3 Reasons I Want to Build a Small Home

The Shack 

There are many reasons to build or live in a very small home. There are as many different reasons for living tiny as there are people who are doing it. The three main reasons I want to build small are: lower cost, less clutter, and lower negative impact on the environment.

Over the decades, I've always tended to live in smaller spaces and I guess as a result, I am more accustomed to smaller spaces. As an adult, I've only lived in two "large" homes (meaning, over 1,400 sq ft).  Over my lifetime, the American Dream seemed to be that big house with the picket fence. So I felt a little strange about admiring and dreaming about the small homes.  

Fortunately, somewhere along the way I decided to live my dreams - whether it was popular or not. And somewhere along the way, small homes became the America Dream for more people.

This is being written during the process of planning for retiring off-grid. Or being on-grid but as self-sustainable as I am able to be. I have purchased my land with a currently off-grid, dry, hunting cabin that I lovingly call The Shack. 

This is more about the three reasons I am planning on building small.

1. Low Cost - Moving Toward Debt-Free Living

Please be clear that I'm not knocking people who live in large homes with large price tags. There are many reasons to live in a large home and a lot of people dream of living in a large home. And I think everyone should live their own dream. Some people choose to buy a large home in a desirable area as a retirement investment. I think that's a fantastic idea for some people. But that's not for me. 

My plan had been to pay off the land, then pay cash as I go to make the improvements; the septic, water, then the house.  My plan was to do this over years and be debt-free when I retire. My idea of the American Dream is to retire with no debt and very low monthly bills. A very small (or no) mortgage would help this happen.

As time goes on, and my desire to be there sooner as opposed to later, my plans change. I may not get up there debt-free, but I still want my debt to be as low as possible.

I am not able or willing to remodel or build my own home. So I'll hire someone. That will increase the cost. But even so, building a modest home at less than 800 square feet carries a much lower price tag than building a large home.

The current house plan I have in mind is approximately 640 sq. feet. If it costs $100 per square foot, my 640 sq. ft. home would cost $64,000 while a 1400 sq. ft. home would cost 140,000. I really like the difference in those price tags!

2. Preventing the Clutter and Excessive Consumerism

Oh my gosh, I am my mother's daughter. She was a hoarder. And probably could have been a guest on the hoarder tv series.  I'm not quite that bad. But I easily could be. And living in large spaces only invites buying A LOT of things. 

I like to have things. But I think overall, Americans overdo it in regards to having "stuff". I personally want to live in a small space in order to help keep that excess consumerism from setting it. I don't want to buy a bunch of things I'll use once or twice then have to make room to store for the rest of my life.

I'm certainly not a minimalist. But having less things makes me happier than having a literal ton of things.


Reduced Time Spent Cleaning?

Related to the topic of clutter, some tiny-home advocates report that the time spent cleaning a tiny home is significantly reduced.  I'm not completely sure that I buy into that argument 100%.  Yes, it takes less time to mop a kitchen floor that measures 6 x 10 than it took to mop my old house kitchen that probably measured 10 x 14 (or larger. It was a HUGE country kitchen). But, I think that keeping everything in it's place in a small home, with multiple use spaces, is also time-consuming.

For example, when camping at The Shack, I get all of my bedding out of the mouse-proof containers and make my bed. Then I put the bedding away, into the storage containers. Because where my bed is made is also my "living room" floor. Every time you have a "multiple use" space and have to spend time storing things away, it takes some time. 

So I think the reduced time for cleaning may or may not be true depending on the area. If there isn't an overabundance of things that need to be stored, getting them out and putting them away each day won't be as time consuming. 

3. Low Environmental Impact 

When people refer to reducing the environmental impact, they are usually referring to having a small carbon footprint. 

"A carbon footprint is historically defined as the total emissions caused by an individual, event, organisation, or product, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalent" - wikipedia

My desire to live in a really small home has to do, in large part, with a desire to keep heating/cooling/energy costs and usage as small as possible. Reducing that carbon footprint. I previously owned an older, 1,400+ square foot home and cringed at how much energy it cost to keep that place remotely close to comfortable.

I also think of low environmental impact in the aspect of visual pollution. Personally, I don't like seeing the farm land that was turned into a subdivision of 100 homes. I don't like seeing forests cut down to make way for manicured yards.  Again, I'm not insulting people whose dreams include living in those situations. Live your dreams and love it. Don't try to please anyone other than yourself. However, it's not for me. Those sights are usually visual pollution to me. As are homes that are built on the top of a mountain or ridge and can be seen plainly from the valley below.

My plan to build a small home in place of The Shack has a lot to do with not interrupting the view from below. If I plan this right, my small home will be invisible from the valley below and that thought makes me happy.  I want the neighbors to gaze upon my trees - not upon my house.

Related Small Home Links:

Small home plans

The Big Book of Small Homes Plans is FULL of awesome home plans under 1,200 sq. ft. This book has given me many great ideas for the inside layout options and exterior options.

Lancaster Cabins

Are you interested in a tiny house on wheels or a park model? I toured Keystone Kabins (now named Lancaster Cabins) and LOVED, loved, loved those cabins. If my land was unrestricted, one of these cabins would already be parked there. They are a must-see for tiny home lovers. 

The Shack - A Quick Peek

And here is a quick peek (and a first video attempt) of the inside of The Shack during the before stage. 

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