Some of the most popular mods for Skyrim are player-built houses for characters to call home. These can range from simple shacks to sprawling palaces that fit a variety of roleplaying, aesthetic, and practical needs.
While there are dozens of well-crafted home mods for players to choose from, there are some that stand out for their beauty, creativity, and usefulness. These are some of the best player home mods that Skyrim players could have for their characters to live in.
Updated on August 31, 2021 by Ben Baker: Every year more and more mods are added to Skyrim. Among the most popular of these mods are the house mods that cater to various playstyles. Some players want a place to store their loot, roleplay, or gain access to helpful equipment and features. In the last year or so some really interesting house mods have surfaced that fans seem to particularly enjoy. This list has added a few of the best skyrim player home mods. One house can be taken with the player character, a few can be built from the ground up, and one can even generate passive income for the player.
15 Haven Bag
The Haven Bag mod by Haishao is one of the more unique house mods on this list. It’s a house that exists literally within the player’s inventory. It’s nothing terribly special, it’s a small space with containers and useful equipment like an enchanting table.
But having those things on hand at any time is truly helpful. The player can live as a nomad without ever needing a real house, make repairs or craft potions on the fly, or fill it to the gills on dungeon raids. This is a must-have for players who live on the road, hoard items or want a simple minimalistic home.
14 The Scarlett – A Buildable Ship
The Scarlett – A Buildable Ship mod by Ld50365 is one of the best player home mods in skyrim. It allows the player to build their own ship to live in. There are 200 different decisions the player can make when crafting their vessel to make it truly unique. It features handy storage options like armor mannequins, weapon racks, and display cases.
Perhaps the most notable thing about The Scarlett is that it can be anchored outside of places like Dawnstar and Winterhold for fast travel. Then a nice touch is that it will bring in a bit of income from on-deck businesses like the Tavern and Blacksmith Shop.
13 Frostspire Tower
The Frostspire Tower mod by PrincessMely creates a lonely tower off the coast of the Sea of Ghosts. In the frozen north, players will find a tower that comes equipped with blacksmiths, a library, and plenty of storage.
It also comes with useful features like a Portal Hub to travel to any major settlement in Skyrim. There are Training Facilities to raise skills. Frostpire Thralls can be sent on errands to collect alchemical ingredients. The Altar Of Spellcraft is the real prize as it also offers 40 new spells such as Chicken Claw that turns foes into helpless Chickens.
12 Dova Strunmah Hall
The Dova Strunmah Hall mod by HankMurphy is the true home of the Dragonborn. It’s a massive castle sitting on the throat of the world and comes with many handy features. Players have access to incredible storage and crafting stations.
There are also three new NPC followers to accompany the player and five merchants to sell and buy items from. This is by far one of the grander housing mods in Skyrim and is befitting a player who has reached the end game.
11 Caranthir Tower Reborn
The Caranthir Tower Reborn mod by Darkfox 127 is the ideal home for the mad sorcerer or noble battlemage. Located in the mountains of Winterhold its constructed in a similar manner to the Hearthfire home.
There’s a portal travel system, spell altars, and a fully functioning library. This house also comes with automated features like automatic doors that open and close, auto-sorting systems, and even the ability to craft items. Spell weavers and dabblers in the arcane arts will find themselves at home and more powerful than ever at the Caranthir Tower Reborn.
10 Pineford Creek
Pineford Creek is entirely nature-oriented, making it perfect for a Bosmer-type character or anyone who enjoys lush environments. It seamlessly blends from indoors to outdoors with vegetation like trees, flowers, and shrubbery making the transitions almost imperceptible.
The various keys needed to unlock the different parts of the home are hidden in the environment. The house boasts tons of storage, displays, shrines, food supplies, and a teleportation spell.
9 Dwemer Manor
The Dwemer Manor is designed to feature the technological advances and aesthetics of the Dwemer. It’s near the Darkwater Pass in the Rift and comes in two flavors. The Regular Version features a more traditional Dwemer feel while the Exotic package is much more modern.
There are a number of storage and displays for various loot, six merchant staff, and three Droid followers, along with a Teleport Spell for travel. There is also a hidden room tucked somewhere within the Manor walls. The home is expensive at 30 thousand gold but well worth the price.
8 Fyr Manor
According to the mod’s lore, the Fyr Manor was built for the Telvanni lord Divayth Fyr to serve as his home away from home. The house is located in its own pocket dimension of Sotha Sil. The home is technologically advanced and clearly designed for spellcasters.
It also features an auto-sorting storage system, artifacts from previous games, a butler with his own voice-acted dialogue, hidden rooms and secrets, and so much more. The best parts are the room modules that can be found in the real world to further expand the home in creative and customized ways.
7 Ravenholm
Ravenholm is a home designed for vampires. It uses Volkihar architecture and, as a result, is very dark and brooding. It’s located near the Last Vigil and is geared for more villainous vampiric characters thanks to the aesthetics and the functioning jail in the dungeon with a thrall.
There is plenty of labeled storage, alchemy and enchanting workstations, displays, and custom wardrobe. In addition to the imprisoned thrall, there is a coffin, displays designed for "Dawnguard" DLC items, and other features useful for vampires.
6 Nakahara – Akiviri House
The Nakahara – Akiviri House is designed after the Asian/Akiviri aesthetic. Located in Whiterun Hold, it’s a minimalistic property that serves the budding Blades member or wannabe samurai well. While there are some displays for swords and armor, it’s very minimal which might be a problem for hoarders.
The home is built next to a body of water in the middle of nowhere, which is perfect for characters looking to get away from it all. The large windows give a perfect view of the water and the interior is designed with a zen-like quality.
5 Deus Mons
The Deus Mons is a large and intricate stronghold for the player to own in the Throat of the World. The key is held by a powerful dragon, making it reserved for stronger players to obtain.
The large stronghold has tons of storage, displays, and multiple rooms serving a variety of functions from smithing to enchanting. For all intents and purposes, anything any player could ever need would be located here, making it a mighty home with plenty of potential.
4 Pale Marsh Manor
Located in the Pale, Pale Marsh Manor is unique on this list for its white and red design both in and outside of the home. This aesthetic makes the home seem both haunted and beautiful at the same time.
There are plenty of windows to view the snowy environment with the vibrant red-leafed trees in the yard. It’s not as large as some other homes, but the Pale Marsh Manor has crafting stations, alchemy labs, enchanting, smithing, and several displays. There are also large bookshelves and potion rack displays. It’s the perfect home for budding alchemists.
3 The Asteria
The Asteria is a Dwemer Airship hovering near the Riverwood. Interestingly, the home is 100% lore-friendly and should be recognizable to anyone who played the "Bloodmoon" DLC of Morrowind.
The Airship is fairly large, boasting tons of storage, displays, multiple mannequins, and other ways to show off loot. There is also a forge, workbench, alchemy table, enchanting table, and other useful items to make it useful for any playing style. Without additional mods, the Airship doesn’t move, but it still serves as a beautiful and unique home.
2 Shrouded Lair
The Shrouded Lair resides in its own pocket realm of eternal night. This makes it the ideal home for a vampire or evil-minded character. The castle is fairly large and utilizes books to transport to the different rooms of the home.
The castle boasts multiple display rooms such as an armory, library, and throne room. There’s a garden outside featuring plants with ingredients for poisons, a torture chamber with caged prisoners useful for vampires, and three merchants with new weapons.
1 AHO-Dwemer Ship
The Aetherium Hyperspace Observatory, or AHO, is a large mobile home designed entirely after Dwemer architecture. The large sphere floats in the sky like an Airship and features unique and intricate designs. It also features customizable lighting.
Inside are crafting stations, a variety of containers, and bookshelves. It has a unique Drink Factory and a Many-Faced’s Tool that lets the player change their character appearance. Most impressive is the fact that the base moves, being able to hover above Deep Folk Crossing, Alftand, Nchardak, Avanchnzel, Tower of Mzark, or Reachwind Eyrie. It may not be the largest or most beautiful home on the list, but the AHO's mobility makes it incredibly useful and unique.