The joys of living in a small home.
For many people I know, a big house to call their own sure sounds like the ultimate dream. Think of all that wonderful space and room and potential to do whatever you want in that space. But there are obvious downsides to having a huge house: number one on the list is the maintenance cost. Granted, you may be able to afford your house and even the ongoing property taxes you need to pay each year — but what a lot of homeowners forget are those pesky maintenance and repair costs that they would be committed to paying, month in and month out. This is what caught a lot of people unawares during the latest real estate downtrend and which may have contributed to many a foreclosure; many homeowners grossly underestimated the expenses involved in maintaining a home.
Sometime ago, I wrote an article asking the question: would you be willing to live in a small house? In this post, I wrote down the benefits of owning a more modest abode. With such a house:
- Your health could improve, possibly because you’d be forced to do more things outside of the house. A small house encourages you to live a less sedentary lifestyle.
- You can live more simply since you’ll have less room for stuff.
- You’ll cut your housing costs significantly!
- You’ll worry less and expend less effort maintaining your home.
Just imagine how much you’d save on your home’s upkeep and insurance requirements once you downsize! You can ask yourself: do you really need all that stuff? If the answer is no — and you promise that you won’t hyperventilate if you let go of your video game collection — then maybe you should check out this alternative way of living. For some, living small is living well. You may want to see for yourself just how well it works for this one guy! I found this video of one happy resident who’s managed to squeeze himself comfortably into 96 square feet of space:
From the video:
“Excess is not necessarily a luxury, it’s really a burden — it’s a liability. People are living in 4,000 and 6,000 square foot debtors’ prisons, and they spend 30 years, sometimes more, paying for more stuff and space than they really need.”
96 square feet may be a little extreme, but it shows us that with a little resourcefulness, even living this way is possible! I also give this story an additional vote because the guy in the video mentioned Imelda Marcos’ shoes. 
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{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Reminds me of the way space is utilized on a boat, very wisely!
John DeFlumeri Jr
I have always lived in apartments so I feel comfortable in small houses. But relatives and friends who do live out in the country in huge houses swear that they would never move in to smaller houses if they can help it.
Yes, it can be done! It’s just a matter of being efficient with the space. It’s being done everyday in cities like New York. Another disadvantage of living in a big house is you don’t really feel close with your family. Sometimes, there will be some days when you don’t see a family member at all.
Thanks for the link and taking part in the festival of frugality!
Happy New Year!
-Austin @ Foreigner’s Finances
This is the green and living frugal movements to the extreme! That’s not living in a house that’s living in a trailer.
I DO agree with the idea people are living in too big of a house. Do you really need a 6000 sq ft for a house? No. But a 96 sq ft? Come on! It comes a point where all the effort you have to do in order to live that amount of space becomes downright dumb. If you value your time more, you would at least live in a 500-1000 sq ft house. Especially if you have kids! Even the guy when he got married decided to build a 500 sq ft house. Hope he doesn’t have a second child! Children are the usual primary factor in why you need a bigger house. I certainly was more than happy with my 1100 sq ft condo it was enough space for me and at the time a roommate. I would have kept that condo and not upgrade Now married with 2 children and 1 more on the way? A 1100 sq ft might be possible, but why would anyone want the children’s stuff in that small of a condo?
As I said, 96 square feet is extreme… but someone’s living this way! I agree that if you have kids, then you have to be practical — it doesn’t make sense to subject your entire family to the inconveniences of a tiny home, if you can afford to scale up. I simply wanted to discuss this video as “a point to ponder”. I personally live in what is considered a medium to large sized house because I have a fairly large household of 5 people (with guests living with us often throughout the year); and I do appreciate all the space it affords. But if push comes to shove, I wouldn’t think twice to downsize.
There’s something about the freedom of not having to be a slave to your house (although I do enjoy the amenities of a larger home).
While I’ve ended up in a four bedroom house – needed a place for all my stuff – when I think back one of my favorite places I’ve lived was a room in a house I shared with a bunch of roommates. It was just like a ship – with everything I needed – desk, bookcases, entertainment center and bed. I loved it so the tiny house movement makes a lot of sense to me.
It would be great if America went back to building more modest houses. The cost of land can make it difficult but changes in zoning laws to allow smaller houses to be clustered on a not-so-big lot could help.
Liz
Great video! Quality over quantity is a great motto that can be applied to a lot of other things as well. As far as large houses go, don’t forget all the effort it takes to clean them – especially when there are kids involved!
Universities and Colleges should invest and get students residences like these. This will reduce the debt by a huge amount.