the finest portable tiny homes in the world. Designed by the experts at Movable Roots, the petite property sits on a 32-foot trailer, meaning it can be positioned in various locations and moved whenever the need arises. Plus, depending on the customisation options of your tiny house on wheels, The Lee can be built from scratch and delivered to your plot in less than three months.
The Lee by Movable Roots

Inside, the smart tiny home is chic and spacious, thanks to a simple, stripped-back colour scheme, natural materials and plenty of clever storage hacks. From drawers hidden in the rungs of the stairs, to the mezzanine level that sits neatly above the main living zone, this tiny home makes the most of every inch of space. The main open-plan communal area offers a spacious kitchen and a snug lounge with air conditioning and plenty of windows.
The Lee by Movable Roots

The Lee comes with two bedrooms, one on the loft level and one at the far end of the tiny home. The main floor master bedroom comes with an abundance of built-in closet space as well as a custom-made timber bed and a full-size private ensuite bathroom. The room also offers an alternating step staircase, which leads to the second-floor loft space, making it perfect for a family.
The Lee by Movable Roots

The bathroom comes equipped with a walk-in shower and plenty of storage, as well as a utility zone with a combination washing machine and tumble dryer. Plus, with prices starting from just $114,999 (£84.4k), this beautiful and bespoke building will also set your finances free!
Koda concrete movable home

It ships in prefab sections, arriving on site in sections to be assembled. The floor space is small at 282 square feet, but the layout is carefully designed for comfortable modern living.
Koda concrete movable home

In practice, this means rooms are carefully separated. There is a large open-plan living room and kitchen area on the ground floor, in addition to a ground floor bathroom, while upstairs is the bedroom and laundry room.
Koda concrete movable home

The Koda is designed to be an efficient, sustainable home. The windows are quadruple-glazed, and the solar panels mean the unit is almost self-sufficient for electricity. Though it does need to be linked up for water and sewage.
Peter Jurkovic’s lakeside house

This simple Slovakian lake house was designed by architect Peter Jurkovic for a family of five, as a bolthole in the country, rather than being a residence in full-time occupation.
Peter Jurkovic’s lakeside house

The building has been designed without corridors to make the most of the small space. Making the most of a studio layout, ladders lead up to sleeping platforms on a mezzanine level.
Peter Jurkovic’s lakeside house

The main area is open-plan, with folding doors and living elements, such as the kitchen counter and fireplace, arranged around the edges of the room to leave as much central space as possible.
Peter Jurkovic’s lakeside house

At either end of the living space partitions separate out the bathrooms, and clever built-in shelves provide ample storage. The inside walls are made from masonry blocks that absorb and radiate heat from the stove to ensure sustainable heating.
Allsteel movable homes

These Australian relocatable homes and cabins use the company’s own ‘supaloc’ steel framing system for durability, and ‘thermaloc’ insulation to ensure a low-energy, sustainable home that’s affordable and high performance.
Allsteel movable homes

This model has three bedrooms, a separate study area and living space to accommodate a family, with outside decks flanking an open-plan living area. The interior is neutral, offering a blank canvas to put your own stamp on.
Allsteel movable homes

Customers who buy the movable home need to ensure that they have a level, compacted building platform of ‘road-base’ material at least 6.5-feet wider than the footprint of the home they’re buying.
Allsteel movable homes

Inside the homes look just like normal properties, and can be plumbed in and connected to the local grid if more energy is required than solar produces. Available at a much lower cost than traditional property, these homes could certainly be the housing of the future.
ÁPH80 portable home

ÁBATON is a Spanish architecture studio, based in Madrid, that has developed small(ish) homes that are designed to be transported on the back of a lorry. While not technically considered tiny homes, these compact structures are entirely portable and can be positioned pretty much anywhere in the world.
ÁPH80 portable home

The ÁPH80 unit is designed to be assembled in a single day and can be disassembled and moved to a different location as desired – perfect if you're looking for a home with spectacular views. The outside of the home is clad in grey cement-board panels, which keep it safe during transportation. Once in place, the panels can be replaced with sliding glass doors or windows, thanks to the multi-functional hinged openings that surround the building.
ÁPH80 portable home

The ÁBATON team spent a long time studying proportions, to ensure that each room is different and feels more spacious than you might expect. At 290 square feet, the compact building fits perfectly onto the back of transportation vans but offers a comfy home that's perfect for two people. The ÁPH80 was also designed with well-being, environmental balance and simplicity in mind, resulting in a chic, comfortable and minimalist design.
ÁPH80 portable home

The winner of two A+ Architizer Awards, the ÁPH80 portable home features three zoned interior spaces: a living room and kitchen, a full bathroom and a double bedroom. Its gabled roof is almost 12-foot high, enhancing the impression of space and removing the sense of claustrophobia often associated with tiny homes. What's more, most of the home's materials are sustainable and recyclable, making ÁPH80 both beautiful and entirely eco-friendly.
Hut on Sleds

Although it looks like a simple fishing hut from the outside, this quirky mobile home is full of clever design elements. Crafted by the team at Crosson Architects, this movable home was created for a beach plot in New Zealand within a designated erosion zone. In order to fulfill the area's planning conditions, the architects ensured that the home can be towed out of harm's way whenever the need arises.
Hut on Sleds

The award-winning tiny home measures just over 430 square feet and was constructed on an innovative sled that makes it easy to relocate. The hut's wood façade can be opened up to reveal glazed doors and closed when not in use, or when the weather becomes a little too challenging. The retractable walls of the home also mean it's protected whenever it's shifted to a new position.
Hut on Sleds

The aptly named Hut on Sleds features a modern timber interior that can comfortably house a family of five. There's an open-plan living room and fitted kitchen, as well as a bunk room and mezzanine master suite. A trapdoor in the ceiling also leads up to an observation platform, where unobstructed landscape views can be savoured.
Hut on Sleds

The clever eco home is also self-sustaining and features rainwater harvesting tanks, a worm-tank waste system and grey water tanks, allowing the owner to recycle everything from food waste to rainfall. Designed for challenging locations where traditional homes would lose the fight against Mother Nature, this robust tiny home offers a smart alternative for different environments. If you've fallen in love, then you can commission your own!
Loved this? Follow us on Facebook for more amazing tiny homes
Comments
Be the first to comment
Do you want to comment on this article? You need to be signed in for this feature