Size Really Does Matter!
...But not when it comes to Tiny houses
My wife and I have been interested in the Tiny House concept for a few years now and have often wondered if it was something we could really do?
Tiny Houses are small houses on wheels but they do come in all shapes and sizes, generally anything under 46m2 is considered a Tiny House. They do not even need to be on wheels, there have been some amazing treehouses and boats created by creative people!
So we recently stayed for a weekend in a Tiny House on Wheels (THOW) that was listed on Airbnb. This was a much needed short getaway but was also an experiment to see if it was something we could do in the future, i.e. sell our place and live in a Tiny House instead.
We were super excited as before this we hadn’t even stepped foot into a Tiny house.
The THOW we stayed in seemed to pack a lot into a small area – it could potentially sleep 6 people, although I think that would be a squeeze!
There was a full sized bath, large kitchen with full fridge, even a wine fridge, dishwasher, comfy lounge with fold out table and 2 loft bedrooms. I was impressed that it could even fit in a large sized washing machine.
Outside was a fire pit as well as a pizza oven which we enthusiastically used on the first night.
The THOW was built by the owner himself and sits on a large piece of land with lovely views of trees, and meadows and the beach in the distance with lots of kangaroos to keep you company.
The concept of Tiny Houses really appeals to us as we have recently become minimalists (at heart but not necessarily in practice yet) and have always had an interest in environmental issues and living more sustainable.
Living in a standard house causes us allot of stress.
We often feel that we can't sit and relax if there are things to do around the house and there are always things to do around the house...so we never feel completely relaxed.
I felt like the THOW would be easy to keep clean and the less ‘stuff’ you have around the house the less you need to organise. In the Tiny House you can only have things around you that you need!
I love the idea of getting rid of 90% of your belongings and really simplifying and focusing on what is really important.
Tiny Houses can potentially mean less hours working. If you do not have a large mortgage you do not need to work as many hours... in theory!
I think Tiny House thinking has the potential to help solve homelessness and the current housing crisis that many people are facing right now.
Unfortunately it seems many councils in Australia are not welcoming the Tiny house movement and it remains largely illegal to live in a Tiny house as a permanent home.
Most people get around this issue by moving their Tiny House regularly so they are not living in any one place on a permanent basis, hence the popularity of building the houses on wheels. They are so much more than a caravans and are generally custom built to suit the person who is going to be living there.
Environmentally, there is less house to heat or keep cool. Many of them are being made from recycled timber. Many have solar panels, composting toilets and many are completely off the grid.
I think we would spend more time outdoors, which I miss living in a city.
...and of course, more time to post blogs likes this :)
Ideally we would buy a large piece of land and share it with a few other Tiny Houses, have some communal veggie patches and fruit trees and live a more sustainable, simple existence with less office work and more time to do the things you enjoy doing.
...It's nice to dream anyway!
Of course they shouldn't be legal, because then you might not even need to earn enough to be taxed and where would their income come from then?
You'd just need to move them a few inches each year. 😉
Seriously though, it sounds idyllic.
Or just vanish. No physical address, email correspondence only.
I like the way you think. Wanna help create an éscapism SMT coin? people whom have them get shares in some land type deal...food for thought :)
I like the way you think.
Thanks...moving a few inches is not enough (so I'm told).
Step one for me is getting rid of the consumer crap collected over the years which we purchased to make life...more fun??...It's not an easy thing giving it all away, want to tell the people who are taking it...don't take it! it will end up owning you instead
Awesome post. I am a huge tiny home also.
We have the same issues you have our area keeps trying to make them illegal
People say to me, the system is great and if you don't like it 'people power' will change our overlords minds....why should it take enough numbers to make a positive change, when negative changes are implemented by a hand-full all the time.
Sure, people power would easily change it. What are the chances of enough people actually getting off their backsides to do that, though. Tood have to make it pretty uncomfortable for everyone for that to happen.
We pretty much cleared out all our stuff in 2 weeks (although we were super motivated given we were leaving the country)... it's hard work but man is it satisfying.
It's nutZ the things we do to help ourselves survive a lifetime oppressed by the system.
Those things are always awesome. One other thing, you will probably be spending more and closer time with your loved one. There's just something about the tight quarters that just ups the affection between two people. (well usually, I guess it would depend on the people.) At least I found that to be so with my wife when we were in an extremely small house, but had to expand because children kept appearing...
Nice...lets hope when the time comes for us it has that effect also
Cheers
lol, As long as you are in love, you get crammed into small spaces things are bound to happen..
howdy from Texas sir lordnigel! wow what a brilliant concept for those wanting to slash costs and save money! I mean it would have to cost a fraction of a normal home and I was surprised that it had and upper floor for the bedrooms, that is also brilliant.
Did this stay convince you guys to do something radical like downsize from a traditional home into a tiny house? It could be an amazing strategy.
The key seems to be to get a decent piece of land. I've been struggling between 4x4 and caravan and just downsizing, but now the Tiny house looks great as well... Also I want to downsize on going to work and the grind.
At this point I need to make enough money to acquire the land. Once I have this and it's paid, the rest will fall in to place - this is the plan and I'm about 80% of the way financially :)
@originalworks
The trend toward tiny houses has become a social movement. The tiny house movement is about more than simply living in a small space although, a small house is certainly part of it. Great article @lordnigel!💚💙🤗
Hey @lordnigel, this THOW concept sounds really interesting. From your photos, they don't look tiny really. Everything fits nicely in its own space.
I totally agree. There is always so much to do isn't it and never a time that we can just sit still and do nothing.
I like your dream and I hope you can achieve it :) Thank you for sharing this post with us. You gave an idea and inspiration for me to look around my area to see if this concept has arrive or would it be arriving any time soon.
Tiny Houses are more economical to maintain and spares plenty of resources. I personally don't need much space to live by as long as I got the necessities accessible and organized. The only problem I have is trying to fit that indoor large garden for my dream house in this setup :/
Good point - For me I'm not much of a gardener, so having a natural woods or wilderness would be all the garden I need.
I'm so into this!
Especially with the crazy property prices in Melbourne and Sydney, it's a shame that councils haven't been more proactive in this regard. Given the small space to heat/cool it's so much easier to run off-grid.
Portland is the most hipsterest city in the US and they're still struggling to establish proper council rules for Tiny Homes... but they're working on it. We need to figure out if we want to stay here long term or not, but if we're do, we'll want to replace our current house.. and we'd live in a tiny house during the build.
Love that pizza oven! Hope you had an awesome weekend!
Was a great weekend, but like all weekends end and reality 'going back to work' returns.
They don't want to compete with other councils by giving you the option to easily move from one place to another.
that and doesn't fit all the other current money making models.i.e.no longer have to seek approval to put up a structure. If I had the money I'd buy a huge property and build an entire mobile smurf village and then just sell the smurf houses affordably...feel like living by the lake, no prob, communal truck pulls your house there this month..
Yeah, that's the way. Portland has that kind of thing, but for food trucks (that are often built in Tiny Homes)… there is a Tiny Home hotel here, which is exactly as you describe... but because it's a business, absolutely no problems.
There was a case here where a couple was living in a tiny home in their parents backyard... and the council literally kicked them out even though there was a proper dwelling on the land and they obviously had permission to be there... that case villianised the council, the media made a thing about it so now the Mayor is trying to make it happen, since everyone is so angry about it and there literally isn't enough accommodation for all the people moving to Portland.
Sometimes it takes everyone losing their mind to create change...
I love the idea of a tiny house (especially the ones on wheels), they should make it legal already! I love that your has a small runny plant by the window. Its location looks like a peaceful and serene place, you said there are kangaroos around? You really are close to nature there... That will be a really great experience for you...
Oh wow... Look at them!!
I've been looking at these on yt and on some of the sites for builders of them for a few years now. They are very appealing to me. The one you stayed at looks lovely, and the pizza oven is a great touch.
I already have nothing, since I live a nomadic lifestyle with only two suitcases. I stay in hotels or short term places now. I really prefer this to having a big home or apartment to take care of.
Be sure to look at what some people say about living in them full time. There are quite a lot of videos to show the down side and one of those is that it seems to be just as much work to keep it looking nice and organized. But I don't think you can beat the lower cost :)
Thanks for your comment - your life on the road sounds fascinating, done ever get the feeling you want to settle or just love being on the move too much? We will need to strike a balance living in a tiny home, with no shed and little storage we will need to choose carefully, thanks for your advice, we look into some of the negatives before taking the plunge.
Cheers
I really think I will keep going like this. I've been pretty much rootless all my life and when I stay too long anywhere I start getting ready to leave. I don't fit in in most places because everyone else is there for long term. I like the new horizons and start looking at too much stuff I accumulate :)
But I would like a stint in one of these tiny home for sure.