tiny homes

[harley]

I hear ya. Especially if it's in the loft. I'd need a parachute when I needed to go to the bathroom.

How about a fireman's pole?

 

[Big_Hitter]

I know you were joking, but seriously I think that often the need people have for huge houses is just to have enough space to get away from one another.

I wasn't joking that much - each of us needs our space, and lots of it

hence the 5250 sqft behemoth we live in now - we won't move again tho

 

[NW-Bound]

After owning our first home we discovered that we hate maintenance (a lot of it for an 80 year old home) and yard work. We also had 1200 sq ft + maybe 600 sq ft of bonus space (finished garage/attic) but most of the space was wasted and unused. 800 sq ft or so would probably be an ideal size for us although we could go somewhat smaller.

Homes on the West coast in the cities are usually very expensive for old homes that need a lot of update. I refused, actually reneged on, a job offer to move to an aerospace company in Santa Monica in 1985 after seeing how much I would have to pay for a home.

I like the atmosphere and open layout of this home (although we need a bigger kitchen area):

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/23/garden/freedom-in-704-square-feet.html

That does not look too bad. Remember that plenty of people live in apartments with the same square footage. What also helps is that this couple has a yard and a shed with a small workshop. A good climate that allows you to spend time outside would also help a lot.

 

[Andre1969]

When I was 12 years old, my grandparents took me on an 8 week trip across the US in a '76 GMC crew cab pickup with a slide-in camper in back. In retrospect, it's probably a miracle that we didn't drive each other crazy in that small space. However, since we were constantly on the go, it rarely felt claustrophobic. We were also outside a lot, and usually weren't back inside the camper until it was dark, and soon time for bed. The camper had a chemical toilet in one of the closets, but we never used it, so we used the bathrooms and showers at the campgrounds.

As a kid, it was fun. And as an adult, I could see it being fun, with the right group of people. For a few weeks, maybe. But I don't now that I'd want to live in something small like that. FWIW, that camper was about 7x10 feet, with a dinette that converted to a bed, and it had another bed over the cab. At the time, I used to think it was a real treat, getting to sleep in that upper bunk.

 

[harley]

I could live in a tiny house, as long as I had a full size barn with heat, AC, and plenty of electric.

 

[ERD50]

Just saw this on my facebook feed. 3 foot wide house in Warsaw.

It?s Unbelievable They Fit a House Here. It's 3 Feet Wide and the Door's in the Floor... | 22 Words

It is pretty amazing what he did with three feet. Not that I'd want to live there, but he really did make the most of it. The glass, angled roof and high ceilings go a long way towards making it far less claustrophobic than you would think.

Those concepts can be applied to a more typical, but still on the smaller size, house. Or even a large home for that matter.

Our house for example, was a very plain, rectangular layout. We've added some bay windows and bump-outs over the years as we have re-modeled, and it's amazing how much larger a room feels when ~ 1/3rd of an outside wall is bumped out just ~ 2 feet. Not much actual square feet, but it just makes the room feel larger and open - day and night difference. Same with some open, high ceilings.

-ERD50

 

[GravitySucks]

I could live in a tiny house, as long as I had a full size barn with heat, AC, and plenty of electric.

+1.


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[Andre1969]

I could live in a tiny house, as long as I had a full size barn with heat, AC, and plenty of electric.

I can relate. In my last move, went from a 1250 square foot condo that had a 1 car garage (maybe 200 square feet) and some attic space, to a 1500 square foot house with a 12x16 outbuilding. And within a couple years built a 24x40 (960 sq ft) garage. And it STILL doesn't feel big enough!

Oh, almost forgot...the condo had a small deck that was maybe 9x11 feet. I have a lot of houseplants that I'd put out there, so much that it would make it feel nice and private. The house has a small deck, around 9x15 feet. But, now that I have a whole yard that I can play in, for landscaping and such, the house plants almost seem like a burden. They've also grown and multiplied since my condo days as well...and I took on a few more when my Dad had a bunch he wanted to get rid of.

 

[photoguy]

Remember that plenty of people live in apartments with the same square footage. What also helps is that this couple has a yard and a shed with a small workshop. A good climate that allows you to spend time outside would also help a lot.

All other things being equal, our preference would probably be apt-condo > townhouse > detached home. But some areas don't have many options in condos/townhouses.

Another drawback is our dog who may be subject to size and breed restrictions for some HOAs.

 

[bbbamI]

How about a fireman's pole?

Hey....now there's an idea!

But...I wouldn't be able to shimmy back up that pole. My tiny house would have to have an elevator....

 

[haha]

Wouldn't it be roomier and cheaper to live in a mobile home?


I'm not getting it.

It's the fantasy dude, just the fantasy. After all, once you have saved a bunch of money and you are no longer young enough to spend all your time thinking about sex, how do you keep those brain cells that you still have employed?

One way is to take on a very unhandy lifestyle, but even better is to fantasize about that unhandy lifestyle while continuing to live in your 3000 Sq ft ranch in a nice suburb.

Ha

 

[Big_Hitter]

One way is to take on a very unhandy lifestyle, but even better is to fantasize about that unhandy lifestyle while continuing to live in your 3000 Sq ft ranch in a nice suburb.

I still don't get it


I'd rather think (fantasize) about my golf game

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

I think this is really just a fad. Of course there will be folks that embrace this but for the most part I think in 5 years you won't see many more tiny homes than you see now. I think the DW and I could do well with a *smaller* home, but even as much as we like each other, I don't think we could do well with anything less than 1,000 S.F.


We have been considering the best way to maximize space and minimize cost for our "forever retirement" home, but it's really tough to get all we want in less than 1,500 SF and this is made with consideration that we tend to do just about everything with each other. Not only to mention, I would prefer to have more acreage (natural, not something we would have to deal with in old age) than square footage of a house.


My GP's designed/built their "forever" home when they were in their 40's and even in the late 70's it wound up being 2,200 S.F. but as they grew older, they only used about 1/3 of the space (for living). Today, it's a smaller home (especially in the area where 4,000+ SF houses are common) and wouldn't appeal to many of today's buyers.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

The family in the video below have two tiny houses - one for home and one for a craft business. Maybe instead of a craft business a second tiny house or storage unit would be enough to hold excess stuff that would not be needed day to day, like camping equipment and golf clubs. We keep that stuff in an unheated garage now and in our climate that works out fine.

Shotgun shack redux: mortgage-free in 320 square feet - videos - *faircompanies

I find it fun to consider tiny house living - maybe just for a vacation home if nothing else:

House of three tents vacation cabin in California:
http://faircompanies.com/videos/view/house-3-tents-affordable-cabin-home-in-california/

 

[NW-Bound]

Wouldn't it be roomier and cheaper to live in a mobile home?

I'm not getting it.

We have once exchanged our timeshare to stay for 1 week in a "resort" on the Californian coast that consisted of cottages built with park models. Never been inside one before, I was impressed that it offered real comfort.

It had full-size bathtub and bed. Bathroom size was OK, while the bedroom was not much larger than the bed. Other furniture pieces were scaled down to fit the smaller space, and stayed functional. Bathroom fixtures and kitchen appliances were good quality. So, it felt like a nice small home, and we did not feel like living in a mobile home at all.

 

[Hermit]

My mountain cabin started out at 24x36 (864 sq ft), then expanded to 26x36 (936). Then the placement demanded a walkout basement because of the slope (1872). Of course I had an attached garage and it had to be slid forward about 12 feet to manage the slope. Well, that left just wide enough space at the lower level for an additional garage with a shop above. Then the the architect thought it would be a good idea to have room for a kitchen table so there went 96 sq ft out of my wood shop and into the house (1968 sq ft) I have no idea what I need that much room for, but I'm going to have an awesome home theater!

 

[gromit]

Just out of curiosity, a while back I looked at how zoning would come into play for a weekend getaway tiny home on land near a national park. I suggest anyone interested in a tiny home look into the zoning first. Whether the county considers a tiny home to be a cute travel trailer, a mobile home or a permanent residence is important.
For the county I looked at, mobile homes were restricted to very limited areas. RVs and travel trailers were allowed to be used in areas near the national park, but could only be placed and occupied on property for 3 months in any year. Putting a tiny home on property for more than 3 months a year required that it had to be a permanent structure. That meant no attached wheels and "permanently connected" water, septic and electric utilities. At that point I stopped looking. I'll guess that adding a permanent structure with "permanently connected" utilities to property would also open a Pandora's box of property taxes, building inspections and complying with obscure building codes that weren't written with tiny homes in mind.
I still think they are cute for a weekend place, but it may not be as simple as just deciding to park one somewhere.

 

[Dancer373]

I think a tiny home would be too small for me. A weekend of rain in a 30 ft motor home with 2 grandkids was a very tight fit. I live in 1800 sq ft but I'm getting to the point where I'm not using it all. 1300 sq ft sounds much more comfortable.

 

[SDHiker]

My daughter-in-law is always posting these tiny house things on Facebook. The funny part is she has a TON of stuff. Perhaps it is something she aspires to. They are just too small for me. We bought our house in 1985 with twin 2 year olds. It was 1,040 sq. ft. and seemed very small. We added on in 1990 a bath and master bedroom to give us 1,400. We resisted upsizing until a kitchen remodel where we added another 100 sq ft laundry room/office area. We stuck with the house and the boys have been gone 10 years. It is the perfect size. We want to keep a guest room available and it gets used somewhat regularly with visitors. I could not do under 1,000. A trailer or RV would be fine for trips under a few weeks.

 

[Hermit]

My daughter-in-law is always posting these tiny house things on Facebook. The funny part is she has a TON of stuff. Perhaps it is something she aspires to...

My DD does not have a problem in this area. She just uses my storage for all her extra stuff.

 

[imoldernu]

Not "tiny", but our first 14 years of retirement....'89 to '04. To save $$$.

Campground- 27 ft trailer, then our park model... 400 s.f. plus a a 400 s.f. add-a room, and a 400 s.f. deck...
and:
Senior park in FL... 14X70 mobile home w/300 s.f. sun room.

In 2004 to our 1600 s.f. home in CCRC... Perfect size.

Rationalize the hoarder instinct by putting a $$$ value on a "got junk" declutter.
Eases the guilt complex over the frugality.

 

[SDHiker]

Hermit, LOL, we have some of their stuff too!!

 

[martyb]

Our 1636 sf house feels small to me. I could do short periods in a travel trailer type situation, but not for a permanent living arrangement.

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