Thicket tiny house cuts down on compromises for easy full-time living

All tiny houses require compromises – it's unavoidable when your home is small enough to tow. However, the Thicket has fewer drawbacks than you'd expect given its relatively compact size, and it looks like it could be a good fit for first-time downsizers.

The Thicket, by Rewild Homes, is based on a triple-axle trailer and has a length of 34 ft (10.4 m), which is about average for a North American tiny house, with some coming considerably longer. However, its width comes in at 10.6 ft (3.2 m). Though the bump in size over the standard 8.5 ft (2.6 m) seems negligible, those extra feet go a long way toward making it look more like a regular home and not a narrow corridor like some tiny houses. The drawback to this is that you need a permit to tow on a public road.

The exterior is finished in cedar and metal, with a metal roof. One misconception is that a metal roof makes a lot of noise in the rain, like an agricultural building, but as long as it's insulated and installed properly, it should be close enough to a traditional roof. I was pretty skeptical about this myself until I bought a house with a metal roof and it really is quiet. Generous glazing, including double glass doors, helps open up the living area to the outside. The interior, meanwhile, is finished in locally sourced woods, including a cedar ceiling and hemlock trims.

Inside, the extra width mentioned pays off in the kitchen, which easily fits full-size appliances. It has a propane oven and four-burner cooktop (gas lessens the draw on the electrical hookup), a full-size fridge/freezer, a scratch-resistant granite sink, acacia butcher block countertops, and custom cabinetry that's dark green but looks almost black in some of the photos.

A dining table for two is placed nearby, and adjacent to that is the living room area, with a sofa and an electric fireplace. There's also decent separation between the kitchen and living room, which is rare in a tiny house.

A sliding door accesses the spacious bathroom, which contains a glass-enclosed walk-in shower, a flushing toilet, a sink, and a washer/dryer, plus more storage space. From the bathroom, another sliding door reaches the bedroom. This has ample headroom to stand upright thanks to its ground-floor position and contains a double bed and lots of storage. There's also a separate door connecting straight to the outside. Additionally, a wall-mounted ladder provides access to a storage loft situated above the adjacent bathroom.

The standard Thicket starts at around CAD 160,000 (roughly US$115,000), though the exact home shown, which was recently delivered to a customer, cost CAD 180,000 ($128,000).

Source: Rewild Homes