Living Tiny : An exploratory study of the Swedish tiny house movement

Abstract: As cities face widespread housing shortages, as well as a large need for reducing the average ecological footprint, two of the biggest challenges for the housing sector today concerns affordability and environmental impact. The tiny house movement is a growing movement that is meeting these challenges head-on - but as of now, the topic has been largely overlooked in academia. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of the motivations why people choose to live in tiny houses of tiny houses and the challenges the residents encounter. Furthermore, the study explores what can be learned from the tiny house movement that is of relevance to the Swedish housing market. To fulfill the purpose of the study, a mixed-methods approach has been used in the form of a literature study and semi-structured interviews. The most common motivations identified in the study were financial and simplicity. The main challenges were identified to be legal, placement and practical challenges. The results from this study have been very much in line with what previous studies have found, and this could mean that we might be reaching a general understanding of motivations and challenges in the tiny house movement.