🏘️ Why Aren’t We Talking About Tiny Homes?
A Response to Douglas Todd’s Article: Why Good Family Homes Aren’t Getting Built in Vancouver
By Tina Winterlik aka Zipolita
Published: July 2025
Douglas Todd’s recent article in the Vancouver Sun, “Why good family homes aren’t getting built in Vancouver”, puts the blame where it belongs: greed. Avarice, as he calls it, is at the heart of why our city builds small, expensive units that serve investors—not families.
And he’s not wrong.
But there’s a bigger question screaming beneath the surface of this discussion, and no one’s asking it:
WHY aren't we building Tiny Homes?
❓Why Are We Still Chasing a Broken Dream?
The article mourns the death of the “family home,” but never asks:
Do most people even want big homes anymore?
Families today are smaller, more diverse, and more spread out. Many are single-parent or multigenerational. Most young people can’t afford a detached house, and many don’t want one. They want security, dignity, and affordability—not square footage.
So why do city planners and developers keep pushing towers or giant unaffordable homes?
🚫 Tiny Homes Get Ignored. Why?
We know the answer: They can’t profit off them.
Tiny Homes are:
- Affordable to build
- Environmentally sustainable
- Perfect for singles, seniors, students, and even small families
- Quick to set up and adaptable to land we already have
But they don’t fit the corporate model. They challenge the real estate industrial complex. They empower people—and that’s a problem for those who profit off housing scarcity.
So instead of building vibrant, beautiful tiny home communities, we build cramped condos or luxury towers that sit empty.
🌍 A Global Idea Shut Down by Local Shortsightedness
Tiny home villages are working all over the world:
- Oregon, Washington, California—especially for seniors and veterans
- Europe and Japan have micro-housing models that prioritize function, not flash
- Even Indigenous communities are using tiny homes for cultural revitalization and housing justice
And yet in Vancouver, a city with one of the worst housing crises in the world, we still treat the idea like a fringe fantasy.
Why?
💡 The Real Answer is Simpler Than You Think
It’s not about architecture. It’s not even about zoning (though that’s part of it).
It’s about control.
Tiny homes allow people to opt out of the rat race—out of debt, out of 40-year mortgages, out of renting from corporate landlords. They create resilient, self-sufficient communities. That’s terrifying to a system built on exploitation.
💬 Let’s Stop Pretending and Start Asking Real Questions
To all the urban planners, journalists, and politicians wringing their hands about “the missing middle” or “why family homes aren’t being built”—I ask you:
WHY aren’t Tiny Homes ever in the conversation?
WHY do we ignore the most affordable, adaptable housing solution out there?
WHY are we so afraid of letting people live simply, safely, and freely?
🌱 The Future is Small, Smart, and Shared
We need a new vision of urban living:
- Tiny Homes in every neighborhood
- Community kitchens, gardens, and shared spaces
- Legal frameworks that support—not suppress—alternative housing
- Urban Suburbia, not Urban Sprawl
Let’s build homes that fit people—not profit margins.
🙋♀️ Join the Conversation
I want to hear from you.
Have you ever dreamed of living in a Tiny Home?
Do you think Vancouver is ready to embrace them?
Comment below, share this post, and keep asking:
WHY NOT TINY HOMES?
No comments:
Post a Comment