Competition introduction
Competition organisers
The fifth annual MICROHOME architecture competition is part of the Buildner's Small Scale Architecture Appreciation Movement, which hopes to highlight the fact that bigger isn’t always better. With great design and innovative thinking, small-scale architecture could change how this and the next generation view residential property.
For the MICROHOME / Edition No 5 architecture competition, participants are invited to submit their designs for a micro home – an off-grid modular structure that would accommodate a hypothetical young professional couple (which will be used as an example of family size throughout the competition series). The only requirement is that the structure’s total floor area does not exceed 25 m2 ; beyond that, participants are encouraged to be as creative as possible. 
Participants are encouraged to rethink spatial organisation and incorporate unique aesthetics, new technologies, and innovative materials that will make the micro home an entirely new form of architecture.
As there is no specified competition site, project designs can be set within any hypothetical site of any size, in either a city or countryside location anywhere in the world. The jury will favour sustainable designs and those projects that look to solve economic, social, and cultural problems through the establishment of new architectural methods.
Download full competition brief for more information!
Competition is open to all. No professional qualification is required. Design proposals can be developed individually or by teams (4 team members maximum). Correspondence with organizers must be conducted in English; All information submitted by participants must be in English.
Full competition brief
The full competition brief can be downloaded as often as required; no additional information will be provided after registration.
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- (!) FULL COMPETITION BRIEF
Prizes
7,000 € + Publication in Magazine
Total Prize Fund
1st PRIZE
3,000 €
PublicationsCertificate of Achievement
2nd PRIZE
1,500 €
PublicationsCertificate of Achievement
3rd PRIZE
1,000 €
PublicationsCertificate of Achievement
BUILDNER STUDENT AWARD (more details)
1,000 €
+ 50 € ARCHHIVE BOOKS Gift Card
+ 50 Points Buildner Architecture University Rankings
Publications
Certificate of Achievement
+ 6 HONOURABLE MENTIONS
PUBLICATIONS:
The winners will get international art and design media coverage and will be featured on the Buildner website and social pages.
MICROHOMES magazine:
A number of entries will be chosen among the winners, honourable mentions, and other selected entries to be included in the next ARCHHIVE BOOKS annual MICROHOMES magazine.
CERTIFICATE:
Buildner will also acknowledge the outstanding performance of all winners and honourable mentions with Certificates of Achievement.
Jury panel
All communication regarding the competition should only be carried out with Buildner staff. For any questions please contact us on [email protected]
Buildner is committed to selecting the most qualified industry professionals to comprise its jury panels. Jury panels consist of architects, in addition to professionals from other professional backgrounds that are relevant to the competition topic, to guarantee the most objective competition results.
You may find the invited jury list from previous competitions here – https://architecturecompetitions.com/guest-jury/
Key dates
Closing date for registration
03 November, 2022
Closing date for project submission
02 December, 2022 (11:59pm London time)
Announcement of the winners
18 January, 2023
Competition Q&A deadline: 09 November, 2022
In order to guarantee equal opportunities to all competition participants,
no new questions will be answered after this deadline!
Email me reminders about MICROHOME deadlines
Registration fees
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Advance Registration06 July - 07 September
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Architects / Enthusiasts / Companies115 €
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Students105 €
+4.5% VAT
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Last Minute Registration08 September - 03 November
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Architects / Enthusiasts / Companies135 €
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Students115 €
+4.5% VAT
STUDENT REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS
Contact us to receive special student rates for group registrations (discount applies for 3+ registrations from one university/school) and to receive further information and support for getting your students involved in architecture competitions. Send us request from your university email address along with basic information about yourself and your university/school. Please note that only recognized university staff can apply for the reduced student rate.
Enter the competition!
Register NOWCompetition results in media
F.A.Q.
Competition related questions
This project has no set budget.
No specific site has been selected for this competition.
The 25m² restriction refers to the building footprint and usable floor area indoors (in the case of having more than one storey, your total footprint will need to sum up all floors). The non-essential external structural elements should not be included in the 25m² allocation.
Total 25m² footprint is a sum up for all floors.
You may submit a previously published design concept as long as you are the author and the project presentation materials are original and have not been published before.
As it is explained in the competition brief - for this competition participants are required to upload one A2 presentation panel. Presentation deliverables set listed in the competition brief is a suggestion only. Participants are not required to present the entire list. Please choose only the most essential information set that would explain your design in the most efficient manner.
For the Microhome architecture competition, participants are invited to submit their designs for a single micro home – an off-grid modular structure that would accommodate a hypothetical young professional couple.
You may use rooftop, however in this case it would need to be part of the 25m².
Underground construction can be proposed.
For the Microhome architecture competition, participants are invited to submit their designs for a single micro home – an off-grid modular structure that would accommodate a hypothetical young professional couple.
There is no defined building code that participants are asked to follow, however, we would recommend using Eurocode Building standards as a general guideline.
There is no maximum building height defined.
General questions
Click on "register now", fill in all the required fields, choose your payment method and submit your information. You will be forwarded to Paypal or CPS secure payment gateway, to cover the competition fee. Once we receive your payment, we'll send you an email with your username and password to upload your submission directly to the website.
You can add/remove/edit team member information as often as you want in the upload panel, up until the submission deadline.
Only one proposal per registration is permitted. Participants are entitled to register multiple times if they wish to participate in the competition with several proposals.
Yes we are in the process of negotiating with multiple international industry-related media representatives. The list of media partners is constantly updated on our website, please check it regularly to find latest updates.
Yes. If the jury panel selects a Student award's submission for the top 3, it will automatically be awarded both prizes.
Yes. If the jury panel selects a Green award's submission for the top 3, it will automatically be awarded both prizes.
No. Competition entries are evaluated anonymously. The participant registration type is only revealed upon the announcement of the results.
Please contact us – [email protected] and we will address the problem directly.
The short answer is yes, you may submit a previously published design concept as long as you are the author. Before re-submitting your project, please carefully read the following clarification points listed here - architecturecompetitions.com/resubmit-your-design
