Renting Tiny Houses...

1860 Granary where I work.

When I got back from my leisure walk around the park at lunch, I was confronted with a Facebook message that peppers the same question I find myself encountering regularly now that I've joined the DFW Tiny House Enthusiasts. "Where did you find a tiny house to rent?"... "Craigs List."

Here's the back story simplified. I was looking for small lake cottages or cabins, hoping to find something in the 300 square foot range when I happened upon my 135 sq. ft. tiny house. The truth is, it was a fluke I found it on Craigs List. I don't know of any places where people can rent tiny houses on a long-term lease in Texas. I'm also not familiar, as I didn't find any such information when I was actively searching, of a comprehensive resource of tiny house rental locations.

There are, however, more options for short-term leases and more resources. Fellow Enthusiast, Jet, and blogger over at The Bookend Tiny House decided to publish her article early due to coincidentally timed questions about this very subject. Like me, she's had more success with Airbnb (see her article here: Tiny House Rentals) and she does a great job of explaining how to search Airbnb. Renting tiny houses on Airbnb is a terrific option, especially if you want to try out different styles of tiny houses.

Another Enthusiast recently posted (as in an hour ago) a question on our Facebook group about renting tiny houses, specifically in Austin, TX. I posed the question back, "What type of tiny house?" Jet's article mentions using other terms to search for different types of tiny houses (such as "houseboat," "airstream," "spartan") and this is important to remember. Some additional terms you'll want to include in your searches are:

• Boat
• Bungalow
• Bus
• Cabin
• Camper
• Container
• Cottage
• Micro or Microhome
• Schoolie

Personally, I find it fun to just log into Airbnb and choose a city, filter for "Entire House," and see what's available. That's how I came across the MotelCamper which HouseBeautiful did a whole article on with some fabulous pictures. 

If you like a bit more planning and order (or just plain Type A and proud of it), check out some of tiny house motels/hotels on Jet's list. Kent Griswold over at the Tiny House Blog recently stayed at one of Jet's recommendations, the Mt. Hood Tiny House Village. I encourage you to read Kent's review of the experience. 

Happy Renting!