Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
1–10 of 46 posts
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#2I live in a 1,000 square foot house. It's the right size for my wife and I. We'd fit just fine with a kid as well... Having lived in smaller apartments (down to 500 square feet) I just don't see me doing it ever again:)
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#3As habitual pack rat I'm fascinated by these tiny houses. I think it would be great to simply live in a smaller space. Then there isn't any room for clutter to accumulate.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#4Has anyone here done this or is doing this? Back in 2008 when I first encountered this, I was aghast at how you'd first have to do some heavy research as to where you'd locate because the rules were so different, especially regarding what's considered "real estate" for tax purposes.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#5I live in a 1,000 square foot house. It's the right size for my wife and I. We'd fit just fine with a kid as well... Having lived in smaller apartments (down to 500 square feet) I just don't see me doing it ever again:)
My fiance and I recently downsized to a 1000 sqft condo. Living small is surprisingly expensive, though. Its crowded in the condo, because all the stuff we have as hand-me-downs, like the TV and sofa, is meant for a much larger space. It costs a lot of money to get new stuff that fits in the space better.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#6I'm living in a 170 square foot apartment in Tokyo. This is on the small side, but not so unusual for an apartment close to the city center. In addition to the savings in rent, I also save money by not collecting possessions. The space isn't such an issue, because I fully utilize it. Having a bigger place would be nice for having people over and what not, but the majority of the time I wouldn't use the space.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#7I always thought those houses quite fascinating. This, plus some storage space would allow you to go not-quite-Walden. OTOH, minimalism isn't exactly about square-footage. A slightly bigger house, with a bit more "whitespace" would probably be more comfortabl -- imagine a small traditional Japanese house, or one of those buildings based on upcycled shipping containers...
Also, for ecological reasons, this would still be a waste of space, as you're only using two dimensions and probably need some space around the building. A typical apartment building would be better.
This is quite good if you've got a lot more land, but only a little space to build upon (forest, hills, etc.).
If I remember correctly, even the founder of the company selling those houses only partially lives in one of them. He's got a bigger, traditional house next to it.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#8I'm living in a 170 square foot apartment in Tokyo. This is on the small side, but not so unusual for an apartment close to the city center. In addition to the savings in rent, I also save money by not collecting possessions. The space isn't such an issue, because I fully utilize it. Having a bigger place would be nice for having people over and what not, but the majority of the time I wouldn't use the space.
that's very cool. Does it have any cool space saving features you can show us?
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#9I always thought those houses quite fascinating. This, plus some storage space would allow you to go not-quite-Walden. OTOH, minimalism isn't exactly about square-footage. A slightly bigger house, with a bit more "whitespace" would probably be more comfortabl -- imagine a small traditional Japanese house, or one of those buildings based on upcycled shipping containers... Also, for ecological reasons, this would still…
yeah, I think the website says he has several small houses on his property. I guess all his guests get their "own room" :-)
One thing I like about it is how easy it is to completely clean the house from top to bottom. But no place washer and dryer. I think it would be cool to have one as a retreat.
Re: Do-It-Yourself Downsizing: How To Build A Tiny House
#10I always thought those houses quite fascinating. This, plus some storage space would allow you to go not-quite-Walden. OTOH, minimalism isn't exactly about square-footage. A slightly bigger house, with a bit more "whitespace" would probably be more comfortabl -- imagine a small traditional Japanese house, or one of those buildings based on upcycled shipping containers... Also, for ecological reasons, this would still…
Regarding "whitespace" - I personally find head room to be a lot more psychologically meaningful that square footage (in other words, I'd rather live in a 1,000 sf house with 9ft ceilings than a 2,000 sf house with 7 foot ceilings, although the analogy breaks down eventually). And the advantage of head room is that you can't fill it with junk :-)
I wonder whether "digital packratting" (collecting e-books, scanning everything to Evernote, collecting gaming "trophies") can replace the hoarding need that is so important to many people, but without the downside of being burried in clutter.