Tiny houses
Tiny houses ensure a safe home for homeless people with addiction or mental health problems. Individuals and couples alike can get tiny houses for longer or shorter periods and will then no longer need to use short-term resources, such as emergency shelters.
How are places allocated?
People who apply for a tiny house must be actively serviced by a VoR team.
You can apply for a tiny house from a counselor at a service center. Tiny houses are part of Housing First, and they include the VoR Team’s services. A report from the VoR Team is attached to applications. The allocation team for homeless individuals with complex needs informs service centers when tiny houses become available. Applications are evaluated in professional meetings held by the allocation team and housing is allocated accordingly. Service center counselors are responsible for notifying applicants of allocation.
After approval by the allocation team, appropriate agreements and plans are drawn up.
How are the residents supported?
Residents of tiny houses are supported by the VoR Team. The support is implemented in consultation with the residents through a special residence agreement that includes an individual plan and provisions for payments for housing. The support may include regular visits and supervision from VoR Team experts.
Questions and answers
Where are the tiny houses located?
Work is underway to put up to 20 tiny houses into operation in various locations in Reykjavík. The lots for the tiny houses have special zoning. They can be transported between places if necessary.
How is the location of tiny houses chosen?
Tiny house locations are chosen to provide residents with good access to services and public transportation, and opportunities to increase their engagement and community participation. Where required, special care will be taken to minimize noise and improve the general appearance with landscaping around the houses. The landscaping should also provide shelter from the wind.
Who decides on the location of tiny houses?
The Department of Environment and Planning provides lots for tiny houses and makes changes to zoning. This process provides an opportunity for residents and other stakeholders to provide feedback and suggestions.
What do tiny houses look like?
Each tiny house is 25 square meters. There is a living room and kitchenette at one end of the house and an open sleeping nook at the other. The middle has a bathroom and an open lobby. From the living room you walk out onto a small platform that is sheltered from the wind.
A landscape architect is responsible for shaping the environment of the tiny houses with an emphasis on them blending into the environment. The lot and pathways will have good lighting.
Why are tiny houses important?
Housing is one of the basic needs of every person and the right to adequate housing has been considered a human right ever since the signing of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights in 1948.
Tiny houses are a key part of advancing the City of Reykjavík’s Human Rights Policy and the policy for homeless individuals with complex needs.
The experience with comparable tiny houses in other countries has shown that they improve the situation of homeless people.