Tiny House Hunters

[Darrell KSR]

Is this serious? My goodness.

[CitizenBBN]

Have you seen the tiny house show? I've caught small parts of it. It's interesting, and I love the idea of more affordable housing for folks, this being the replacement for trailers in a lot of ways, but I have to wonder how people fare in that space longer term.

[Darrell KSR]

I watched several episodes of it while I was working on something else and it was on in the background.

I can see it for a week. Maybe a month. Long-term? I can't see it.

[CitizenBBN]

Pretty sure I'd rather have the trailer.

Cracks me up but Lexington is budgeting millions to support "affordable housing", and the SOBs have basically banned trailers within the county. Couple of places left that are grandfathered, but through zoning regs and such they've done everything they can to eliminate the staple of affordable housing in America for 50 years b/c they don't like it, then are shocked when people can't afford a place to live.

The tiny house I saw they were doing what you used to do with trailers, put it on the family farm somewhere to have a start when you can't afford a place. Not sure why a custom built tiny house where you have no space is better than a trailer which may not be fancy but at least gives you a separate bedroom and bathroom where you don't have to sleep with your feet in the kitchen. You can have the trailer quick, hook it up and be good.

Structurally neither is very storm resistant, give me the extra space.

[Darrell KSR]

I thought they were cool for a 'camp" or something. First, I thought it was ridiculous when they were looking at 600 square foot houses for a family of SIX. But at least 2 of them were near-babies, and the two young girls would share a bedroom in many houses anyway, so that actually wasn't as ridiculous as some of the others.

They had 250 square foot houses...then 100 square foot HOUSES. That's a small room. Trying to fit a bedroom, living room, kitchen and bathroom in that space? Granted, making a "loft" bedroom helped, but geez.

They had one configuration with the toilet in the shower. And a sink. I guess it was time-saving, too!

[ETWNAPPEL]

How much of your house do you actually use? Other than sleeping, 90% of the time we are in the great room/kitchen. We never allowed TV's or computers in the kid's bedrooms, so magically they only use them to sleep in. I have an incredible UK man cave with a huge TV and it is used rarely. I think we could easily live in much smaller space. 600 SF would be pushing it though.

[CitizenBBN]

Many of us could probably do fine with something smaller, but what they're doing is way small. 600sf is about the size of my kitchen give or take. I could make it smaller, have a living room and one bedroom and a full bath, that's still at least 1,000 sf, maybe a bit more.

200sf type things like they do on that show I really doubt. I really want to see the follow up study.

[KeithKSR]

Our living room is large enough to house two adults, comfortable. It is about 26x20. When my wife and I were first married the place we lived in was much smaller.

The tiny house movement is here to stay. Housing costs have skyrocketed, as have utilities, and the tiny house movement addresses both issues. Smaller energy efficient homes are going to be much more cost effective, especially for the millennials.

If you look at our ancestors only a few generations back you will find that people lived in much smaller spaces, as do many urban dwellers today.

[KeithKSR]

Many of us could probably do fine with something smaller, but what they're doing is way small. 600sf is about the size of my kitchen give or take. I could make it smaller, have a living room and one bedroom and a full bath, that's still at least 1,000 sf, maybe a bit more.

200sf type things like they do on that show I really doubt. I really want to see the follow up study.


The 200sf and smaller places are primarily designed for portability. Hook them to a pickup and move.

To be honest I would be thrilled to go off the grid, electricity in our area has really skyrocketed.

[blueboss]

Does this mean there is going to be a revival of the "tiny pool house" thread ???


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[CitizenBBN]

The 200sf and smaller places are primarily designed for portability. Hook them to a pickup and move.

To be honest I would be thrilled to go off the grid, electricity in our area has really skyrocketed.

I get that, but why not just get a trailer? they're portable, and you can get them bigger than that.

I also get going off the grid, and some of these do some of that, but I still really doubt the psychology of more than one person in that small a space. I've stayed in a camper where you have to convert the table to the bed every night, let's just say it wouldn't work for me.

Of course lots of people who live on boats that small or smaller, so it's probably as much me as anything endemic. I've thought about the boat angle myself.

[dan_bgblue]

I am with you CBBN. I have watched a few of the shows and readily admit that "living" in such a small space is not for me. It would be OK to sleep in, kinda like living in a motel room where you spend very little time in the confines.

btw, if I had a reliable internet connection where I could telecommute, I would welcome the opportunity to try living on a 12X70 houseboat on Dale Hollow lake.

[CitizenBBN]

I've thought about doing the boat thing if I ever do move to the Keys. That's a billion years off, but I like the idea of driving away in my home if the hurricane starts coming towards me versus buying one there and then standing in 3 feet of water in my living room now and again.

But not with a bunch of kids, and not approaching it like a house. More like a hotel room with a really big water bed.

[KeithKSR]

I get that, but why not just get a trailer? they're portable, and you can get them bigger than that.

I also get going off the grid, and some of these do some of that, but I still really doubt the psychology of more than one person in that small a space. I've stayed in a camper where you have to convert the table to the bed every night, let's just say it wouldn't work for me.

Of course lots of people who live on boats that small or smaller, so it's probably as much me as anything endemic. I've thought about the boat angle myself.

The portable tiny houses equate more to a boat on wheels than to an RV/camper type trailer. The camper types are all geared toward mild weather usage and sleeping lots of people. The more portable tiny homes are geared more toward energy efficiency, efficiency of storage space, and daily living.

[KentuckyWildcat]

Yep, it is real and as someone said probably here to stay. I think the "tiny" houses will get bigger but I think it is a long term trend to smaller homes. I think a lot of it has to do with the environmental impact as much as the cost. Less materials and as already mentioned you can go off-grid easier.

Our first home was 850 square feet. For 2 people that was okay, but 1 small bathroom sucked. Making that 900 square feet for a bigger bathroom and maybe a 1/2 half bath and I could have been content there. When we built we went to 2400 sq ft not including the basement I'm finishing. Way too big IMO but you lose some marriage battles.....

[KeithKSR]

Yep, it is real and as someone said probably here to stay. I think the "tiny" houses will get bigger but I think it is a long term trend to smaller homes. I think a lot of it has to do with the environmental impact as much as the cost. Less materials and as already mentioned you can go off-grid easier.

Our first home was 850 square feet. For 2 people that was okay, but 1 small bathroom sucked. Making that 900 square feet for a bigger bathroom and maybe a 1/2 half bath and I could have been content there. When we built we went to 2400 sq ft not including the basement I'm finishing. Way too big IMO but you lose some marriage battles.....

I think the economy dictates downsizing. Housing costs have skyrocketed, while wages are static or losing ground. Given that employment for younger people isn't looking good for the foreseeable future I'm not seeing college grads repaying huge student loans and paying a huge mortgage.

[KentuckyWildcat]

I think the economy dictates downsizing. Housing costs have skyrocketed, while wages are static or losing ground. Given that employment for younger people isn't looking good for the foreseeable future I'm not seeing college grads repaying huge student loans and paying a huge mortgage.


I agree with all of that. That is why I think "tiny" homes will get "bigger". But they will still be considerably smaller. But a lot of this that I have seen online is about environmental sustainability. I don't really watch TV so I've never seen the show. So money might be the overall driving force. But there are several out there for sustainability reasons.

[KeithKSR]

I agree with all of that. That is why I think "tiny" homes will get "bigger". But they will still be considerably smaller. But a lot of this that I have seen online is about environmental sustainability. I don't really watch TV so I've never seen the show. So money might be the overall driving force. But there are several out there for sustainability reasons.

Tiny houses as seen on the "Tiny House" shows are typically sub 1000 square feet. The sub 200 square feet portable units are the more extreme end of things. The sub 200 square feet seem to be driven by economics more than the others.

[CitizenBBN]

Houses are getting smaller for a host of reasons. I agree with those mentioned but will add some others:

1) In an aging population we have more and more empty nesters, many of whom aren't big on stairs. So they don't need 4 bedrooms, and don't want big 2 story houses. So they choose a nice patio home with a first floor master, maybe a small guest room and bath upstairs for guests.

2) Lifestyles have changed such that we need fewer rooms. People don't entertain the same way, so they don't have as much need for formal dining rooms or formal living rooms. They want an open plan from kitchen to some kind of reduced dining option then into the living room. Million dollar homes are being built with no dining room at all, not b/c of cost or environmental issues but b/c they simply don't have a use for the room. So instead they get a basement with a media room or man cave, but that is still a smaller footprint.

3) Changes in the accumulation of things. The next generation aren't big collectors, and if they don't have 200 porcelain figures they don't need a room to display them. They're more minimalist, more disposable.

Some of that is good, some isn't. For example I see them buy substandard lower quality furniture all the time that won't last nearly as long and pass on older vintage or antique pieces that will last a lifetime b/c they're made of real trees and not sawdust and glue and staples.

4) Families aren't as large, and are more dispersed. You don't need 4 bedrooms if you only have 1 kid and if he lives across the country.

Anyway, those are some other sociological reasons things are changing. That explains smaller homes, not necessarily the tiny houses on the show though.

[KeithKSR]

Houses are getting smaller for a host of reasons. I agree with those mentioned but will add some others:

1) In an aging population we have more and more empty nesters, many of whom aren't big on stairs. So they don't need 4 bedrooms, and don't want big 2 story houses. So they choose a nice patio home with a first floor master, maybe a small guest room and bath upstairs for guests.

2) Lifestyles have changed such that we need fewer rooms. People don't entertain the same way, so they don't have as much need for formal dining rooms or formal living rooms. They want an open plan from kitchen to some kind of reduced dining option then into the living room. Million dollar homes are being built with no dining room at all, not b/c of cost or environmental issues but b/c they simply don't have a use for the room. So instead they get a basement with a media room or man cave, but that is still a smaller footprint.

3) Changes in the accumulation of things. The next generation aren't big collectors, and if they don't have 200 porcelain figures they don't need a room to display them. They're more minimalist, more disposable.

Some of that is good, some isn't. For example I see them buy substandard lower quality furniture all the time that won't last nearly as long and pass on older vintage or antique pieces that will last a lifetime b/c they're made of real trees and not sawdust and glue and staples.

4) Families aren't as large, and are more dispersed. You don't need 4 bedrooms if you only have 1 kid and if he lives across the country.

Anyway, those are some other sociological reasons things are changing. That explains smaller homes, not necessarily the tiny houses on the show though.

Also, there are fewer two income households due to the U.S. having a population with larger numbers of unmarried adults.

Good point about the disposable society. The farther we become removed from the people who lived through the Great Depression the more we see people who use stuff and pitch it.

[PedroDaGr8]

When I visited SE Asia recently, I stayed for two weeks in a condo of a friend that was VERY small (around 250sq ft). Everything there is sized smaller than here 1) because ppl are actually healthy weights and 2) people are shorter. I expected it to be really uncomfortable (I'm 6'4' 260+) and it was at first. Then after the first few days, I started to realize how much nicer it was. You have to think more about what you bring into the place but other than that it wasn't that bad. It's damn easy to keep clean (which means more free time), you buy less stuff to furnish it so you can afford nicer quality stuff, in general it felt very cozy. I found myself actual able to keep the place much neater and more organized because it was an easy job to tackle. One added benefit is there are more shops in the area because people store less stuff. This means they go to the store regularly after work, buying only what they need. This leant itself to more of a sense of community. Also, there are a wide range of communal areas built into the building for entertaining and things like that.