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The city of Atlanta has officially joined cities across the nation in saying yes to tiny homes — but the city’s making room for them only in a tiny way.
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The Atlanta City Council passed legislation that allows tiny houses to be built on lots that are already zoned for duplexes. That means in order to build a house smaller than 750 sq. ft., a house larger than 800 sq. ft. must be built first.
Council member Kwanza Hall, who introduced the legislation, said the ordinance is to ease people into the idea of tiny homes.
“People were concerned about the size of the home,” Hall said. “They thought it might diminish their property value. There were people who had concerns about the aesthetic of the homes. So we started with the baseline of what we could get over the fence.”
Some concerns from neighborhoods lent themselves to the limited legislation, Hall said, such as fears property values would drop or the tiny home would only be used as an Airbnb, leading to instability.
As it stands, any tiny home built on appropriately zoned land can be used at the discretion of the owner, whether that means as a place for visiting relatives to visit or a place to rent out.
Hall said down the road he would like to see fewer restrictions, but, for now, the city plans to see who builds tiny homes and how well the concept works before taking the next step.
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