Zircon Tiny House Will Win You Over With a Fireplace on the Porch and a Massive Kitchen

Tiny houses have been gaining a lot of ground in recent years, becoming viable, full-term housing alternatives with advantages traditional housing solutions can't match. That's not to say they're perfect, but they do come close to the idea of perfection to an increasing number of people choosing to transition from traditional housing to a mobile solution.

A tiny like the Zircon from U.S.-based Athens Park Homes can partly explain the appeal of such a home on wheels. It's a park model that was first introduced five years ago under the more generic name of APH 523 and is now offered with a series of options, including finishes, slight changes to the layout, and added features.

Photos in the gallery show mostly the original APH 523, while the video tour below is a more recent Zircon 523SL model, styled with rustic and Western vibes and turned into a family home ready to move in. Both serve to explain the appeal of such oversize tiny, down to the way in which they offer features you'd probably not get in a brick-and-mortar home – let alone a crowded city apartment!

With this model, the novelty starts straight from the outside, with the inclusion of a 10-foot (3-meter) porch with a proper fireplace, which makes the unit tailor-made for entertaining even larger parties. To be sure, the fireplace is an option, which means it would add to the final price, but it's probably a worthy investment for a family house.

As much as tiny houses have evolved over the years, a fireplace is still a rarity that you'll only come across in premium models. Then, too, you'll only get it in the living room, where it becomes the highlight of that space. Zircon tries to do things a bit differently, bringing the fireplace outside and leaving room up top for a wall-mounted TV and entertainment center. After all, if you're to live more intentionally, you might as well embrace outdoor living more, right?

With such an impressive – and impressively large – living space outside, sheltered from the elements and prepped for fun, the Zircon cuts living room space down to a minimum, reducing it to a two-person couch facing another wall-mounted entertainment center.

The kitchen, on the other hand, is full-size – massive, as we noted in the headline. You get Whirpool appliances throughout: double-door fridge, full-size range with oven and a microwave, a hood extractor, and a dishwasher. You also get plenty of prep space and storage options, and can add an optional island to serve breakfast and further expand available work surface.

The bathroom is at the rear and full-size. The hallway in front is prepped for a stacked washer and dryer unit, and the bathroom itself is packed with storage solutions and ingenious space-saving features. There's a one-piece walk-in shower in there, a standard flushing toilet, and a sink with a vanity and a medicine cabinet.

The main bedroom is right next to the bathroom, which means that the loft is an extra-large one, spreading out on top of both these rooms. The bedroom is large, too, for a tiny house or even for a park model unit, featuring space for a king-size bed, dual wardrobes behind a barn door, a chest of drawers with space for another TV unit up top, and large windows. The second mini-split unit is found here, as well.

The loft is standard in the sense that you only get standing height on the landing leading up to it. Still, the size and the fact that it has windows on both sides, as well as a vaulted ceiling, will make this perfect for a kids' bedroom with a queen-size mattress and room to spare for all their toys and stuff.

The Zircon 523SL offers a total footprint of 399 square feet (37 square meters), classifying as a tiny home on wheels. However, it's a park unit, which means it can't be moved without special permits, nor is it made to travel the country back and forth whenever you feel like it. Like all park units, this is designed to stay in one place and move only when there's no other option available.

Built on top of a five-axle trailer to code, it's insulated throughout and hooks up to the grid with standard RV-style hookups. Most finishes, from the exterior siding to the interior colors and materials, can be customized. Some changes to the final layout can also be made, also at an extra cost.

Speaking of costs, the Zircon 523SL is comparatively cheaper than non-park models that offer similar features, but still comes with a high entrance cost. MRSP starts at around $115,000, with the final price depending on finishes, customization, and destination.

As always, looking is always free of charge. And this one is definitely worth taking in!