The pall of black smoke from a house fire on Kaitoke River Rd east of Dannevirke could be seen across town just after noon Tuesday.
The home, believed to be relatively new, was destroyed by the blaze with appliances inside a smouldering, melted mess and the occupant left with nothing but what he was wearing.
"The whole house was involved when we got there, but fortunately the occupant wasn't at home," Dannevirke brigade fire chief Pete Sinclair said.
"We had the blaze under control quickly and then spent time hotspotting."
The home, a farm cottage is owned by the Mullins family.
"The occupant was a young guy from our family who has just moved back from Australia to work on the farm," Aria Mullins, who runs the family business, Paewai/Mullins Shearing, told the Dannevirke News.
"This is very, very sickening and not a nice thing at all. He's lost absolutely everything. It's a heck of a shock."
Two appliances, a water tanker and 10 firefighters battled the blaze.
Fire Service investigator Mike Finucane said the fire "had been going well", and he was now sifting through the remains in his search for the cause of the blaze.