The Tiny House Reality

Another tiny house was stolen! This tiny house was on a foundation even, but unfortunately, too tempting for thieves to load it onto a truck and haul it away quickly and efficiently. It was found ten miles away slightly damaged with most of the owner's belongings missing. Can you imagine coming home from work and your whole house is missing?? The is the second tiny house theft. The first one was Jessica and Casey Friday's house. You can read about why they have given up on their tiny house dream HERE and their previous posts give a rather depressing yet detailed account of the theft. They pose some serious considerations, negatives not usually discussed on most tiny home websites and blogs.

 

I'm having second thoughts about building a tiny house on wheels. First, there is no place to park one. I have been visiting building code offices and most zoning regulations restrict their use even on private land, most RV parks forbid custom-built trailers as they want a uniform look, and park it in the country on land is just asking for trouble unless you plan to stay home 24/7 or it'll tempt your trailer trashy neighbors to make off with it. There is only one tiny house community that I know of called Lemon Cove Village located in California that accommodates tiny houses. Other communities professing to support tiny houses have restrictions that force you to nearly dismantle the tiny house to make it more compliant to codes. In time, tiny house living won't be so difficult. I believe they are the future and the movement is gaining in popularity and momentum. Someday....

 

Although I still want to downsize, I wonder if 100 square feet is enough breathing space. That's not enough private air to protect one from outside contaminants should the outside air become compromised. That is a huge advantage to my large house - if the air stinks outside I can go inside and with the doors and windows closed and be fairly safe. If one room needs remodeling with the use of toxic materials, I can seal it off and live in the rest of the house. Can't do that with a one room tiny house. I have also heard about some of the disadvantages of tiny houses such as frozen pipes, drainage/plumbing issues, and condensation causing mold due to inadequate ventilation of a small air space. 

 

I'm also having second thoughts about building a tiny house on my own. It sounds like a huge, stressful nightmare. Small construction projects cause me to whine and complain constantly. Do I want to invest all that time and money into so much frustration and misery? I'm not interested in paying for one already built as they can be very expensive. I fear this has been another example of me being irrational. Money-saving schemes make me irrational. The consequence of poverty.

 

I haven't given up on downsizing, but I'm thinking 400-700 square feet might be more comfortable. Unfortunately, small houses for sale are not that easy to find. I'm still looking and considering options.



 

Here's a great clip from Portlandia on microliving: