Two Canadian Designers Couldn’t Afford a Home, So They Built Some Really Nice Tiny Ones

Welcome to Tiny Home Profiles, an interview series with people pushing the limits of living small. From space-saving hacks to flexible floor plans, here’s what they say makes for the best tiny homes on the planet. Know of a builder we should talk to? Reach out.

Payam Shalchian and Lee Loewen knew neither of them could afford a traditional home, but that didn’t make them feel stuck. "We’re both industrial designers, and we thought, There has to be a better way," Shalchian remembers. So in 2020, they banded together and founded Instead, a tiny home company that now has three models that are meant to be more affordable than the single-family residences in their native Ontario: the P01; its all-electric counterpart, the P02; and the L01, which is designed to rest on a foundation.

"Lee and his family lived in the P01 for two-and-a-half years, which provided many firsthand insights to improve our design," Shalchian says. Read on to learn more about Canadian tiny home company Instead, and how it’s endeavoring to provide an alternative path to owning a home.

What qualities make your tiny home stand apart from the rest?

We pay a lot of attention to the "performance" of the house. Within the context of affordability, a house can be expensive to operate and maintain over its lifespan. So, we encourage our clients to prioritize spending on what makes their house perform better and last longer.

We tend to incorporate high-performance building materials as well as techniques and practices to ensure that our clients have a healthy home that would last for many years and need very little upkeep. And although we have a systems-first approach, we apply this thinking to the finishes, too. This is where some of the customization work comes in, to make the house reflective of a client’s taste.

What’s the most exciting project you’ve realized to date?

Our L01 unit is the most exciting project. It is our first home intended for a permanent foundation, which makes it more applicable to the context of a walkable city. Here in Ontario, tiny homes on wheels—or "mobile" tiny homes—still face great limitations to become a viable housing option due to zoning bylaw implications. This is the case in many cities. However, tiny homes can be placed or built on a foundation and be used as an additional or a secondary dwelling unit, and that’s the opportunity L01 presents.

What does your base model cost and what does that pricing include?

All of our homes are considered turnkey, which means that the systems, finishes, cabinetry, and appliances are included in the price. The P01, the tiny home on wheels, is about 260 square feet and has a starting price of $189,000 CAD, plus tax and delivery. The L01, the tiny home on a foundation, is 520 square feet and starts at $249,000 CAD, plus tax and delivery.

What aspects of the design can a client customize?

You name it! We can customize exterior finishes, interior finishes, flooring, kitchen cabinetry, and appliances. We have a library of materials from vendors we have worked with in the past and can help our clients choose what is right for them.

Where are your tiny homes currently available?

We can ship our tiny homes on wheels across the U.S. and Canada. For our tiny homes intended for a foundation, our delivery is limited to Ontario at the moment.

Are there plans to expand to different parts of the country, and the world?

We definitely have aspirations as a startup. Our immediate hope is to have an impact locally within our region, specifically the province of Ontario, on the housing market. So we are hyper-focused locally, but you never know what the future will bring.

Is your design currently pre-permitted in any U.S. municipalities?

We certify our tiny homes on wheels to Canadian safety standards for RVs, mobile homes, or park model homes. We ask our U.S. prospects and clients to check with their state or municipality to see if they recognize one of those certifications.

For the L01, we have the option for clients to get a certification local to Ontario, but they are still required to have a permit on-site for the foundation and service connections.

How long can a client expect the process to take after they put down a deposit?

Typically the process takes six to eight months, but can take up to a year if a client is looking for a completely custom design.

Do you assist with the placement of the tiny home?

Unfortunately, we don’t at the moment. But we can assist local clients in our region with finding the right contractors to take on those parts of the project.

More Tiny Home Profiles:

Got a Wild Idea for a Remote Cabin? Summit Tiny Homes Will (Likely) Entertain It

The Add-Ons Are Seemingly Endless With Modern Tiny Living’s $85K Tiny Homes

Project Credits:

Company: Instead / @instead.works

Designer/Builder: Payam Shalchian / @thegroundskeepersdiary

 Photography and Styling: Brooke Stephenson / @foundmythrill