Disclaimer

We have done our best to provide accurate and genuinely useful information which we believe is based on a fair interpretation of our understanding of any applicable legislation.  However, this only reflects our opinion and so should not be relied upon.  Consult with your council and take separate legal advice.

Tiny House on Wheels  – THOW. Is it a Building or Vehicle?

The Term Tiny house on wheels – THOW commonly refers to a tiny home that has been built on a trailer and is considered mobile.  There is no particularly clear definition in law and this often leads to confusion and misunderstanding.  Different agencies apply different definitions and this leads to confusion when interpretating the building rules and regulations

Our Tiny Homes all come on wheels and we consider them to be moveable vehicles and if they are not connected to services we do not believe they require building consents.  Our reason for adopting this view is because a building consent is only required for “building work”.  To determine what is “building” work looked to Section 8 of the building act which defines what “building” means:

8 Building: what it means and includes:

• In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, building
  1. Means a temporary or permanent movable or immovable structure including a structure intended for occupation by people, animals, machinery, or chattels; and
  2. Includes

(iii) a vehicle or motor vehicle (including a vehicle or motor vehicle as defined in section 2(1) of the Land Transport Act 1998) that is immovable and is occupied by people on a permanent or long-term basis; 

To unpack this and make the definition easier to understand we replaced the terms vehicle or motor vehicle in the above definition with the actual wording from section 2(1) of the Land Transport Act 1998.  And when we did this the definition now reads as follows (see replaced text in italics)

8 Building: what it means and includes:

• In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, building
  1. Means a temporary or permanent movable or immovable structure including a structure intended for occupation by people, animals, machinery, or chattels; and
  2. Includes

(iii) a contrivance equipped with wheels, tracks, or revolving runners on which it moves or is moved…or (a) road vehicle drawn or propelled by mechanical power; and (b) includes a trailer that is immovable and is occupied by people on a permanent or long-term basis; 

In actual words a trailer which is a tiny home on wheels (THOW) is only a building if it is immovable AND occupied by people on a permanent or long-term basis.

Therefore a Tiny house on wheels (THOW) is only a building if it meets both of these two criteria. 

Our interpretation aligns with the guidance published by the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) who provide overall leadership to the building sector and is the central regulator.

The Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment issued guidance to assist in determining whether a tiny house should be considered a building and need a consent can be read by clicking on this link.  While the guidance document should be read in its detail see below for the flowchart from page 8 of the guidance document outlining the key questions to be determined in reaching a conclusion.

The principles of this were further upheld in the decision of the District Court in Allan Dall vs Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.  See link here to the decision.

The Judge in this decision went on to consider many variables (which would vary with each particular unit) in determining if the tiny home in this case met the definition of moveable.  In reading the summary it essentially seems to say that a self contained tiny home with the genuine attributes of a trailer would be considered moveable and thus would not meet the definition of a building under Section 8 of the building act.  The judge concluding as follows:

“The unit is a “vehicle” and is not “immovable.  It is therefore not a “building” in terms of S8 of the Act”

It is the role of councils to interpret and enforce the principals of the building act and follow the guidance set out by MBIE.  Some councils have in the past challenged the interpretation of a Tiny houses on wheels as a vehicle, thus requiring building consent compliance from the owners of Tiny Homes on Wheels.  The Tiny home community are hopeful that with the latest ruling above and the clarity it brings it will mean this is now something of the past.