~ WELCOME TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING REVOLUTION ~

In a world that seeks to serve consumers who exalt anything (and everything) jumbo-sized, it is quite astonishing to observe the emergence of a real estate trend of such tiny proportions. Beyond the fact that tiny living is a cost-reducing unique idea, the Tiny House movement resembles that of a social movement too.

The Tiny House concept (aka the compact house, the mini house, the micro house, and the little house) has inadvertently re-awakened the time-honored philosophy of minimalist living. A minimalist lifestyle is clutter-free living with an objective to have more freedom by choosing to live more cost effectively. The ultimate goal is to de-clutter your life so you can de-clutter your mind.

Those embracing the Tiny Home concept, do so for a variety of reasons. In general, supporters of the Tiny Home revolution understand that these deeply downsized dwellings are economic and environmental-friendly. The minimalist lifestyle reassesses your priorities and gives you a chance to find the time and freedom to do what you love. However, like everything else, it is not for everyone. To give a Tiny Home’s square footage some perspective; an American home generally has a floor plan of around 2,600 square feet. Typical Tiny Home floor plans average between 100 and 500 square feet.

2 Ways to Build a Tiny House

1. A Tiny House can be built on a concrete slab foundation.
2. Built them upon a trailer to allow for unobstructed freedom. Think of Tiny Houses as a newer, hipper way to meet the needs of what was once known as the RV crowd.

Tiny houses foster, promote and encourage innovation, efficiency and creativity.

Those who have already begun to downsize their world, find a variety of benefits pop up quite quickly, because:

• A Tiny Home takes less time to clean.
• A Tiny Home requires less maintenance.
• A well-designed Tiny Home helps organize your life.
• The monthly bills for a smaller floor plan are significantly less expensive than traditional home sizes.
• A Tiny Home is comfy and easy to manage.
• A Tiny Home is eco-friendly, and lowers the carbon footprint of the owner.

The Tiny Home Investment

The Tiny Home marketplace, from an investment perspective, is still in its infancy. It is still anybody’s guess where it will go. Though, interestingly enough, this latest concept seems to have found a viable way to repurpose unused land. Unexpectedly, and maybe with a little luck in timing, the Tiny Home movement has discovered a slice of the real estate market previously undetected. And that, for investment purposes, is really good news.

Tiny Home Income Properties

Anyway you look at it, these cozy, cute and hospitable Tiny Homes have a found a niche market based on consumer needs that seem to be evolving. This situation is what investors’ dream of – a real estate venture with reasonable outlays to meet a hungry slice of the real estate market.

Leasing homes, be it nightly, monthly or yearly, is easily accomplished through clever websites dedicated to introducing renters to available Tiny Home rentals across the U.S. and abroad. From a landlord’s perspective, finding renters should be no problem if you:

• Price the property properly
• Offer a comfortable and well kept rental unit
• Provide value

Check out these Tiny Home investment ideas:

For those investors who have property with land to spare, build a Tiny House on a foundation (i.e. not a mobile Tiny House) in your backyard. This rental unit will be situated in a place where you can keep a watchful eye without needing to bother the tenants. This rental unit could easily generate a steady income stream all year. Rent it to your in-laws, long term tenants, or college student who are home for their summer holiday.

A Tiny House is often used for short-term rentals as well; think of the motel/hotel business model. As the owner of the Tiny House you control how often, or seldom, you wish to rent it.

Another slice of the Tiny House marketplace is to rent to those who are considering downsizing, but want a trial run of navigating a Tiny House living adventure, without making a long-term commitment.

Finally, a Tiny House in your backyard can be used as an office – an office that comes with a legitimate tax write-off. A backyard tiny office reduces costs (less wear and tear on autos), and avoids frustrating traffic (reduces anxiety and stress).

Where are the Tiny Houses?

Tiny Houses can be found from shore to shore, mountain to mountain, and across the globe. Here are two Tiny House communities making a go of the Tiny House movement.

Matlacha, Florida

On the beautiful gulf shores of Southwest Florida is the tiny fishing village of Matlacha, Florida. Matlacha has 677 residents (US Census 2010) who share 2/10 of 1 square mile with galleries, boutiques and beach cottages. Matlacha, Florida has been nicknamed the ‘Key West of the North,’ which describes why it’s an ideal location to join the Tiny House movement.

Matlacha residents play in and around the Gulf of Mexico. The many expensive homes, while quite impressive, actually share the same awesome sunsets with a nearby RV park that is currently being converted to a Tiny House nook in the funky fishing village. Earlier this year, the first Tiny House village opened officially for business. With land so limited in the hip vibe of Matlacha, real estate prices have risen to reflect the increase in land demand. Even rentals are becoming difficult to find.

Rentals in Matlacha

SOURCE: https://www.trulia.com/real_estate/Matlacha-Florida/market-trends/

Tiny Houses have found a fan base for those who reside in Matlacha and have no intention of moving their Tiny House. As such, these Tiny Houses are built upon Tiny House foundations, and are built to meet standard hurricane-building codes. Tiny Houses affixed to permanent foundations are tough enough to withstand severe weather because of its construction and weather resistant siding.

Portland, Oregon

Another Tiny House idea can be found on the Northwest shores of the United States, where the climate couldn’t be more different than Matlacha’s tropical vibe. In an unpretentious lot in Northeast Portland is a cutting edge Tiny House innovation – a tiny house hotel . It has staked the claim that it is the first of its kind. The hotel is comprised of six Tiny Houses. They combine to create the first Tiny House hotel with six separate livings areas – each with a kitchen, bathroom, sleeping accommodations and most of the creature comforts we have all come to expect.

Tiny Houses Support Sustainable Development

Sustainable development is a building principle that meets the needs and objectives of human development, while at the same time ensuring that the earth’s ecosystems continue to provide the resources needed for the maintenance of society in general.

Essentially, the Tiny House movement’s intention is to build Tiny Houses that are environmentally friendly and echo a support of sustainable development. This socially conscious endeavor encourages composting, solar power energy, and an energy efficient kitchen. Tiny House are also constructed with full-size toilets and sinks.

Logic dictates that a home with 2000 square feet would use 5x the amount of energy of a Tiny House with 400 square feet. Tiny Houses are built with energy efficiency practices and even outperform regular-sized houses built with widely accepted efficient building practices.

A Tiny House requires less land, a limited resource no matter how you slice it. Remember, a traditional sized home will always have a larger carbon footprint than a Tiny House, even if the larger home is a green home.

The Take-Away

The tiny house movement is a socially responsible movement. Your imagination is given free reign to create the Tiny House that says – YOU! The Tiny House movement is everyone’s chance to take a personal stand on planetary/climate concerns, while focusing on your own personal life objectives.

Give a Tiny House a try to see if this socially conscious lifestyle blends with your personal style. There is probably a Tiny House to rent; much closer than you think.