Spectacular Mobile Home Is Tomorrow’s Walking House, a Traveler’s Ride or Die

The sudden realization that most wanderlust dreams could suddenly become a reality, together with the desire to downsize and live more intentionally, has sparked increased interest in a variety of mobile living solutions. Recreational vehicles of all kinds, motorhomes, overlanders, and tiny homes are now more popular than ever before, and it looks like the trend is here to stay.

This brings us to the question: what will tomorrow’s house look like? Will off-grid rigs and tiny homes still be around, or will we have invented a new type of vehicle that is an actual moving house? No one can know the answer to these questions for sure, but if one designer has a say, it will be the latter.

That designer is Sofia-based Encho Enchev, who does art for Ubisoft video games, and was listed last year as Chief Design Officer of Alieno, the startup that promised the record-breaking, “safest car in the world” hypercar Arcanum (which still doesn’t exist). His mobile home concept might not be original in its premise, but it is spectacular in how it lays out a true ride or die for the traveler of tomorrow.

One step above RVs, overlanders, and tiny homes, the mobile home concept is a walking house that offers both shelter and transportation while being perfectly able to cater to a family of two and one pet with creature comforts, and to haul necessary exploring gear. It is badass and tough-looking but still very elegant through minimalist styling and high-tech appliances.

The mobile home is an oversize pod on six legs that can traverse any terrain, no matter how rough, and anchor where it needs to, whether it’s in shallow water or on a steep rocky incline. Imagine hiking up a mountain and having the house follow you there. You probably wouldn’t be able to race it to the top, but at least you’d know you’d have shelter once you – and it – got there. Enchev imagined precisely this scenario.

The mobile home walks on six articulated mechanical legs, each with a 5-cm (2-inch) thick layer of rubber on the bottom for maximum grip. Each leg also has two deployable spikes, which come in handy when the house must be anchored on difficult terrain. To that same end, Enchev imagines it with four deployable harpoons (not rendered in any of the images) to prevent it from slipping when on an incline.

“The house is meant to be for 2 people and a pet. It is fully functional and, in theory, should be possible to be built in the near future,” the designer says. In practice, it could just as well sleep four people, sans pet, since it features a bedroom and a generous living that can double as a guest room. There’s also a fully-equipped kitchen with a dining table for four, a bathroom hidden behind the kitchen block, and a foldable terrace that is just perfect for taking in the sun or putting together a small barbecue party.

The bedroom sits separately from the rest of the house and integrates the home’s secondary office. We’re still working under the assumption that both adult residents will have to work to afford living on the road. Furnishes are minimalist and high-tech; for instance, the windows feature smart glass technology, which allows them to double as curtains and displays.

Under the house is the massive storage area, which can accommodate at least one ATV and a couple of dirt bikes, and maybe even a car, in addition to all the stuff we usually relegate to the garage or the basement. The roof is for the solar panels and the water tanks.

The most spectacular aspect of the mobile home concept is that it can be used in a variety of ways, depending on whoever is traveling with it. You can have it walk from destination to destination, anchor it wherever you want on its legs, or lower it all the way to the ground, much like a non-moving home, and it will retain all its (hypothetical) functionality.

As noted above, the idea of walking houses is not a new one. It’s been around for some time, both in digital and physical form. Its wide appeal is rooted in man’s impossible dream of being able to travel the world with no limitations of any kind or rules and laws to abide by. The reality is different, so whatever future this mobile home concept promises, it’s not an immediate one. But is a very cool-looking one.