In the middle of Koblenz, Astrid has realized a dream: a small house of her own in which she could implement her ideas of sustainable and age-appropriate living. Her 30m² modular house stands in her own garden, while her two sons live in the actual house at the front.

A modular house is basically a small prefabricated house that could also be extended with additional modules. The plot on which Astrid's house stands is a narrow, long piece of land. The small house now fits harmoniously into the narrow 4.5 m garden like a large puzzle piece. As there was no development plan for the plot, nothing stood in the way of Astrid's wish for a modular house from the approval authorities. All that was necessary was to register a building obligation with the neighbor, as Astrid was unable to comply with the boundary distances to the neighboring property.

However, the special construction method of the modular house required thorough and precise preparation, as the house was completely prefabricated and there is hardly any room for corrections once it has been erected. All connections had to be carefully considered in advance. The floor plan was therefore tailored precisely to Astrid's ideas and her existing furniture. It was helpful that Astrid originally studied interior design and still works in construction management today.

The result of Astrid's planning is impressive: after three months of construction, the house was lifted from a low-loader to its final location in just four hours with the help of a crane. The Tiny House has a living space of 30m² and consists of an open-plan living, dining and cooking area, a bedroom and a bathroom with shower. Electric underfloor heating and air conditioning regulate the temperature. The mini-house is insulated with cellulose blown-in insulation. Astrid was able to move into her modular house in May 2023.

Astrid's modular house cost around €75,000. These costs were easy to plan. In addition, there were the costs of developing the plot, and wastewater, water and electricity pipes had to be laid. Due to the current shortage of tradesmen, these costs are much less easy to plan.
For ecological reasons, Astrid has always lived in a rather small home. As a result, she didn't have a lot of furniture and objects that she would have had to sort out. She was able to keep almost all of her old furniture and place it in the modular house. She also believes that sharing as much as possible saves resources and makes sense. She uses the washing machine in her sons' house and they also share the car, as well as a workshop in the middle of the property.

Everything in Astrid's tiny house is designed to enable her to live independently in old age, even if she becomes less mobile. Every room is accessible at ground level and the electrical connections are positioned in such a way that she could even accommodate a care bed with a view of the garden if necessary.

Astrid's desire for a resource-saving and age-appropriate house has always required courage. The foresighted, precise planning was exhausting and not everything always went smoothly during the two-year planning phase. But today Astrid is glad that she dared to realize this dream.

A film by Johannes Busch and Jonas Grom (editors), Marvin Pehr (camera and editing) and Nils Harms (camera). Production: frei.raum media, on behalf of SWR.

00:00 Life in the modular house
01:09 Living area
02:36 Kitchen
04:47 Dining area
07:00 Office
07:53 Bathroom
10:26 Bedroom
11:53 Outdoor area