Do you want to build a small house but are having trouble finding a lot to build it on?
Finding land to build a small affordable house can be hard. Most of the land for sale is governed by minimum floor area requirements imposed by zoning regulations. These constraints often control how big (or small) your house can be on any given lot.
It’s frustrating when you see so many large sprawling houses getting built. It’s equally frustrating to know that the real estate market that determines home market values bases prices on size and number of rooms.
And, like us, you know that a well-designed home with an efficient floor plan is just as good if not better (and more cost-effective) than a large home with wasted space and redundant rooms. So when all you want to do is build something affordable – a small home that fits you and your unique lifestyle – how do you do it if you can’t find land that allows you to build small?
Our advice to you is to get creative and think outside the box.
If you’re struggling to find land to build a small affordable home, here are 5 strategies to consider to help broaden your search and find the perfect property.
1. Find a residential lot that doesn’t have a minimum floor area requirement (or whose minimum is below your desired size.)
Most, if not all, places in the US are dictated by zoning regulations. On a macro level, zoning helps maintain property values and facilitates smart growth for new construction. On a micro level, where people are more likely to first encounter zoning, it dictates the type, size, height, and location of buildings on each lot.
Zoning is great in preventing unsightly, ill-fitting, or inappropriate new construction from infiltrating your neighborhood and decreasing your property value. It’s not so great when you want to build something that is slightly outside the norm: like a smaller house.
The easiest strategy we suggest to find land that allows a small house on it is to find a lot that doesn’t have a zoning restriction on the minimum floor area (or one that is below your desired home size).
Here’s what we mean…
(Since we’re located in Columbus, OH (Franklin County), we’ll use our area for this example.)
In looking at the Franklin County zoning codes, there are a few different residential zoning districts with varying size requirements.
Franklin County residential districts that allow small houses.
But, a closer look reveals that there are a few districts that don’t have minimum size requirements: R-3, R-2F, and R-4. Also, district SR and R-2 have a 720 sf minimum which is a lot smaller than a normal house so it might work too. With this information, we can review properties for sale, reference the zoning maps, and determine if it’s legal to build a small house on the lot.
This process is applicable across the US with the except that the naming convention and minimum square footage may be different. Review your city’s zoning code and determine if there are any residential districts without minimum size restrictions. Then, cross check the available land for sale with the zoning map and see if any available properties would allow you to build a smaller home.
2. Find an irregular lot with constraints that make it difficult to build a larger house.
If your city doesn’t have any residential districts that allow small homes or you don’t find any lots for sale in districts that do, the next strategy we suggest is to look for unique or irregular residential lots that make it hard to build larger houses (on even though zoning requires the larger size).
Even though the zoning codes may require a larger sized home on the lot, if the lot can’t possibly contain a house of that size or if doing so would violate setbacks or other restrictions, there is a chance that the planning officials will allow a smaller house on the site.
Examples of irregular, odd, or non-conforming lots are ones that are triangular shaped, ones with weird setbacks or easements, and ones where with steep topography or water features.
The graphic below shows many types of irregular lots in any given city. It was created by the Office of Jonathan Tate, an architecture firm in New Orleans who does research and development on how to maximize the use of non-conforming lots for affordable housing.
Looking for lots that are triangular wedges or even narrow rectangular slivers are a good place to start (Tip: Find roads that are not orthogonal or on the city grid. Lots along diagonal roads are typically a gold mine for triangular lots.) Another thing to look for are lots with a lot of the topography changes. Steep terrain limits the amount of usable land for a house’s footprint. In a similar vein, land near streams or creeks have special setbacks and floodplain restrictions that also reduce the buildable area on an given site.
You may be able to fit a smaller house on one of these types of lots where a larger house would be impossible. You can use these restrictions to your advantage by discussing what is possible and practical on the site with a zoning or planning official. There’s a chance they agree with your logic and will issue a variance to build a smaller house on the property (once you prove it’s impossible or extremely hard to build a bigger house on that lot).
Zoning can be a bit tricky in some cities but you’ll find that many planning departments will work with you if they know your intentions are to create a well-designed lasting home. That’s ultimately what they want also, so showing them that you’re invested in the process and willing to work together will go a long way.
To continue with our Columbus example:
If you look through the Franklin County zoning maps, you can still find tracts of vacant land that are triangular, small rectangular slivers, and ones near water or on uneven terrain (Columbus has a few nice ravines so this area is full of undeveloped land).
A few irregular lots in Columbus, OH – potential locations for small houses
The highlighted lots above aren’t listed for sale, but rather are selected to show you vacant plots of land that may be hard to build on. If you look hard enough in your area, you’ll probably find similar underutilized lots.
Don’t get discouraged if you find land that isn’t listed for sale. There’s no harm in looking up the owner of the property on the auditor’s website or in public records and contact the owner to see if they would be willing to sell their land. You might get lucky!
Please also be aware that before you jump into purchasing an irregular lot, you should always do your due diligence and talk to the zoning and planning officials to see if they will allow you to approve a variance to build a small house. You may have to submit some additional paperwork, attend public meetings, or pay a small variance fee, but people have done it so it’s definitely an option to consider.
The image below shows a project build by the Office of Jonathan Tate on an irregular lot with multiple zoning constraints. They were able to squeeze a house onto a lot that was 15 feet wide with a 3 foot sideyard setback!
Relevant article: Affordable Living on Overlooked Land: The Starter Home* by OJT
“Through a thorough analysis of land availability and market pressures, it was determined that there were opportunities with land that was too small or undesirable — odd lots — to attract first-wave developers. The design of the home works within and expressive of the restrictive conditions of the site, resulting in fitting yet peculiar new housing types for the City.”
3. Build a modest house that also has an attached accessory dwelling unit to bump up the total square footage.
Another option to consider if you want to live in a small house but aren’t having any luck finding lots is to consider building a modest house and an attached accessory unit (basically two separate dwelling units with separate entrances). Many zoning codes define floor area as total habitable living space. This allows you to combine the square footage of the primary house and the accessory unit so that you meet or exceed the minimum square footage requirement for that plot of land. So for example, you could build a 500 sf unit and a 1000 sf unit under the same roof to meet a minimum floor area requirement of 15000 sf.
Building an attached accessory structure that is enveloped within the footprint of your house is a great way to build cost-effectively, meet the minimum size requirements, and create additional income in the form of rent.
It does, however, cost more money up-front to build than the small house you initially intended, but you may find that the return on investment is worth it. In many cases, you can offset the increase in mortgage (due to a larger construction loan) by the monthly rent payments you receive.
Also, having a second accessory unit has its advantages: it lets you control who your neighbor is, it increases your potential for finding land, it creates passive income, and it gives you the future flexibility to house an aging parent or a child going through college. It even creates the potential to combine units later if you need more space or your family grows.
This is also a good strategy if your city’s zoning only has residential lots with large minimum building size requirements.
4. Buy an existing house and build a detached accessory structure in the back to live in.
Similar to the previous strategy, consider the idea of looking for property with an existing house already – but that also has a large enough backyard to build an accessory structure. Since you want to live in a small house, the new accessory dwelling unit can be your residence, allowing you to rent out the larger house for additional income.
This strategy will require more up-front capital like the previous strategy since the purchase price of the house and land will be more. You will need to dish out additional money for the construction cost of your new accessory house, but you can potentially save money by living in the existing house while the new one gets built.
One advantage of this strategy is that the pool of available properties is bigger. You’ll find more properties for sale with houses on them that fit your criteria than you will vacant lots that allow small houses. You’ll also have the freedom and flexibly to build the house you really want in the privacy of your own backyard, tucked away from the street.
Accessory dwelling units (ADU) have their own set of building requirements, setback constraints, and restrictions but you may find this strategy to be a good one, especially if you’re not willing to compromise on location.
[Park House by Measured Architecture & Project 22 Design. Photo by Andrew Latrielle.]
5. Look for land in another location.
Lastly, if you’re determined to design and build a small home and have exhausted all other options, the alternative solution is to look for land in another location entirely. Whether this means outside of the city where zoning codes are more lax or in a different city entirely, the choice is up to you.
We understand that you may have competing project goals related to your ideal location: budget, neighborhood, size, proximity to amenities, school district, walkability, etc, and that certain goals outweigh others so this strategy may not be an option. We still felt it was worth mentioning in case you’re open to looking for land somewhere else.
Who knows, you may find it’s more cost-effective to be in a different location. Or, you may find that you have fewer neighbors and better views that could benefit you and your project.
Finding the ideal property to build your small house can be a long and frustrating process. There aren’t many properties available and the ones you are finding don’t fit your criteria or don’t allow small houses. But what we’ve learned is that if you’re diligent, persistent, and open to unique possibilities the chances of finding land for your small house increase significantly. Following the strategies we discuss in this article is a great starting point.
Do you have other strategies that have worked for you as you look for land to build a small house? Share your ideas in the comments below so everyone can benefit.
Your blog/articles continue to be interesting and helpful.
Carlos (Upstate NY)
Thanks, Carlos! We appreciate the compliments. We try really hard to create relevant and insightful articles that are easy to understand and interesting. If you ever have any ideas for future articles, we’re always listening. Cheers!
We need innovation in zoning. Most homes have excessive lot size, area, cost, maintenance and resource use. We should try to make our homes a better fit for the occupants rather than the zoning boards, banks, real estate brokers and tax collectors. With new homes, we should surpass the grace, elegance and durability of existing homes. The Estonian KODA house is an example.