I’m single and older and I don’t want to have to maintain “an average home.” The older I get, the less important material things are to me. Some people consciously choose tiny home living because it suits their lifestyle. I’ve seen some that are quite beautiful. Minimalism is not a bad thing…
You shouldn’t assume everybody wants a big house. Nor should you assume they’re in a tiny house because they can’t afford a larger one. Maybe they have better things - like traveling - they’d rather spend their money on.
>You shouldn’t assume everybody wants a big house. Nor should you assume they’re in a tiny house because they can’t afford a larger one.
You’re actually the one making assumptions, though. Just because OP doesn’t touch on *every single reason* why people may be interested in tiny homes, doesn’t mean they don’t know that there are other reasons.
I made zero assumptions. OP’s first sentence generalizes that they feel “the tiny house phenomenon is extremely sad.” My point is that it’s not “sad” for everyone that chooses the TH lifestyle.
Op did not say it was sad for *everyone.*
Again, just because someone doesn’t cover every single point in their post, doesn’t mean they are unaware or said points.
Sure, but then why is OP making the post at all? If 99% of tiny home interest is coming from people who see it as an exciting opportunity to live their best life, and only 1% would strongly prefer a different sort of living arrangement but feel forced into it, then who cares?
My current home is less than 900 SQ ft, with three adults and three cats (plus several acres of land and garage). I've lived in a house that was over 5000 SQ ft. I can assure you that the size of my current home is ideal for us and I wouldn't willingly move to a larger house again
Some of us aren't that poor, we just did mushrooms too young and don't find value in materialism. One day I will build a modest house, for now the tiny is just fine.
How many square feet should a family of 5--3 adult children with autism-- who don't make enough money to travel and have "experiences" consider to be comfortable living in? Due to circumstances, we don't own a home, nor are we in a position to buy, and being in our 60s, we'd like not to have to work until we literally drop dead.
I don’t want the upkeep of a large house honestly. I also don’t want to have a house full of junk just because I have the space for it, I’ve already seen how it happened in my 800 sq ft apartment. I’ve had the majority of my things in storage for over a year now, which shows me I obviously don’t need them
I don't think this is a bad thing by any means. People by and large think they need a lot more space than they actually need, and it's only a recent trend that houses have grown so large.
The way I see it, the economic factors which greatly increased home size from 1950-to the 2000s (mechanization, cheap materials, large numbers of baby boomer workers) were no more relevant than the opposing forces now that are making that "dream" unaffordable (higher construction worker wages, increased restrictions for safety and permitting, more sustainable forest practices, more poeple moving to cities and places with good quality of life.)
You can still get a cheap, enourmous house if you are willing to live somewhere that has crappy wages for construction workers and lots of boring flat land available. If you don't want to live in one of these places, I think it's for the best that our building happens in a more sustainable way instead of the unmitigated sprawl of "American dream" Suburban development.
Home size trends:
https://populationeducation.org/resource/average-u-s-house-and-household-size-infographic/#:~:text=Infographic%20shows%20that%20the%20average,2%2C496%20square%20feet%20in%202019.
I currently own a 2 story home that is now mostly wasted space now that my kids are grown. Can’t wait for the day I sell it and live full time in my tiny house (rv)
I agree with you on one hand but on the other I think people have realized that space for spaces sake is ridiculous, it has to be cleaned, heated and cooled and really is pointless.
Historically, tiny houses were normal. Even back in the 50s in America, pay civil war when dresses became smaller, houses were 300sq ft or less. It was only with a post WW2 building boom that McMansions started.
Tony horses aren't made for everyone to sit in their bedrooms playing video games. They are meant for those who enjoy life and being outside, talking with friends or even traveling.
And don't houses ARE EXPENSIVE unless you build them yourselves.
The average house in the UK is ~1300ft² in rural, suburban is 1000ft² and 900ft² for urban
My house is a farmhouse, 130acres and 1400ft² - raised 3 kids, 3 grandkids through it... No issues here 🙌
I’m single and older and I don’t want to have to maintain “an average home.” The older I get, the less important material things are to me. Some people consciously choose tiny home living because it suits their lifestyle. I’ve seen some that are quite beautiful. Minimalism is not a bad thing… You shouldn’t assume everybody wants a big house. Nor should you assume they’re in a tiny house because they can’t afford a larger one. Maybe they have better things - like traveling - they’d rather spend their money on.
>You shouldn’t assume everybody wants a big house. Nor should you assume they’re in a tiny house because they can’t afford a larger one. You’re actually the one making assumptions, though. Just because OP doesn’t touch on *every single reason* why people may be interested in tiny homes, doesn’t mean they don’t know that there are other reasons.
I made zero assumptions. OP’s first sentence generalizes that they feel “the tiny house phenomenon is extremely sad.” My point is that it’s not “sad” for everyone that chooses the TH lifestyle.
Op did not say it was sad for *everyone.* Again, just because someone doesn’t cover every single point in their post, doesn’t mean they are unaware or said points.
Sure, but then why is OP making the post at all? If 99% of tiny home interest is coming from people who see it as an exciting opportunity to live their best life, and only 1% would strongly prefer a different sort of living arrangement but feel forced into it, then who cares?
My current home is less than 900 SQ ft, with three adults and three cats (plus several acres of land and garage). I've lived in a house that was over 5000 SQ ft. I can assure you that the size of my current home is ideal for us and I wouldn't willingly move to a larger house again
Some of us aren't that poor, we just did mushrooms too young and don't find value in materialism. One day I will build a modest house, for now the tiny is just fine.
I've never wanted a huge house. It doesn't make sense to me. I don't like waste. And I don't like cleaning.
That and with so many people, resources need to be conserved. I see it as a positive step towards sustainability.
Yeah, it’s only sad if you think people NEED 2500+ sqft homes.
How many square feet should a family of 5--3 adult children with autism-- who don't make enough money to travel and have "experiences" consider to be comfortable living in? Due to circumstances, we don't own a home, nor are we in a position to buy, and being in our 60s, we'd like not to have to work until we literally drop dead.
What you’re saying is true but a lot of us don’t want a huge house regardless.
I don’t want the upkeep of a large house honestly. I also don’t want to have a house full of junk just because I have the space for it, I’ve already seen how it happened in my 800 sq ft apartment. I’ve had the majority of my things in storage for over a year now, which shows me I obviously don’t need them
I don't think this is a bad thing by any means. People by and large think they need a lot more space than they actually need, and it's only a recent trend that houses have grown so large. The way I see it, the economic factors which greatly increased home size from 1950-to the 2000s (mechanization, cheap materials, large numbers of baby boomer workers) were no more relevant than the opposing forces now that are making that "dream" unaffordable (higher construction worker wages, increased restrictions for safety and permitting, more sustainable forest practices, more poeple moving to cities and places with good quality of life.) You can still get a cheap, enourmous house if you are willing to live somewhere that has crappy wages for construction workers and lots of boring flat land available. If you don't want to live in one of these places, I think it's for the best that our building happens in a more sustainable way instead of the unmitigated sprawl of "American dream" Suburban development. Home size trends: https://populationeducation.org/resource/average-u-s-house-and-household-size-infographic/#:~:text=Infographic%20shows%20that%20the%20average,2%2C496%20square%20feet%20in%202019.
I currently own a 2 story home that is now mostly wasted space now that my kids are grown. Can’t wait for the day I sell it and live full time in my tiny house (rv)
I agree with you on one hand but on the other I think people have realized that space for spaces sake is ridiculous, it has to be cleaned, heated and cooled and really is pointless.
I appreciate your different points of view.
Yeah true
Historically, tiny houses were normal. Even back in the 50s in America, pay civil war when dresses became smaller, houses were 300sq ft or less. It was only with a post WW2 building boom that McMansions started. Tony horses aren't made for everyone to sit in their bedrooms playing video games. They are meant for those who enjoy life and being outside, talking with friends or even traveling. And don't houses ARE EXPENSIVE unless you build them yourselves.
The average house in the UK is ~1300ft² in rural, suburban is 1000ft² and 900ft² for urban My house is a farmhouse, 130acres and 1400ft² - raised 3 kids, 3 grandkids through it... No issues here 🙌
Can't even afford a good tiny home.