81–90 of 344 posts
A tiny house doesn't mean only a small space: tiny house = tiny house + large yard - maintenance - mortgage - noise I'm actually planning to build one, 36m2/400sf in a 2 acres property. Regardless, I will have plenty of space: outdoors.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I agree with all of these points, but also believe this is a reactive response to a culture younger generations can’t afford (as well as overloaded consumerism/materialism). I know plenty of 25-40 year olds who would love a detached single family home with a two car garage and a yard near their work, but it’s out of their financial grasp, as is other components of “The American Dream”, hence embracing experiences and…
... and why not celebrate that as a healthy development? Living small and mindfully doesn't mean living poorly. "Embracing experiences and minimalism over material possessions" is precisely what philosophers and spiritual teachers have been advocating for millennia. The material excesses of our parents' generation are a historical anomaly. Earth Overshoot Day is on August 1st – we shouldn't be able to afford that cul…
I would not celebrate everyone living on a dollar a day as most of the developing world does. To me, that wouldn’t be a win. Conversely, US resource consumption per capita needs to decline to European levels to be sustainable, which I think is possible with renewables and electrified transportation, along with an aging population.
Land is not the problem in the US. It’s jobs near inexpensive land, which you can incentivize with public policy.
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.
> lowering our standards of living Why is living in a smaller home a lower standard of living? Wasted space is a higher standard?
So yes. Having a bit more space in your home can raise your standard of living.
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.
I wonder which forces are at play who intend to convince us that continuing living with our current standards is sustainable.
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.
When did we consciously decided that :
- having thousands of cars running around us constantly while emitting toxic gases
- wrapping everything in multiple layer of plastic packaging
- eating meat at every meal
- same day delivery / drone delivery
- getting food delivered by people getting paid sub minimum wage
- crypto currencies consuming ridiculous amount of energy for basically nothing
- spending 8 hours a day sitting in front of a computer developing solutions for mega corps exploiting human behaviours to make money
&c. were good things ?
"Until we have begun to go without them, we fail to realize how unnecessary many things are. We've been using them not because we needed them but because we had them."
I don't understand why these are so chic, but manufactured housing isn't. For these quoted build costs, you could do a pretty highly upgraded singlewide, and it would age better than any of these and can actually be permanently installed onto a foundation.
Also lack of exposure to some extent. People can only dream about what they know.
A tiny house doesn't mean only a small space: tiny house = tiny house + large yard - maintenance - mortgage - noise I'm actually planning to build one, 36m2/400sf in a 2 acres property. Regardless, I will have plenty of space: outdoors.
Do you have a family? And you must have a shed the size of your house to hold the lawnmower you'll need for all that.
And no lawns. Maybe a vegetable garden.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm also in the UK. It was the case in those I've rented. That included one fancy river front expensive one that work rented while I was working in Docklands. In short, never again. Maybe newer ones are better as that was back in the 90s.
I suspect its actually older properties that are more robustly constructed - the flats we had in central Edinburgh had 1m+ thick sandstone walls and we never heard anything from neighbours. I'm currently in a 10 year old house based on old farm buildings and the walls here are even thicker (still sandstone).
My cost of living is significantly lower than living in conventional housing. I estimate I've spent around $50k on it. I don't understand spending $100k on a tiny home trailer. You can buy a regular house for that much and the trailer will depreciate.
I don't have plans on moving into something else in the near future. With all the money I'm saving I'm paying off debts and growing my savings. I wouldn't mind owning some land and building a workshop but it's hard to find land at a reasonable price in a place I'd like to live.
I do this entirely by choice. I'm fortunate enough to have a well paying, remote job. I constantly see and think about people who are forced into being houseless. One project I'd like to do is a sub-$1000 trailer home anyone could build with basic tools and a few weekends. Design and build one then put full instructions with videos online for free. Unfortunately I don't have the time right now.
Feel free to ask me anything.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do you have a family? And you must have a shed the size of your house to hold the lawnmower you'll need for all that.
This house will have only a small bedroom, a wc and a living/kitchen/dining room. However I'll assure the possibility of easily extending 1 or 2 small bedrooms and a garage if/when I get kids. For now I just plan to use it on weekends and holydays. And no lawns. Maybe a vegetable garden.
Of course, that's a nightmare when considering any sort of centralized heat source or utility, but that's a really fun idea.