Have you ever found the perfect tiny home, secured financing, and found the perfect piece of land—only to discover you can't legally put your home there? In this episode of Let's Talk Tiny, Cindy sits down with housing policy expert Amy Tomasso to uncover the hidden rules that shape where we live and why so many people struggle to find housing that fits their lifestyle and budget. From zoning restrictions and land-use regulations to ADUs, cottage courts, tiny home communities, and missing-middle housing, Amy explains why housing challenges affect everyone—from retirees looking to downsize, to young families searching for their first home, to adult children hoping to keep aging parents nearby. You'll hear real-world stories of people whose housing plans were stopped by unexpected regulations, discover communities that are successfully creating new housing options, and learn about innovative solutions that could change the future of housing in America. If you've ever wondered why finding a tiny home is often easier than finding a place to put it, this conversation is for you. In this episode: Why housing has become a national challengeThe biggest obstacles facing tiny home buyersHow zoning and land-use rules impact your housing optionsWhat "missing middle housing" means and why it mattersSuccess stories from communities creating more housing choicesInnovative housing solutions shaping the futureAmy's advice for anyone feeling stuck on their tiny home journeyPlus, stay through the end for a live audience Q&A with Amy. Whether you're exploring a tiny home, considering an ADU, planning to downsize, or simply looking for more affordable housing options, this episode will help you better understand the forces shaping where and how we live. #LetsTalkTiny #TinyHomes #HousingPolicy #ADU #TinyHomeLiving #AffordableHousing #Downsizing #MissingMiddleHousing #TinyHomeCommunities Links to Share: https://www.ivoryinnovations.org/the-little-book And Ivory Innovations' https://www.ivoryinnovations.org/housing-innovation-database LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/ivoryinnovations/?viewAsMember=true Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ivory.innovations/ The https://www.zoningatlas.org/ https://accd.vermont.gov/current-initiatives/homesforall Amy is Director of Policy Innovation at Ivory Innovations (University of Utah, David Eccles School). Background includes Stanford, Harvard GSD, Vermont state housing, and published research on missing middle housing. She leads the policy work at Ivory and is involved with national housing affordability conversations. Topic-wise, she will go deep on missing middle, ADUs, zoning reform, and where regulatory progress is actually happening (Vermont, Oregon, Long Beach, Texas). She has explicitly said she wants to make regulations come alive on the show, not put people to sleep.
