By Mary Lynne Gibbs • 2018 Director
When my daughter Kelly shared her interest with me to own a tiny house, I thought, “what was she thinking?” Why would someone have that desire and was this a fad? She explained how these homes are more environmentally friendly and offer a simplified lifestyle. As I began to educate myself about this whole tiny home craze, I decided to do some research on this concept and discovered there were several factors that folks take into consideration when looking at this as their best housing option. Footprints, efficiency and affordability are top on the list of benefits to buyers. Having a smaller footprint will in fact allow one to be more conscious in acquiring items that are not necessary and become more efficient in living a minimal lifestyle. Keeping in mind the size of the space will lead to lower utility bills when it comes to heating and cooling which will give way to freeing up financial assets. Investing in a home versus renting is always a smart option and a small house will give an affordable pride of homeownership.
Thinking this is just a generational thing? Think again. As I developed conversations with other fellow REALTORS, I discovered it was a desire of folks from every generation. A colleague shared with me this photo of what she described as a “Granny Flat.” It is a small French 17th Century stone cottage. She targets tiny houses as a part of her marketing plan on social media.
Tiny House Hunters on HGTV have several episodes that offer a wide variety of styles from contemporary to rustic. They also show the value of being mobile with an ability to move easily.
Mobile Loaves & Fishes’ Community First Village has a 27-acre master-planned community for transforming and supporting our homeless men and women. They provide 140 micro homes to their residents offering a hand up as they transition back into society. What an impactful cause and generous concept.
Texas has been ranked at the top of the “Best Places to Build A Tiny House” list. Austin specifically is home to Constellation ATX which features over 100 lots for tiny homes, Village Farm is slated to have 150 home lots and Kyle has a tiny home project tentatively named Stage Coach coming to the area with 400 lots. Based on the many developing communities nearby it is a good indication that these housing options are a desire of our consumers in the real estate industry and seem to be the latest trend and not fad.
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