My X-wife and I raised two sons in a 1300 square foot 3 bedroom 2 bath house with a large yard. We got along really well in spite of the fact both of our sons were well over 6 feet tall when they graduated from high school. We had plenty of room, A kitchen, dinning room, living room and a large family room. About a block from me a lovely 2000 square foot house on about on acre of land was torn down and a road was cut through the middle of the acre. They are in the process of building multiple 4 to 5 thousand square foot houses which will ultimately be purchased and occupied by couples with zero or one child. In some cases it may actually be individuals. Am I alone in thinking the logic of this makes no sense? Most of the house will be unused but it will still have to be heated in the winter and cooled in the summer.
I live in a 1200 square foot 2 bedroom 2 bath condo which is far more than I need since I live alone. There are some who are revolting against the McManasions, It’s called the tiny house movement.
What are Tiny Houses? The Tiny House Movement? Tiny Living?
Simply put it is a social movement where people are downsizing the space that they live in. The typical American home is around 2600 square feet, while the typical small or tiny house is around 100-400 square feet. Tiny Houses come in all shapes, sizes and forms but they focus on smaller spaces and simplified living.
People are joining this movement for many reasons, but the most popular reasons are because of environmental concerns, financial concerns and seeking more time and freedom. For most Americans 1/3 to 1/2 of their income is dedicated to the roof over their heads; This translates to 15 years of working over your life time just to pay for it and because of it 76% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.
So what is the alternative? One might be to live smaller. While we don’t think tiny houses are for everyone, there are lessons to be learned and applied to escape the cycle of debt where almost 70% of Americans are trapped in right now.
The obstacle the tiny house movement is up against is local zoning restrictions. In my area you can build a 3, 4 or 5 thousand square foot house but you can’t build a more practical tiny house. In this era when energy conservation is becoming more and more important and land is becoming scarcer this makes no sense what so ever. This is mostly the result of the power of the home building industry and yes the ego of those who want a bigger house than their neighbor.
Is this a silly rant? Perhaps! But does it make some sense? I think so.
Image via shutterstock.