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The Shift Towards Smaller Homes

Housing has really changed a lot over the course of time. It's interesting that many people are beginning to go back to living in smaller homes now. Living in a small home is not new, people have lived in small houses, yurts, wagons, caravans and cabins, for thousands of years. It's only been in the last hundred years that homes have become substantially larger than ever. In 1973 an average home was estimated to be around 1,660 square feet for about three people, fast forward to today where the average home is around a whopping 2,687 square feet which is almost 1,000 square feet larger yet fewer people live in them today. Buying or building these larger homes means higher costs in building, getting a mortgage and in running your home once it's built since energy costs will usually be higher. Homeowners will also inevitaby have higher home insurance to pay for too. That's one of the reasons many people are turning to small house design and tiny house building for a smaller and more practical option. Other people just want to live simple lives, and some build smaller homes to live in while building a larger home to live in full-time.

Shaye and Tom's Tiny House Journey

That's what Shaye and her partner Tom decided to do when they set out to build their tiny house that they affectionately named Lucy. They built Lucy to live in while they built their eco-friendly strawbale home. It was a way to save some money so they could put it back into their larger project. They moved into their tiny house in 2013, and they ended up staying in it for a lot longer than they originally thought they would because they loved it so much. They even now have a baby who also loves living in a small home, but they are aiming to move into the strawbale home before having any more children. The couple created their own floor plan and design which features a living room at the front of the home, and then a kitchen with a bathroom behind it. They also have a sleeping loft where they sleep at night which makes a nice separation of living space and sleeping space. They outfitted the exterior with a beautiful green siding and white trim around the windows and doors. Inside, they kept the walls white and added in a lot of wood which warms the space up.

Maximizing Space and Functionality

The living room has a bench seating arrangement in the corner which makes great use of the space and doubles as storage space as well. There is also some storage in a small loft above the bench seating and also in the storage staircase leading up to the sleeping loft. By the kitchen, there is a small desk which would be great to work at on a laptop or desktop computer. Then, in the kitchen, there is a built-in range, a small fridge and a sink. They were also able to include some pantry storage behind the kitchen which is great for spices and other foods. In the bathroom, they made their own composting toilet which is really easy to do. They also have a shower and some hooks on the back of the door for towels or clothing. They were able to build their tiny house on wheels with about $25,000 which is pretty amazing. They built it slowly using their own money and not credit, so they actually own their home now. How incredible would that be to own your own tiny house and also have a bigger house on the way? It's a great way to get set up without going into debt and once their in they're slightly larger home they can then rent out the tiny house.