JUDY WOODRUFF:

Very small houses have become all the rage in recent years, as some people trade in their traditional lifestyles for an ostensibly simpler option: places that are less than 400 square feet. Well, today, there's a twist. Tiny houses are being seen as a way to give homeless and low-income people the chance at homeownership.

Jeffrey Brown visited Detroit to find out more for our ongoing series on poverty and opportunity in America, "Chasing the Dream."