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Small World: The Tiny House Trend

believermag.com

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Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#51

Post by mturmon »

tjr225 wrote: post #12

The Tiny Home trend and the "Van Life" trend are slightly unsettling to me - I wonder which forces are at play who intend to convince us that lowering our standards of living is cool? No judgement from me if you do choose to do these things, though. I do see the appeal. Maybe there is no conspiracy, maybe it is a coping mechanism. Edited "deeply" to "slightly" upon further reflection.

The small home with only the essentials is deeply American. Recall Henry David Thoreau's cabin: https://www.simplesolarhomesteading.com/thoreaucabin.htm

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#52

Post by rb808 »

alistairSH wrote: post #44
rb808 wrote: post #20

"Tiny house" AKA a normal house in the rest of the world.

Is that really true? Most of the trendy tiny homes are 200-300sqft with a loft bedroom. My townhouse is modest by US standards at 1500sqft and 3 bedrooms. I believe this was about average in the early-70s (when the home was constructed). The average new home in the US is now about 2600sqft and 4-5 bedrooms.

OK UK is perhaps smaller than average but:

> The average house dimensions in UK is 91 sq m. which is a bit under 1000 sq ft.

http://www.dimensionsinfo.com/average-house-dimensions-in-uk...

> The average UK one-bedroom home is 46 sq m (495 sq ft),

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22152622

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#53

Post by RandallBrown »

tjr225 wrote: post #12

The Tiny Home trend and the "Van Life" trend are slightly unsettling to me - I wonder which forces are at play who intend to convince us that lowering our standards of living is cool? No judgement from me if you do choose to do these things, though. I do see the appeal. Maybe there is no conspiracy, maybe it is a coping mechanism. Edited "deeply" to "slightly" upon further reflection.

It's interesting how your view of these trends is exactly the opposite of mine.

To me, tiny homes and "van life" are about raising our standards of living. To me, living in a van with the freedom to go wherever you want, whenever you want, sounds amazing. If you lived in the midwest in your van last week, you could have simply driven away from the polar vortex.

I hate the idea of living in a large house. I don't want to spend my weekends doing chores like sweeping floors or mowing the lawn.

There are practical obstacles to overcome with these alternate living styles, but it works really well for some people.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#54

Post by lawlessone »

bluGill wrote: post #5
pxndx wrote: post #2

Tiny houses are just gentrified trailers.

gentrified is a useful feature - trailers have earned their bad quality reputation. There is no reason they can't be higher quality.

until they push up the price of trailers and make them less affordable to poorer people that relied on them.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#55

Post by pxndx »

rb808 wrote: post #52
alistairSH wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that really true? Most of the trendy tiny homes are 200-300sqft with a loft bedroom. My townhouse is modest by US standards at 1500sqft and 3 bedrooms. I believe this was about average in the early-70s (when the home was constructed). The average new home in the US is now about 2600sqft and 4-5 bedrooms.

OK UK is perhaps smaller than average but: > The average house dimensions in UK is 91 sq m. which is a bit under 1000 sq ft. http://www.dimensionsinfo.com/average-house-dimensions-in-uk... > The average UK one-bedroom home is 46 sq m (495 sq ft), https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22152622

You're forgetting the square part. One square meter is roughly 10 square feet, your home is closer to 910 sq ft.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#56

Post by sborra »

michaelbuckbee wrote: post #25

The article doesn't really get into it, but there are some weird pressures in the US that really work against tiny houses, namely: our crumbling infrastructure nationwide and our system of paying for that infrasture and other civic responsibilities with property taxes. If a municipality is looking at two competing development plans for a couple acres of town: 1. 10 new $500k - 3,000sq ft McMansions = 5 million dollar…

Surely more people are an asset for the local government, not a liability? You'd have 3x the tax revenue, 3x the purchasing power, plus the logistic efficiency that allows for local business to spring up and mass transportation to be viable.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#57

Post by ahallock »

My friend spent 10 years, off and on, building a tiny house. While he learned a great deal about construction, he sold the house before ever using it and in retrospect thought it was a huge waste of time and money. I think people have fantasies that don't match reality. I think he saw himself living a nomadic, environmentally-friendly lifestyle, but you can't have your house within city limits and you end up living far away from the action in a cramped space.

I thought the idea was ridiculous myself and wish I'd talked my friend out of it.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#58

Post by NeedMoreTea »

moosey wrote: post #39
NeedMoreTea wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shared walls often mean you know when your neighbours are in, when they're watching TV, when they argue and what they're arguing about, when the dog is barking or the toddler having a tantrum, and even when they're walking to the other room. Even insulation benefits can't be relied on as shared walls are often uninsulated and overall insulation in apartment blocks often bare minimum to code rather than adequate. Last…

As we blunder our way into the Anthropocene, discussions like this will be looked upon in terror by people living in far more cramped and efficient conditions. Why didn't you live in more efficient housing, they might ask. Oh, because I was mildly inconvenienced by my neighbors. Because I wanted a garden to grow my own food. The insulation might not be perfect. These things are not important or, in the case of the in…

What an odd reaction. There;s no need to force everyone into a rabbit hutch as though we all live in Hong Kong. Most places have little or no need to build several floors up, outside of city centres.

A small house is, for most, a better and far more efficient solution for a couple than the typical property available. As the kids move on we've no need of multiple bedrooms and bathrooms. Yet most of what gets built tries to squeeze more rooms and more bathrooms and toilets than people into the same square footage.

To me, that's what needs a rethink. You'll never get us into another apartment block though.

For the elderly they also seem like they could be an ideal solution where we once built sheltered flats. Cluster a group together with small garden space, and add a warden and panic alarms. More appealing than rattling around in the old family 4 bed home.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#59

Post by WhiteMonkey »

tjr225 wrote: post #12

The Tiny Home trend and the "Van Life" trend are slightly unsettling to me - I wonder which forces are at play who intend to convince us that lowering our standards of living is cool? No judgement from me if you do choose to do these things, though. I do see the appeal. Maybe there is no conspiracy, maybe it is a coping mechanism. Edited "deeply" to "slightly" upon further reflection.

Most parts of the world look at McMansions and feel unsettled, particularly when they are marketed as "aspirational": sell your soul in order to get the biggest place you can get a mortgage for on your salary, so you can never leave your job.

Re: Small World: The Tiny House Trend

#60

Post by rb808 »

pxndx wrote: post #55
rb808 wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OK UK is perhaps smaller than average but: > The average house dimensions in UK is 91 sq m. which is a bit under 1000 sq ft. http://www.dimensionsinfo.com/average-house-dimensions-in-uk... > The average UK one-bedroom home is 46 sq m (495 sq ft), https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22152622

You're forgetting the square part. One square meter is roughly 10 square feet, your home is closer to 910 sq ft.

yeah as soon as I submitted it looked wrong, corrected.
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