A resourceful couple have created their very own home on wheels in the form of a 40ft custom-made trailer.
Todd and Shari Snyder, from Hill Country, Texas, ditched their spacious conventional house for the stunning compact home they can take anywhere.
The luxurious family home has two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, a bathroom and 384 sq ft of living space – and it’s proved so popular, they are now selling identical models for just $98,000 (£73,000).
The kitchen boasts a full-size fridge-freezer, a Belfast sink, hob, oven and dishwasher with a small table and two stools that roll out from under the counter.
The Snyders made space for a 55in TV in the living room and a 32in TV in the bedroom and is a washing machine and tumble dryer in the bathroom along with a full-size jet-spa bath.
The couple can increase their space with sliding doors between the bathroom and bedroom and Andrew has his own room in the loft space.
Now that’s a mobile home! Todd and Shari Snyder, from Hill Country, Texas, have ditched their spacious conventional house for the stunning compact home they can take anywhere
They also built in two 9ft wide by 4ft recess areas which house the sofa and bed which can be tucked away when not in use to give extra floor space.
The project took five months with Todd, 49, who has been building and renovating houses for 15 years, custom-making the trailer from scratch and building their home with the couple’s son Andrew, 12, this summer.
Then Shari, 45, took over with the interior design, making sure she had space to fit in everything she needed and the home was livable for three people.
The couple have called it the Vintage Retreat and are now making similar models for other families through their new company, Hill Country Tiny Houses.
They cost $98,000 (£73,000) and buyers will need a one-tonne truck if they want to take it on the road.
A a smaller model for a single person starts from $68,000 (£50,000).
All the mod-cons! The kitchen has a full-size fridge-freezer, a Belfast sink, hob, oven and dishwasher with a small table and two stools that roll out from under the counter
Spacious! The couple also built in two 9ft wide by 4ft recess areas which house the sofa and bed which can be tucked away when not in use to give extra floor space
Compact: The couple can increase their space with sliding doors between the bathroom and bedroom and Andrew has his own room in the loft space
Shari said: ‘I had been searching for a business my husband and I could do together that would utilise both our strengths when I came across the tiny house movement.
‘I realised that the best builders and designers of tiny houses are those that live in them and I wanted to be the best so we dove in head first and put our dream home on the market.
‘I designed every square inch of the place to be livable for three people. I thought of all the little details like where would the bin go, and dirty clothes – everything is so functional and yet beautiful.
‘I wanted all the luxury and appliances so I was not missing any of the creature comforts.
‘We probably downsized all our belongings by about 50 per cent but I probably should have got rid of more.
The bathroom. Speaking about the ambitious project, Shari said: ‘I had been searching for a business my husband and I could do together that would utilise both our strengths when I came across the tiny house movement’
Ambitious: The project took five months with Todd, 49, who has been building and renovating houses for 15 years, custom-making the trailer from scratch and building their home with the couple’s son Andrew, 12, this summer
Speaking about how compact living has changed their lifestyle, the couple revealed: ‘You just have to adjust your lifestyle, it makes you do chores straight away instead of putting them off’
Meticulous planning: ‘We made it as big as we could because we run two businesses from home and home-school our son so we needed all the space we could get,’ the couple said
Spreading the word: ‘We’re now on a mission to get other people interested in it,’ said the couple. ‘We’ve seen how it strengthens families and eliminates debt and allows you the time freedom to invest in the things that really matter in life’
‘But we made it as big as we could because we run two businesses from home and home-school our son so we needed all the space we could get.
‘It’s not really designed as a travelling trailer but it’s a trailer that can travel. We’ve moved it a couple of times, the longest trip we have taken is about 300 miles.
‘It takes a long time to pack it all up with the decks and the slide-outs. Moving from one park site to another across town, packing up and setting it all out again takes about four hours.
Creative input: When it came to the interiors, Shari, 45, took over with the interior design, making sure she had space to fit in everything she needed and the home was livable for three people
Getting off the ground: ‘It takes a long time to pack it all up with the decks and the slide-outs,’ says Shari. ‘Moving from one park site to another across town, packing up and setting it all out again takes about four hours’
Meals on wheels! ‘It’s not really designed as a travelling trailer but it’s a trailer that can travel,’ the couple admitted. ‘We’ve moved it a couple of times, the longest trip we have taken is about 300 miles’
Ongoing project: The couple have called it the Vintage Retreat and are now making similar models for other families through their new company, Hill Country Tiny Houses
Speaking about their ambitious project, Shari revealed: ‘It has paid off though, we went to a show in Texas where we were up against 50 other builders from around the US and we were voted best in show’
Cheaper than a house! The homes cost $98,000 (£73,000) and buyers will need a one-tonne truck if they want to take it on the road. A a smaller model for a single person starts from $68,000 (£50,000)
‘You just have to adjust your lifestyle, it makes you do chores straight away instead of putting them off.
‘It has paid off though, we went to a show in Texas where we were up against 50 other builders from around the US and we were voted best in show.
‘We are the only company that have slide-outs on a tiny house.
‘We’re now on a mission to get other people interested in it. We’ve seen how it strengthens families and eliminates debt and allows you the time freedom to invest in the things that really matter in life.’