# Minuscule Flat-Pack Houses Oakland is Offering Tiny Portable Homes as a Solution to City Shelters By M | Published 2016-07-14 | Art & Design Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/city-shelters References: [fastcoexist](http://www.fastcoexist.com/3061682/can-these-tiny-flatpack-houses-help-shelter-the-homeless) & [abelforoakland](http://www.abelforoakland.com/) To help curb the rising price of homes and rent in Oakland, the city counsel is putting together a [tiny village house](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/miami-tiny-house) initiative as a way to help provide more affordable solutions to city shelters. The houses are built with a [flat-pack design](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/boxabl-baby-box) so that they can be set up anywhere in a little amount of time to provide long-lasting space for consumers to reside in. The tiny houses are constructed using [3D modelling](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-tiny-house-lux) that is used to develop the shape and frame that is then printed using CNC machines. The house comes in flat-packed and made using plywood, for a sustainable and easy to set up design that can be put together quickly in times of crisis. The house offers 125-square feet of living space. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 4.2/10 - Popularity: 80% | Activity: 39% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Art & Design](https://www.trendhunter.com/artdesign) > [Architecture](https://www.trendhunter.com/architecture) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Flat-pack Living:** Developing affordable housing solutions with sustainable material and flat-pack design - **3D Printed Homes:** Creating low-cost and easy-to-build living solutions using 3D printing and CNC machines - **Urban Micro-dwellings:** Building compact, sustainable homes to address affordable housing challenges in urban centers ### Who This Affects Most - **Construction:** Innovating modular, low-cost building methods using sustainable materials and technology - **Real Estate:** Developing new business models for affordable urban housing solutions using flat-pack designs - **Emergency Response:** Deploying quickly assembled, 3D printed flat-pack homes for disaster relief and sheltering ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Reinvented Compact Living](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/affordable-housing-prototype.md) - [Compact 3d-Printed Housing](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tiny-house-lux.md) - [Eco‑tiny Sanctuarys](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tign-tiny-homes.md) - [Low Footprint Compact Houses](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nano-micro-house.md) - [Affordable Housing Prototypes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tiny-house-1.md) - [Sleek Fire-Resistant ADUs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/tetraone.md) - [Compact Sustainable Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-cabana.md) - [Ultra-Efficient Tiny Homes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/hirondelle-tiny-house.md) - [Origami-Inspired Disaster Relief Pods](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/prefab-folding-pods.md)