Tiny Houses: Trend or Tradition?

Tiny houses are proving to be a practical living solution for many people. They have the potential to be fantastic homes that provide an intimate atmosphere and grant their residents a sense of environmental consciousness. Tiny houses also free owners from many life-dominating mortgages and bills. Brilliant design features throughout make tiny house spaces comfortable and efficient. Finally, tiny houses have great potential for serving the underprivileged and homeless due to their relative low cost and optional mobility. Today we take a closer look at the tiny home trend.

A tiny house might suit you…

Living in a tiny house might not work in every situation but it may be surprising how versatile they can be with a little creativity. It’s easy to find stories about families living in tiny houses or folks who gave it all up to travel in style. The take-away from these stories is that, after a little adjustment to the new space, most find that living in a tiny home is not only cheaper but usually fun, comfortable, and fulfilling. If you are looking to build your own tiny house, thetinylife.com is invaluable for researching floor plans, building codes, zoning laws, and providing insight on all aspects of tiny house construction and living.

…or you could just borrow a couple of the best parts.

Even if you don’t want to build your own tiny house, incorporating some of the design features into your home might be just the thing to freshen up your space, find more storage, or create a unique new focal point. Many innovations combine in clever ways to make the smaller spaces found in tiny houses more comfortable, efficient, and modern. These range from old-school hide-a-beds and composting toilets to more advanced and complicated track walls which make one space into multiple rooms. Solar energy solutions are finding traction at just the right time to grow with this tiny house movement as well. The same environmentally conscious philosophies that drive the one are sure to impact the other and hopefully both will benefit.

Tiny houses for our neighbors

While it is only a small part of the necessary solution to poverty and homelessness, tiny houses should be considered more frequently when communities try to provide useful assistance to those in need. They are cheap and easy to make, can be mobile, and for many in need, having a place to call home could be the first step toward getting back on their feet. For only $500 one man decided to build a woman living in the streets a small but secure structure to call her own. If Colorado’s generous new strategy for alleviating homelessness catches on, perhaps tiny houses will be considered more seriously among the possibilities for providing housing to our nation’s impoverished.

 

Part of the impetus behind the tiny house movement is a growing feeling that society is becoming too materialistic and intent on “more”. Much like our favorite Dr. Squatch products, tiny houses tend to be built with environmentally friendly materials. That, along with their clever blending of minimalistic and efficient design makes them an environmentally responsible living solution. While tiny houses will never sweep the world and solve all of our economic and environmental strife, the positive effects from their growing popularity are already visible…even if it’s just getting to see a cute house on wheels go by while driving down the interstate.