TINY HAUS:
Tiny home new build

with a smaller footprint than the swimming pool

Featured in The Daily Telegraph’s Home Magazine and on Channel 7’s Sunrise, Tiny Haus challenges the assumption that a family home must be large to be liveable. For a family of four, the brief was simple but ambitious - create a place to live well, connect deeply with the outdoors and minimise the cost and complexity of daily life. The design embraced our guiding principle of less, but better, transforming a footprint smaller than a double garage into a light-filled, highly functional home that feels anything but small.

Sydney Architects Modern house with a wooden deck, outdoor dining area, two bean bag chairs, a small pool, and a view into the bright interior living room and kitchen.

The project began as an interim solution – a compact studio at the rear of the block while plans for a future main house were developed. Yet, once built, the owners found the 32m² tiny house offered everything they needed. With the main house to the north and neighbouring properties close by, the little home oriented west toward the pool, allowing it to open seamlessly to outdoor living. A generous deck, a poolside outlook and a servery-style kitchen window stitch inside and outside together so effectively that the outdoor dining area feels like a true extension of the home.

A bright living room with a large window, a gray couch with several pillows, and a child jumping on a window seat. In the background, a person is seen in a doorway, and bedrooms with elevated beds are visible.
Sydney architects modern kitchen with white cabinets, a stainless steel sink, a soap dispenser, a striped towel, a stovetop, and an oven, with sunlight streaming through a window.
Child peeking out from a small wooden staircase with a white railing near a large window with a view of a backyard with a pool and lounge chairs.
A cozy bedroom with a custom wooden bed frame that has storage drawers, decorated with children's books, a plush toy, and pillows, next to a window with natural light.

Inside, every element was considered at a furniture-like level of detail. Built-in banquette seating doubles as storage, a triple-storey bunk system creates bedrooms and play zones for the children, and the main bed tucked into a niche lined with bookshelves. Louvre windows capture breezes, while external blinds temper the western sun. Recycled decking, tallowwood flooring and small-quantity, high-quality finishes reflect both the project’s modest scale and its attention to detail.

Interior view of a cozy corner with a built-in cushioned seating area, a round wooden table with two small wooden stools, and large glass windows showing an outdoor pool and lounge chairs, with natural sunlight streaming in.
Modern bathroom with white walls, a toilet, a small wall-mounted sink with a bottle of soap, a towel, a window with louvered blinds, and a large mirror reflecting a shower area with a glass door.
Modern living room with large glass windows and sliding doors opening to an outdoor patio. It features a gray sofa with various pillows, a round wooden table, and an open kitchen area with white cabinetry. The outdoor patio has a barbecue grill and seating area with wooden furniture, surrounded by trees and neighboring houses.
Outdoor patio with a wooden dining table, six chairs, a grill, bar seating, and a countertop with a sink, surrounded by trees and a black metal fence.

By responding thoughtfully to its site and prioritising connection with place, Tiny Haus delivers a lifestyle that is spacious in experience, not in footprint. It shows that comfort, delight and a calmer way of living are entirely possible with far less – and that, sometimes, less really is better.

A backyard with a swimming pool, two poolside lounge chairs with towels and a hat, a small table with glasses, trees, and a wooden privacy fence.
Outdoor shower area with wooden privacy wall, showerhead, and a lounge chair. Trees and a neighboring house are visible in the background.
Outdoor seating area with wooden deck and a raised hot tub space, enclosed by a wooden privacy fence and surrounded by trees.

Location:
Grays Point, Sydney, Australia

Completed:
2017

Builder:
Owner/Builder

Landscape Design:
Sydney Organic Gardens

Photography:
Andy Macpherson Studio

Collage of three images showing tiny houses and a family. The first is a screenshot of a TV news segment about a family's small house, the second is a magazine or website page showing a small, modern house with a pool and the headline about living large on a tiny footprint, and the third is a webpage with an article about fitting a family of four into a 32 square meter tiny house, with photos of the tiny house exterior and interior.

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