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Real Estate Tips

Pros and Cons of Buying a Tiny House

Posted on Thursday, November 10, 2017
Are tiny houses a beneficial part of the minimalist movement, or a place where you will be drowned in clutter?

Would you buy a house that is 500 square feet? How about a house that is 200 square feet? The tiny house movement has been growing over the last few years, and while the movement is now large, the houses remain really small. Committing to a tiny house means committing to living with an efficient use of space. Before you decide to try one out, consider the pros and cons.

You Have a Smaller Financial Commitment

No matter whether you are buying a home outright or building it on land that you buy, buying or making a tiny house is often much less expensive than buying a standard sized home. This is especially true if you live in a place with expensive housing. If you live in a rural area where houses are inexpensive, buying a tiny house may not be much cheaper than buying a smaller regular home, but you have the advantage that you can buy land at a lower price and place your home on it. At $25,000 to over $45,000, a tiny house is not cheap, but it is far less expensive than many homes.

You Could Go Mobile

One of the potential pros of a tiny house is the possibility of taking your home on the road. Many tiny houses are easy to move, and if you are willing to go really small, you can choose to buy or build a home on wheels. That way, you can take your home with you wherever you go.

You Need to Pick and Choose What You Bring

This is both a pro and a con. Moving from a large home to a tiny house can be freeing. You no longer have to worry about buying, cleaning, or managing all of the stuff that you had in your larger home. You probably need to get rid of most of it. While this can be a wonderful step in the direction of minimalism, if you have a large collection or many precious heirlooms, you could have trouble moving into a tiny house.

It Can Be Hard to Keep Clean

In a tiny house, every space is useful and every space is often used. If you have children or pets or you occasionally leave a mess, this is much more visible in a tiny house. You cannot just close the door and walk away from the mess. While minimizing possessions can help, you will need to think about keeping your tiny house tidy.

Your Days of Big Parties Could Be Over

If you love to entertain, this is certainly possible in a tiny house. However, to be realistic, you will probably need to forgo your beloved 20-person parties and look instead at the possibility of inviting a friend or two over for dinner. If you are moving from a tiny rental suite, this might not be a large change, but if you are downsizing from a larger home and you love to entertain, you will either need to do so outdoors or invite fewer people over.

Consider how accessible a tiny house will be to children and pets.

There Is Not a Lot of Room to Grow

If you are young and thinking about growing your family, it is certainly possible to have a family in a tiny house. However, you need to think carefully about how your growing family will fit safely into your house. For example, many tiny houses have elevated lofts for sleeping. Will your children be able to use these spaces safely? Ultimately, as the children grow, they might feel like they need more space to spread out.

Your ability to get pets could be challenged too. While some people live in tiny houses with a dog or a cat, if you love Great Danes and plan to place your tiny house in the city where there is not a lot of room to run around, your dog could be less than pleased. If you do not have that indoors, you could choose to live in a place where you have a lot of outdoor space where the kids and animals can play.

If you want to sell your tiny home because you have outgrown it, know that it could be more difficult to sell your unorthodox home.

Watch Zoning Bylaws

Before you build or buy a tiny house, you need to consider where you will put it. If you are buying one that is installed permanently on a piece of land, you do not need to do anything unusual. However, if you are buying a house on wheels and plan to park it in someone's parking stall or if you are building one in a friend's yard, you will need to look at local regulations that govern mobile or tiny homes. You may find that the greatest challenge is finding a place where you will be allowed to park your tiny home. This is because there are zoning regulations that set a minimum size for dwellings.

At Open For Homes, we want you to find the best home for your family. We are here to help support that search. Visit the blog at Open For Homes and see how we can help you buy and sell your home.