Tiny house craze reaches Yellowknife

Greyson Gritt is a Yellowknife musician who wants to put down roots, without the mortgage.

Gritt started looking into a tiny home — a build-it-yourself structure that ranges between 100 and 400 square feet.

“I don't always want to rent,” Gritt says. “I'd like to own something of my own one day. So, financially it makes more sense and secondly, I just don't think I need as much space as these large developers coming in a building these huge houses that are like 2,000 square feet or more."

The City of Yellowknife recently reworked its building bylaws in response to people like Gritt. 

It removed the minimum housing size for residential structures, making these homes more feasible.

“It's a great way to densify a town,” says developer Wayne Guy. “It can be by and large affordable. And it keeps the existing lot life economically usable for a lot longer.”

Guy says tiny homes are a great option for people looking to own a home.

The city also says a tiny house qualifies as a detached secondary suite, so you may be able to put one up in your own back yard.

The city is clear about one thing — the house must be placed on a solid foundation.