Considering the long-standing American tradition of “bigger is better”, one of the last things you’d expect in the U.S. is the growing trend of tiny houses. In the last few years, it’s become so big that people are officially calling it the “Tiny House Movement”. Tiny homes range anywhere between 65 square feet and 750 square feet.1 So why has there been such a sudden and growing interest in tiny homes?
Owners of tiny homes were appalled at the amount of materials and resources required to build and maintain standard-sized homes. Instead, they decided to live in houses that were more environmentally conscious. Tiny houses have many obvious benefits for the environment. Because tiny houses require so few materials to build, they minimize the use of Earth’s limited resources. When people use them to live in more remote areas, they leave virtually no physical impact upon the natural environment, unlike their mega-mansion counterparts. Heating and cooling such small spaces also takes much less energy, enabling most or all of the total energy to be powered by solar panels.2
Tiny homes may be a smart economic choice as well. While some prefabricated tiny homes start at around $37,000, homes can be even cheaper if you build them yourself. Instead of focusing on quantity, people can afford to spend on high-quality, durable materials and still have much of their budget left over. Plus, after you move in, upkeep and maintenance of a tiny house is minimal. Especially considering the recent mortgage crisis and energy spikes, it’s not hard to see why tiny living is suddenly receiving so much attention.3
Some owners of the tiny homes were merely attracted to the appeal of simple living. As homeowner Michael Janzen put it, “I don’t want this life — the life of someone who’s working too hard to pay a large mortgage to live in this house.”4 Living in a tiny home requires learning to live on only what one considered essential. For this reason, many tiny house owners actually build their home to their own liking by themselves. One Yale student creatively built her tiny house entirely out of recycled materials, substantially reducing both the cost and the impact on the environment.5
Tiny homes may even provide a solution to the problem of affordable housing. One example of this is on the Gulf Coast, where tiny homes are helping to fill a housing void. After their original homes were destroyed during Hurricane Katrina, local residents started looking at tiny homes as affordable replacements. In other cases, these homes offered a solution for those who can’t afford a plot of land, but who could live in a friend’s backyard.6 Tiny home advocates hope that eventually tiny homes can enable previously unusable urban lots to open up to those who can’t afford the more standard, larger lots.7
On the other hand, some people who own tiny homes weren’t ready to change their entire lifestyle. Instead, they replaced their second vacation home or office space with tiny houses.8 Tiny homes are great for outdoor activities, since they can be built relatively quickly, are cheap to keep heated, and require little to no maintenance. Tiny homes don’t have to be just cabins, either. The progression of smaller and smaller laptops, mp3 players, and other electronic devices bring the luxuries of modern living into tiny spaces.9
Interested? A few prefabricated tiny homes are gaining popularity online. Tumbleweed, a California-based company (http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/), offers some of the tiniest prefabricated houses, anywhere between 65 square feet to 850 square feet, with prices starting at $37,000. Another option is the Tiny Texas Houses (http://www.tinytexashouses.com/), which builds houses 95% out of recycled materials while designed in a classic, rustic look. A slightly bigger option is the weeHouse (http://weehouse.com/flash/SFWA_index.html#/2008/), which has a more open and sleek design.
Even if you aren’t about to move into a tiny house, these tiny houses leave a big impression. Remember, good things come in small packages!
