Make These “Real Looking” Miniature Houses Complete With
Photo-Realistic Brickwork and Garages
to OO Gauge, N Scale , HO Scale. SAVE 57% TODAY!


These 3 miniature brick houses can be constructed for OO gauge, N scale, or HO scale model railroads. Considering the highly quality of the photographic style detailing, they are very reasonable priced, and by following the step-by-step instructions will remain in excellent quality for decades to come. Also, they are actually very simple to assemble using common materials like paper and cardboard (recycle your unwanted cereal boxes).

OO n HO scale miniature houses

$46.85 COMPLETE PACK ONLY $19.95

House - Brown Brick with Garage
Please select your scale
House - Brown Brick
Please select your scale
House - Brown Brick with Garage
Please select your scale

After downloading, the PDF plans for these 3 miniature houses can be printed out and constructed to the UK OO gauge size, to the smaller N scale, or they can be made into HO scale houses for those model railroaders specializing in operating HO scale trains. These plans are also ideal for craftspeople who just like to make models as a leisure hobby, or for those students doing school art projects, or for the serious diorama construction artist. The procedure for downloading, printing, and assembling these miniature houses is very straightforward.

Making Amazing OO, N Scale, and HO Scale Miniature Houses Is a Simple Step-By-Step Process

Construction is very straightforward and requires some scrap cardboard and basic tools found around the home. The photos below show construction of a small railway station which is the same method used to make these scale model miniature houses.

tools needed to build scale model houses

how to build miniature HO scale model houses from cardboard

In real life, homes in the same street or district are often built of similar materials and to similar designs.This is often because the dwellings were constructed around the same time, and would have likely been constructed by the same builder or residential sub-division developer. So, it follows that positioning these 3 miniature HO scale houses together on the same street would make logical sense. Furthermore, is was also reasonably common for the builder to construct duplicate homes in the same street or neighborhood. In some cases they would have been positioned on the land slightly differently, or landscaped in a totally different style to add variation to the neighborhood. The hobbyist model maker can do the same when creating their railroad scenery or diorama. Multiple copies of these plans can be printed out without breaching copyright laws, with the important stipulation that they must be used for private personal use (that rules out non-commercial use of the plans). So, the hobbyist could easily make 6, or even 12 houses by using these 3 downloaded plans.

Adapting the assembly of the models is easy and enables the crafts person to inset the window frames and doors, or even relocate them to a different position during assembly. The paper plans are like templates so provide flexibility and the possibility to add personal uniqueness to each miniature house that is constructed.




In real life, building a full life-size house exclusively from bricks can prove costly, but according to many developers and builders who swear by brickwork construction, it can be a sensible investment for the homeowner that will most definitely pay off. Interior walls constructed from bricks help adjust the structure’s temperature, as the bricks store heat and cool air. In winter months, the brick walls offer warmth, while on a very hot summer day the brickwork will provide a cooling effect. The end result is a pleasant indoor climate throughout the home, which basically interprets as “healthy houses.”

In addition to comfort, a building constructed from bricks has financial advantages over some other materials. Houses made almost entirely from brickwork generally cost less in the long run. This is put down to the fact that they draw less energy for heating. Research has proven that internal walls made from bricks are ideally suited to households with passive and/or lower energy consumption, because the internal walls effectively support the home’s heating system whilst absorbing humidity that can’t easily get out through efficient climate shielding.

Furthermore, it has been claimed that houses made completely of bricks often attract higher resale values, should the homeowner want to sell one day. Obviously, this is not a hard and fast rule, and other factors can come into play. The premise of the argument is due to the excellent advantages pertaining to energy consumption and internal climate within a home. There is also the view held by many homeowners and buyers, that houses constructed totally of bricks are synonymous with better quality. So, all in all, having some miniature HO scale houses on your model railroad layout, or making an OO or N scale diorama using the plans for these replica brick houses sounds like a good idea, due to the popularity of brick homes in the real world.

If you are a model railroader then you could be starting off at the beginner level, or be at a more skilled intermediate level, or perhaps you are a very experienced veteran with skills to share. Either way, rest assured the 200+ plans for sale on this website are of the highest quality of realism. They are unique and not for sale elsewhere. The designs can be downloaded to make HO scale, N scale, or OO scale model buildings and structures. The miniature houses you see featured above are very authentic miniature replica models of real houses, so will help to add convincing realism to any model railroad.

If you are a beginner model railroader then the following information might be of interest to you.

How To Make Train Tables and Model Railroad Bench-Work

One key feature that distinguishes a toy train set from a real model railroad is the supporting structure. A semipermanent toy train set could have some oval track with a one or two turnouts secured to a flat plywood base or a piece of particle board panel.

A true model railway, on the other hand, will have an underlying structure, called the bench-work that will not only support the track, but also provides a method of constructing terrain through which the trains can move.

Some hobbyists also use the term “train table” to describe the framework. This is because the bench work can be constructed from almost anything from a discarded old kitchen table to a shelf securely mounted on around a wall.

However before we discuss construction methods, I need to mention one important mistake to avoid. Unfortunately, many new-comers to the hobby are in such a rush to get the track laid, they often don’t pay enough attention to the surface and structure the track is sitting on. The track work needs to be level without any kinks both horizontally and vertically. Everything needs to be built properly from the bottom up providing a sound base to build a layout.

Building Bench-work To Withstand Weight

Another critical thing is that the construction must be extremely sturdy as it will need to comfortable carry a heavy weight. It is not just the weight of the trains, but also the weight of the all the track, scenery (mountains, resin lakes, roads etc), buildings and structures (bridges etc), and wiring. On top of all this load is the potential for someone to lean heavily on the layout and add additional weight to one area. Model railroad bench-work needs to be strong enough to comfortably take the required weight WITHOUT collapsing – the consequences of which could be not only expensive, but also extremely disappointing and time-wasting.

Construction Methods

There various methods for constructing benchwork, many start out with four legs and a basic horizontal supporting framework just like the kitchen table mentioned earlier. A basic framework can work well for many layouts especially smaller ones, but a medium to larger size railroad will often require more versatility to properly incorporate all the wiring, track configurations and scenery requirements.

One popular method utilizes an open grid arrangement with the track being anchored to wood splines which are supported by elevating longitudinal and cross members of small cross section wood. Constructing this can be reasonably labor intensive, but it has the advantage of being an extremely flexible arrangement for benchwork. Any configuration of valleys, hills, mountains, and plains can easily be created within the open framework of the benchwork. Altering the height of the risers can provide additional versatility and stretch the scenery options beyond accepted parameters. There is no fun in constructing the model railroad benchwork only you discover that you can’t easily reach a derailed engine on a back section of track without using extendable tongs of some other piece of equipment. The same goes for model buildings that can’t easily be lifted for the occasional dusting. All areas of the benchwork need to be reasonably easy to access regardless of whether you are operating N scale, OO gauge, or HO scale trains.

Another method commonly called the cookie cutter approach, starts with a flat baseboard, and continues with track being either directly attached or possibly elevated. The remaining sections of flat board are then cut out in the shapes of the terrain features.

A third method which incidentally has become more popular over recent years is to begin with a large sheet of extruded foam insulation board contained within a wood framework. The foam board can easily be cut and worked with knives, or a hot wire, or similar tools. Extruded foam can be cut out much more easily with this cookie cutter approach than you could of using a plywood base. The extruded foam board can also be utilized to elevate the track, or to form inclines, and it can be built up into hills and mountains, or cut out to shape riverbeds and stream channels. Joining the foam board is easily when using a construction adhesive such as Liquid Nails. It is fair to say this benchwork construction method has really revolutionized the process of building and laying model railroad scenery.

Whether you are building an “L girder” design with open framework where the cross sections of the strip wood girders resemble the letter “L”, or using another method of construction, the strength and functionality needs to be paramount. Everything from the legs, to the joists and risers need to be sturdy and not bend or break over time.

How high should the benchwork be?

A final thing to carefully consider is the best height for the railroad based on how tall you are and whether you will be sitting or standing when operating it. There is no point in building the benchwork only to find the height is impractical for running your model trains from a comfortable position. Model railroad layouts typically range from as low as 42 inches up to 55 inches above the floor which suits many single level railroads.

Much will depend on how tall you are. The average height for American males according to internet research is 5 foot 10 inches, so in a sitting position (with rolling wheels on the chair), the layout could be as low as 30 inches off the floor. However in a sitting position it is not as easy to reach distances as it is when standing, so removing a derailed car would require getting out of your seat and leaning across to retrieve it.

For someone who is 5’10”, their chest height would be approximately 52 inches above the floor. So the range between 42 inches to 48 inches above floor level would be right for most people when standing. Taller people might prefer 50 to 55 inches. Decide the best height for watching your scale model trains.

So, assuming you have built your the benchwork for your model railroad, now is the time to get started on the scenery and adding some scale model houses and other buildings and structures to the setup. Paper plans that get downloaded and glued to cardboard are the best option for most railroaders due to the realism achieved and the inexpensive prices for the downloads and materials. Making miniature HO scale houses from downloaded plans will also produce a display of realistic looking scale model buildings, perfect for enhancing the scenery and creating an authentic replica street scene in miniature. Download, print, and build the miniature houses to go on a model railroad alongside N scale, OO gauge (UK), or HO scale model trains.

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