The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced the winners of its annual Housing Awards. The prestigious event highlights the most interesting and innovative residential designs from America's finest architects and this year's bumper crop includes everything from humble tiny houses to impressively sustainable homes.

Now in its 22nd year, the 2022 Housing Awards consists of 14 homes, which is a significant increase from just seven in 2020 and 10 in 2021. The projects are split into three categories: One- and Two-Family Custom Residences, Specialized Housing, and Excellence in Affordable Housing.

This year's recipients – which must be designed by US-licensed firms, but not necessarily located in the US – have been chosen by four AIA jurors based on their overall design excellence, which, according to the AIA, "represents the defining principles of excellent design in the 21st century. Specifically, the jury looked at whether designs are sustainable, affordable, durable, innovative, socially impactful, meeting client needs as well as addressing the natural and built contexts."

We've chosen a few of outstanding homes that caught our eye below, but be sure to head to the gallery to see more on these, as well as each of the other 11 homes that make up the AIA 2022 Housing Awards.

Rain Harvest Home (aka La Casa que Cosecha Lluvia) was designed by Robert Hutchison Architecture & Javier Sanchez, and is located in Temascaltepec, which is in the mountains just west of Mexico City.

The project consists of three buildings hosting a small art studio, bathhouse, and the residence itself, each of which is topped by a green roof and sports an open design and generous glazing. As its name suggests, rainwater collection is a key focus and the water is channeled into a reservoir for on-site treatment and storage. This collected water accounts for an impressive 100 percent of the home's year-round water requirements. Its most distinctive feature though is the circular open-air bathhouse. This contains a hot bath, sauna, steam shower, and washroom encircling a central cold plunge pool that's open to the sky.

"In adopting permaculture practices and keyline design, the team increased the home's resilience to dryness, erosion, and flooding while also improving soil fertility," said AIA's judges. "As a result, every element of the home performs multiple functions and contributes to the landscape's health. Overall, the Rain Harvest Home delicately balances human needs and nature, providing a compelling prototype for a better model of coexistence."

Chandler Tiny Homes Village For The Homeless, by Lehrer Architects, is located in Los Angeles, California, and transforms an overlooked and awkwardly shaped city plot into a micro-village providing temporary shelter for homeless people while they await more permanent and suitable housing.

Using prefabricated shelters as a base, contractors made a total of 39 simple dwellings measuring a mere 8 x 8 ft (2.4 m). The interiors are very basic and small (there's no bathroom, for example), but each contains two beds, heating, air-conditioning, windows, a small desk, and a front door. The project also includes a shared dining space, a pet play area, communal showers and bathrooms, plus other services like pest control and secure storage.

"A colorful, energetic assault on homelessness," said the AIA's judges. "This village offers smart, affordable, safe, and simple homes in a respectful way. The design and its many offshoots transform underutilized urban spaces into fresh new settings where communities can prosper."

The Costa Rica Treehouse, by Olson Kundig, is located in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica. It was built for surfing clients who are also interested in the environment and is inspired by the jungle that surrounds it on the country's Pacific coast.

The home is made of locally harvested teak and is envisioned as an open-air surfer's hut, with operable screens ensuring ocean breezes and daylight permeate its interior. A generous roof overhang provides shading and rain protection, while a 3.5-kW solar array on the roof supplies some of its required power, including the pool's circulation pump. During the rainy season, all water needs are provided by a rainwater collection system too.

"A beautiful lantern in the jungle, this design is a celebration of time-honored craft and materials," said the AIA judges. "It touches the earth lightly and with respect. A masterfully simple home that elevates shelter to a poetic level."