Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Jul 14, 2025

At US$100k, is this the ultimate Covid-era tiny home on wheels?

At US$100k, is this the ultimate Covid-era tiny home on wheels?

Bigger doesn’t always mean better – this bright and sleek new home by New Zealand-based Build Tiny features all the amenities in just 240 sq ft

If you thought that wealth automatically leads to sprawling mansions, think again – more and more people are eschewing large homes for tiny, more minimalist ones.

And now New Zealand-based housebuilder Build Tiny has unveiled its latest project: the Dark Horse, a US$103,000 tiny home on wheels
that was designed and constructed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Build Tiny specialises in, you guessed it, building custom tiny homes that sit on trailer chassis. This one in particular has a bedroom, living space, kitchen with a breakfast bar, and a dual purpose laundry and bathroom.

But unlike most of the company’s little homes on wheels, the Dark Horse wasn’t created for or named by a client. Instead, it was designed and built in-house by the team of builders that then had to come up with and vote on its name, the latter a task that’s normally delegated to the client.

“A ‘dark horse’ is a term usually used to refer to someone that was previously taken for granted, but rose to prominence in a situation – something akin to an underdog success story,” Build Tiny’s director and designer Gina Stevens said in an email interview. “That’s how we view ourselves as a company in some ways, and also the tiny house is quite unassuming from the outside, but has a few surprises on the inside.”

The naming and building anomaly was a result of New Zealand’s coronavirus-induced lockdown in mid-March that caused Build Tiny to temporarily close production efforts.


The Dark Horse tiny home was created to fill the gaps in Build Tiny’s production schedule.


During this time, two of its clients pulled out of their plans to order a tiny home, leaving only three units in the workshop instead of the typical five. As a result, by the time the company could resume operations eight weeks later, the builders had two gaps in their work schedule. To fill this gap, Stevens designed the Dark Horse, allowing the company to introduce a new tiny home while giving the builders something to work on.

This process differed from Build Tiny’s normal workflow, which is often based on custom orders as requested by clients – usually for double instead of single level homes.


A glimpse into the bedroom in the Dark Horse tiny home.


According to Stevens, a typical design process for a client-requested build can take over two months. But because the Dark Horse was designed in-house based on “general feedback, wants, and wishes [they] have observed from the New Zealand market,” the design was finalised in a few weeks. The home was then built in about three months.


The Dark Horse living space near the entrance of the home.


The Dark Horse’s bright interior and single level was designed to “appeal to as broad an audience as possible”. By implementing a single level instead of the more popular double, the home is more accessible for those who can’t walk up stairs or climb up ladders.

And according to Stevens, this work has paid off: Build Tiny has already seen a “huge amount of interest” in the Dark Horse.

“There are tens of thousands of New Zealanders returning home due to the pandemic, and that‘s on top of an existing housing supply crisis here due to sustained population growth and an underinvestment in housing,” Stevens wrote. “There just aren’t enough homes for all these returning Kiwis to live in, so more people than ever are now considering tiny homes as a viable option.”



Dark Horse sits at about nine metres (30 feet) long, 2.5 metres (eight feet) wide and 3.2 metres (10.5 feet) tall. The interior is lined with windows, see through doors, and a deck to create an “indoor outdoor” feel, according to Build Tiny’s YouTube video tour of the Dark Horse.

The couch space is across from the entrance of the tiny home and sits underneath floating shelves that then lead into the overhead kitchen cabinet and LED strip light.


The kitchen and dining area of the Dark Horse tiny home.


There is storage throughout the interior, including a shoe storage unit under the television space that’s right by the entrance of the home.

The kitchen is split into two halves that run parallel to each other, but several of the appliances – specifically the refrigerator and microwave – need to be bought separately with the extra appliance package, which also includes a washing machine.


The kitchen, living area, and bedroom all flow into each other in the Dark Horse.


One side of the kitchen has a pull-out trash and recycling disposal drawer, sink, dishwasher and space for a microwave and refrigerator freezer while the other half holds the dual gas cooking hobs with an overhead slide-out hood, magnetic splashback to hold spices, gas oven, slide-out pantry and breakfast bar.

Past the kitchen and its sliding door is the laundry and bathroom.


The laundry and bathroom area of the Dark Horse.


In terms of laundry, the room holds the hamper, cabinets, wall-mounted drying rack and washing machine if the extra appliance package is bought.

For bathroom use, the space has a sink, mirror next to the windows, composting toilet and standing shower with a shower dome.

On the opposite end of the tiny home is the bedroom, which comes with several storage units that surround the bed. The bed itself can also lift up to reveal under-bed storage.


The layout of the Dark Horse tiny home.


Besides the extra appliances, the tiny home can be upgraded to include an off-grid underfloor gas heater or an off-grid solar power system. Otherwise, the Dark Horse comes with a power hook-up point.

“Most of the reputable tiny housebuilders like us have a pipeline of work extending well into 2021, so the fact that the Dark Horse tiny house is already built and ready to be delivered is very appealing to many,” Stevens wrote.

The home is available now and can be shipped internationally.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
×