The American Dream has been built around the idea of owning a home – many believe the more square footage the better. However, a recent and growing trend of Living in a Tiny Home has proved otherwise.
Like any living situation, tiny homes have their own set of pros and cons. Some of the pros include cheaper living expenses, the portability and mobility of a tiny home, and the simplicity of a less-is-more lifestyle when living in a smaller space. A few of the cons include the challenges of living with limited space and needing to check your state’s tiny home laws when initially preparing to buy a tiny home. But the cons have not stopped many, as tiny homes’ popularity continues to rise. These cozy, simplistic homes call many to examine further what it means to “go Tiny”.
What Are The Pros of Tiny Home Living?
Lower Expenses And Utility Costs
Perhaps the biggest appeal to living in a tiny home is its cost efficiency. From monthly bills to furnishing your home, living in a tiny house is much cheaper than a standard home. With around 400 square feet of space to cool or heat, utility bills commonly run at much lower prices. Also, less space means less stuff. Furnishing your tiny home, while presenting some challenges around limited space, can also be wonderfully easy with the limited amount of space that needs to be filled. In a tiny home, you buy what’s necessary. This can be great in managing a budget where the limitation of space allows you to spend on only what you need. Even the grocery bill goes down – with less food storage space, a tiny house discourages excess accumulation of food. Most, if not all, of your overhead expenses can be lowered when you live in a tiny home.
Portability
Another attractive quality to a tiny home is its portability. The ability to pick up your home and move it to wherever the wind takes you is often tempting, but can be made a realty with a tiny home. Having the option to move your home wherever life might take you can open a lot of doors to different possibilities. The portability of a tiny home can make it great for traveling; a tiny home is a vacation home. Being able to pick up your life and travel encourages you to travel more and explore the world. And with all the money you saved from living in a smaller space, you can actually afford to travel. If you’re less of “free spirit”, and are perfectly content staying put, the portability of a tiny home can still be really convenient when maybe needing to move for work or other circumstances.
Simple Living – Less is More
The most charming aspect of living in a tiny home is the simple, cozy life you can build within your space.
Less space requires you to declutter your life and space, which can make for a home that feels airy and bright. Less space allows you to create an environment that feels cozy and comfortable to you. While less space means that messes can accumulate quickly, cleaning can also be wonderfully easy in a tiny home given there’s so little to clean. Less space allows you to be aware of your surroundings, making a tiny home very safe, and great for people who live alone. Living in a standard sized house can sometimes cause a bit of anxiety for those living alone, when you have no way of knowing if someone may have entered your home without your knowledge. But, in a tiny home, you’re able to keep an eye on everything, making for a safer, more secure feeling.
Tiny Home Customization and Personalization
While there is limited space and square footage to work with, it’s still your space, and can easily be personalized for YOU. Fortunately, customizing a tiny home can be extremely versatile, to make a home that best suits you.
As promised, we would be remiss if we didn’t also mention some of the most common challenges of living tiny. Here are a few of the Cons mentioned by Tiny Home owners:
Limited Space and Limited Storage
While the limited space of a tiny house is responsible for a lot of positive reasons to live in a tiny home, the limited space can be just as challenging to work with. If not properly managed, the small space can become cluttered and disorganized. Fortunately, the small space makes for easy cleaning. But if not actively kept after, the space can become cluttered. And while it may promote a less-consumerist lifestyle, the lack of storage space to store your belongings can prove to be challenging when trying to store your things.
Legality and Tiny Home Permits
Unfortunately, there are sometimes extra hoops to jump through when living in a tiny home. Building codes, zoning regulations, permits, laws by state – it can be overwhelming, but some additional research may be required when considering Buying A Tiny Home or finding a tiny home builder. It’s important to do your homework and be knowledgeable about what will require to own and park a tiny home somewhere. But once all the official business is over and done with, you’re left with a super great little, tiny house.
As is the case with standard sized homes, apartments, and condos, tiny homes have their own set of advantages and disadvantages. However, it is possible to make cozy, secure homes out of these tiny houses, making them great for downsizing, retirement living, single women, or anyone seeking a more simplistic lifestyle.
