Dean Selwyn – Ngātiwai
Heart and Soul Tiny Homes is owned and operated by Dean and his wife Rhonda. Their journey began in 2019 with the construction of their own tiny home which they use themselves. It is also a popular Airbnb for those particularly interested in experiencing Tiny living.
This was the start. After thorough research and design, the company fully committed to tiny home construction in August 2022. Their first tiny home, Tahi, is now a successful Airbnb, and their second, Rua, was sold in July 2023 to another builder for personal use.
Heart and Soul Tiny Homes builds tiny homes on wheels meaning they are on a trailer. They design their own and will also build designs brought to them by customers. Because they are small they are able to be flexible with their designs and the materials they use. Their aim is to use as much NZ grown, milled, manufactured materials as possible.
The business is based in Waikato which is very central and gives them access to the Auckland region, the greater Waikato and South markets. Having 4 acres of land they can utilise for building Tiny Homes is also of great benefit to reduce their costs. Because tiny homes are on wheels, they are less restricted by physical location, but do appreciate the land on which they are fortunate enough to reside.
Recent funding from Poutama will help expedite the acquisition of a canopy between 2 existing workshops and storage shipping containers. This will provide an all-weather covered work area that will protect them and their Tiny Homes from the elements during construction.
Dean says, “The mobile scaffolding will help with Health and Safety and increase speed and efficiency. The funding will also allow us to upgrade our old mitre and table saws, reducing the maintenance costs, risk of injury and increasing accuracy of cuts.”
Being Māori is important to what they do, Dean says, “I connect with the very real need to provide an affordable solution for Māori to own their own homes. To provide a sense of ‘ownership’, belonging and community, we need access to both land and buildings.”
“Tiny homes offer flexibility that enable the ‘building’ aspect to meet current needs while not being locked into land that we, as individuals, do not necessarily own outright.” For example sleeping, bathroom and kitchen pods options can be added or removed as the needs of whānau change.
Tiny Homes can be easily relocated to other sections of Māori land should the need arise. Dean says, “We see this being of great benefit when considering how to make use of Māori land which is owned and shared by many.”
Just like the tiny homes they design and build, they are flexible – if people have ideas and plans, they listen. Dean says, “We’re not locked into 2 or 3 designs with no exceptions. We want to make sure we build the tiny home our clients have been dreaming of, or better!”
For more information check out their website and Facebook pages.
