A woman who parked her tiny house on her parents' property in New Hampshire was forced to move out after the local government said it was illegal

One of the biggest issue is the Local government cant tax it...
Im sure they would have had no issue if she spent the $29K on an addition and increasing her parents tax base.
Bet they would overlook it, if it came to close to the property line.
 

Radish... We have been in a camper on our own property over 3 years now.
We have had some issues with local government, but since we have "BOUGHT" permission to "REMODEL" the house we
own free and clear they have given us some leeway....
But did have to register and tag the camper.... YUP... Pay them property tax on it....
 
Isn’t that too bad? Someone finds a way to save some money (which in today’s world is a real feat and much needed) and some nosey neighbor has to report it. And the zoning board was equally obnoxious. From the pictures it looked very discreet and a heck of a lot nicer than most sheds!!!
 
Well, I don't know the facts of it but what is her sewage set up? I'm sure they arn't "picking on her". I'm sure they have specific building codes in place that must be adhered . We can only see one side of it, so of course, we side with her. Maybe, for a permanant residence, they have to have an additional septic system in place.
 
Gaer said:
Well, I don't know the facts of it but what is her sewage set up? I'm sure they arn't "picking on her". I'm sure they have specific building codes in place that must be adhered . We can only see one side of it, so of course, we side with her. Maybe, for a permanant residence, they have to have an additional septic system in place.
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Oh! Good thinking!!!! That never even crossed my mind.
 
Here's the thing. I believe just about everyone knows that it's not easy to find a place to plunk your tiny home down permanently.

I would think the prudent thing to do before buying one would be to check the zoning codes in your municipality. Apparently she either didn't do that or she chose to take her chances on not getting caught out.

The tiny home shows never mention that "little" problem when they're pushing their product.

I can't feel a lot of sympathy.
 
@jujube too bad they can't have tiny home courts like they do mobile home courts.

As for Robert's story there just doesn't seem to be anything that the government isn't always shoving their noses into.
 
MarciKS said:
@jujube too bad they can't have tiny home courts like they do mobile home courts.

As for Robert's story there just doesn't seem to be anything that the government isn't always shoving their noses into.
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Brilliant idea MarciKS! The only problem I can see is they would have to have individual septic tanks or public sewer hook-ups.
I'm sure someone will do this someday!
 
Gaer said:
Brilliant idea MarciKS! The only problem I can see is they would have to have individual septic tanks or public sewer hook-ups.
I'm sure someonewill do this someday!
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They have public sewer hookups and plumbing for the mobile homes so I don't see any reason why they couldn't do the same for a tiny home park.
 
MarciKS said:
They have public sewer hookups and plumbing for the mobile homes so I don't see any reason why they couldn't do the same for a tiny home park.
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Exactly! However, part of the intrigue of buying a home of any size is to purchase your own exclusive property so you don't have to live in a mobile home park, right? If they purchase a tiny home, but still had to pay park rental fees, what's the point?
 
park rental fees...property tax...what's the difference? it would beat being forced to move right?
btw happy new Gaer. 😁
 
One tidbit I'm at a loss to understand... why O'Brien, had to leave the hometown she fought so hard to live in.

What, the State of New Hampshire booted her out of the State? Asked her to leave?
 
MarciKS said:
too bad they can't have tiny home courts like they do mobile home courts
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They do in many places... But they are generally in lower property value areas...
Google Maps showing some pretty high end houses on big tracts of property... AKA Big Money.
Many old senior trailer parks have been rezoned, and obliterated to build high dollar housing..
Keep in mind there are 2 different sides she was fighting
ZONING and Building codes .....and from what I got from the article she knew she could have troubles.
RVs and Mobile homes are built to certain listed standards for safety, and must pass an inspection.
Tiny homes are basically one off homemade built things... some are very nice. But could be considered a death trap.
Zoning can be both protector and death warrant.
Wouldnt you love for a Pig Farm to be built next to your new $500K custom home?
Or how about throw you out of your brand new $75K double wide that you HAD A PERMIT APPROVED!!!!
Yes this happened to a friend of ours... After everything set up...
They noticed on final inspection that there was no MH to be in the city limits, 3 years of battles, she lost everything
Lost her family property, repoed with the MH, Marriage from the stress.
I love it that If you have money... You can get a zoning variance and do what you want....
Got to wonder if there is a HOA too.
 
Since she was on her parents' property, it could be thought that she used the facilities in their house and simply used that little house, which is not much larger than a shed, for personal privacy. Of course in the instances, where a family with a home is available, I can see the need for proper plumbing, electric lines and gas lines are a necessity. But, instead of making life difficult for people, municipalities should make them readily available for use. Perhaps it would help to lessen homelessness and also aid those who are in no position to purchase larger homes or pay exorbitant rental rates for apartments that are barely livable.
 
For me, the big difference would be if I was the neighbor or the owner of the mini-house.

One man's mini-house is another man's eyesore.

IMO it's best to stick to the local zoning rules or move to a place that has no rules.
 
Reading the article, it looks like she should have checked with the zoning board first. (especially before going into hock for a now useless tiny home). At the very least, they would have explained that you had to have permanent plumbing and could only be so close to a property line. She may also have become aware that neighbors are worried about property values. Most people who jump on the tiny home bandwagon feel it's better to go stealth. Works fine unless someone turns you in... then, I doubt you'll ever win when you state your case.
 
The ones I've seen are not eyesores. Some of them are pretty nice. At least in a tiny home park they could have a little patio and some of the things some folks put with theirs. It would be worth expense considering most of those homes cost very little in comparison to a full size home and they cost very little to live in.
 

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