What is the Tiny House Movement?

Nowadays, houses are bigger than they were even a generation ago, while families are smaller. We tend to fill the space we have with stuff and yet that doesn’t necessarily mean it feels more like home. 

However, more and more people are choosing to have a garden to play in and grow vegetables over building a house right up to the fence line. They realise they’re happier and healthier with less clutter and more space for time in nature together. Add financial freedom and easier home maintenance and you’ve got the formula for the Tiny House movement. 

Tiny Houses are attractive to different people for different reasons – from stunning designs to living with less clutter and being financially better off.

People from all walks of life are drawn to Tiny Houses and this architectural and social movement that encourages living a simpler life in a smaller space is called the Tiny House Movement.

“The Tiny House Movement is both an architectural and social movement that embraces the concept of minimalism, specifically living a simpler life in a smaller space.” 

Tiny Living Life Journal

How did the Tiny House Movement develop?

Back in the 1930s during the Depression living in small houses was a necessary step for many families out of work. Interestingly, some families chose to stay living tiny even after the economy picked up.

In the US in the 1970s there was a trend towards moving back to the land and becoming self-sufficient. 

And in the 1990s small space design took off, creating stunning, functional living spaces.

Over time council regulations, finance companies and insurance agencies have all aligned to the trend they can’t ignore called the Tiny House movement. This makes it even easier for more people to own their own home!

The Blogging and social media worlds exploded in the 2000s and with it the sharing of Tiny House designs and lifestyles which attracted more people to the movement. 

Watch this episode of Living Big in a Tiny House featuring our popular Teewah model and you’ll see why living tiny is so appealing:

Tiny houses often have off-grid electricity, rainwater tanks and composting toilets. But that doesn’t mean they’re primitive. Our Tiny Houses are designed for full time living with modern appliances and appealing layout. 

Why are people joining the tiny house movement?

Affordable housing built in less than two months with low environmental footprint makes Tiny House living a great solution.  

Living tiny means different things to different people but there are some common elements that unite in the Tiny House movement. A less cluttered life that prioritises relationships is among the top reasons why people choose to create their Tiny House lifestyle. 

After 4 years of building tiny houses in Australia and dealing on a daily basis with people willing to transition to the tiny lifestyle, we can say that their motivation normally falls into three different aspects:

Financial Freedom

Tiny living offers considerable financial benefits. 

As a start and being the most obvious savings is the cost of the home itself. Despite costing less that some cars we see around, a properly built tiny house has the same quality of conventional homes and can provide housing for decades.

Because of the small size, most utilities and maintenance costs such as electrical and gas are less as well when compared to a conventional home.

For example, in this Instagram post below, our customers Amy and Greg from @life_done_simple give us a look into their monthly bills for tiny living compared to what it used to be when living in a traditional home. Scroll to the side and to see how much they are saving.

View this post on Instagram

Attempt 2 at giving you a look into our monthly bills for tiny living vs. our traditional home (the last post was difficult to read). This is not an exhaustive list of all living expenses & we still have costs for groceries, insurances & mobiles etc. Any questions? Pop them below & I’ll do my best to answer you 👇 #budget #debtfreejourney ##tinyhouse #tinyhome #tinyliving #thow #minimalism #inspiring #tinyhouseonwheels

A post shared by 🌻 life done simple 🌻 (@life_done_simple) on Jun 7, 2020 at 5:25am PDT

There are also financial benefits from the reduced consumption that results from downsizing. Having less space naturally drives you towards a more minimalist lifestyle, resulting in less shopping and buying.

Downsizing and simplification

Some people just want to simplify life and live more with less and living tiny means exactly that.

With downsizing comes less thinking about material belongings, less time upgrading things, less maintenance and more time to do things that actually matter to you.

Environmental benefits

When building a tiny house it is easy to go completely off-grid.

Using fewer utilities not only saves a lot of money but also has less impact on the environment.

Now that you know what the Tiny House Movement is all about, what do you like about the Tiny House lifestyle? We’d love to hear from you, comment below.