A startup's solar-powered backyard tiny home can help power the main house — see inside its first 100 prefab ADUs starting at $279,000

Brittany ChangMar 30, 2024, 17:52 IST

San Francisco-based startup Cosmic is selling 100 prefab ADUs starting at $279,000 each in hopes of using the profit and a recent funding round to improve its manufacturing process and decrease the cost of its tiny homes.Cosmic

San Francisco startup Cosmic is selling its first 100 prefabricated ADUs starting at $279,000 for a studio.
The backyard tiny homes could generate enough energy to be a "power plant" for the main house.

Entrepreneur Sasha Jokic dreams of ending global housing insecurity by manufacturing prefab multi-family residences for low-income families.

To do so, his San Francisco-based startup Cosmic is now selling its first 100 tiny homes starting at a cool $279,000 for a 385-square-foot studio.

Ironic, yes. But Jokic says it's the first step: The revenue from these 100 accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, sales would be reinvested into the startup's manufacturing process, setting it on the path of building faster and cheaper high-quality homes.

The ADU market is booming, with states like California and New York offering to pay homeowners to build ones on their properties.

Los Angeles-based Azure is using recycled plastic to 3D print its tiny homes.Brittany Chang/Business Insider

Cosmic’s niche is more planet-friendly: Its founder says its backyard homes can generate enough energy to supply some to the primary house.

Cosmic says its ADUs and their appliances are energy-efficient. The startup is now showing its studio model at a showroom in San Francisco.Cosmic

Compared to other options, Cosmic’s ADUs aren’t cheap.

Tax incentives from the solar systems could drop the ADU's price while upgraded design options could increase it by $35,000, Cosmic's founder said. Pictured is a rendering of its two-bedroom unitCosmic

Cosmic’s relatively high pricing was intentional: Its founder wants buyers to view its 100-unit release as a Kickstarter campaign.

Jokic says the money from the first 100 units and recent funding would be invested into material procurement and fabrication processes.Cosmic

The company has a six to eight-month lead time. The goal is to hit three months.

Cosmic's modular approach eases the installation process — its ADUs' rooms, pictured in a rendering, can be built and delivered as separate units.Cosmic

The studio, one-bed, and two-bed units would all have plush comforts like white oak floors, dishwashers, and spa-like bathrooms.

Cosmic's founder says the startup has seven full-time employees and a network of players like general contractors and equipment manufacturers. Pictured is a rendering of its one-bedroom unit.Cosmic

Homeowners have increasingly turned to these tiny backyard homes for rental income.

Samara was cofounded by Airbnb's cofounder Joe Gebbia. Samara

Jokic is going after a different set of buyers.

Cosmic's founder says one of the customers buying its two-bedroom ADU plans to use it as their primary residence so their children can move into the main home. Cosmic

Jokic said more than 1,800 people in the US have “expressed interest” in purchasing one of his homes.

The additional square footage that comes with an ADU can increase the value of a homeowner's property, as shown in a rendering.Cosmic

However, like other California-based ADU manufacturers, Cosmic only accepts buyers in its home state.

Jokic predicts most of its customers would live in the Bay Area or Los Angeles, with about 20 to 30% of buyers looking to use its ADUs as an attachment to their vacation home "in nature," as shown in a rendering.Cosmic

I compared the cheapest and most expensive accommodations on the same European sleeper train. I'd only book one again.

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A startup's solar-powered backyard tiny home can help power the main house &mdash; see inside its first 100 prefab ADUs starting at $279,000