One of the hottest new trends in real estate is making an impact on the business world. Entrepreneurs around the country are turning to tiny houses, or small shed-like structures to house their offices or business headquarters.

Below are some of the companies currently offering these types of structures to homeowners and entrepreneurs, along with some of the benefits of using them as home offices.

MetroPrefab

MetroPrefab offers a structure called the MetroSHED, a freestanding structure that can be fully insulated and made to match basically any home style. The structures have large glass doors and high ceilings to make them feel large and comfortable. But standard dimensions are just 9×13 ft.

Founder David Ballinger estimates that hundreds of the company’s customers use MetroSHEDs as home offices. Some are musicians who use them as recording studios or artists who use them as creative getaways. Other client based businesses, like massage therapists, use them so that they can keep their businesses home based but avoid bringing clients into their family’s personal space.

Modern Spaces and Sheds

Modern Spaces and Sheds is a California-based company that mainly works with customers in the Bay Area. The company deals with many clients who use the spaces as home offices.

Owner Eric Enns said in a phone interview with Small Business Trends, “It’s a great situation for people because you have that separation. If you have kids you don’t have to worry about them being loud or interrupting you. But you still have just that short commute to your backyard and you don’t have to deal with traffic or anything.”

He also shared a few other benefits, such as the ability to essentially add square footage to your home without changing the existing structure or architecture. It’s also often cheaper to just add a small structure to the backyard instead of going with a more traditional addition. Sometimes the structures are even small enough to where homeowners don’t need to seek additional permits, but that varies by city.

Modern Spaces and Sheds has several different models with different pricing and options, from small tin huts to completely custom spaces. Enns says that people will often request custom structures to fit with the design of their original homes.

kitHAUS

kitHAUS is another provider of pre-fab models. They can be used as home offices, yoga studios, guest suites, or basically anything else you can think of. kitHAUS custom configures the models on site in just a few days.

Customers can customize several different aspects of their units, including windows, doors and floor coverings.

Owner Tom Sandonato estimates that about half of kitHAUS’s customers use the structures as customized home offices in their backyards. The rest use them as art or yoga studios, guest suites, and even tiny homes.

Alchemy Architects

Alchemy Architects offers a small structure that it calls “weeHouse.” Alchemy builds parts for weeHouses in a factory and then completes them on site.

Pricing depends on size, location and upgrade options. But a 450 square foot model with one bedroom and one bathroom can cost anywhere from $80,000 to $125,000, not including delivery and other fees. The company also offers models up to 2,000 square feet, with three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms.

Featured Image: Modern Spaces/Instagram

[“source-smallbiztrends”]