What’s it like to live in a tiny house for one year? It seems to be the common question our family gets asked these days!
A year ago, we moved to our 80-acre homestead in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to chase our dreams, and what an adventure it has been! We moved out of our suburban 2,300 square foot ranch-style home to a 300 square foot tiny house we built ourselves as a new family of three.
Over the course of this last year, we’ve added on to our tiny house, making it about 600 square feet, and also expanded our family by one more member! Plus, we hope for more children in the future as well, so our home will likely expand again.
Living in a tiny house has been glamorized online over the past years. But do we actually enjoy it? Is it our long-term plan? What’s it like? What are the pros and cons?
We want to answer all your questions about living in a tiny house for one year as a family of three, and now four!
Let’s check it out…
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Our Tiny House Set-Up
Our original tiny house before we added on to it is about 14 feet by 14 feet with a loft about two-thirds the size. We add on a room about 14 feet by 16 feet, part of it being a sunroom area.
The main level has a dining table, kitchen, bathroom, and area for a wood stove. The loft has our king bed, our daughter’s crib, and a dresser. The addition has a lofted bed, a living room, our washer and dryer, a wood pellet stove, and shelving for storage. It also has my husband’s office, in a sunroom portion of it.
It has everything we need, and honestly, we don’t feel squished in here, even throughout the long winter months.
But as our family grows and our homestead expands, our needs change. I can’t tell you how many times we have rearranged things since we have moved in! One thing we are in need of soon is a new bathroom, a root cellar or pantry storage, and probably another bedroom or lofted bed area. Expanding our tiny house is simply a matter of timing and saving up for it!
I should also mention that we have a room in our barn for our long-term storage and items we don’t use every day. This includes memory bins, off-season sporting equipment, off-season clothing and baby clothes, extra sheets and blankets, and other appliances like my sewing machine and printer.
It would be a lot harder to live in our tiny house if it was crowded with things we don’t use on a daily basis!
Related Posts: Can You Live In A Tiny House With A Baby? Yes, Here’s How We Do It!
The Pros Of Living In A Tiny House For One Year
Living in our tiny house for a full year has truly been wonderful! And I mean that! Both my husband and I simply love being in a house that was built specifically for our needs and wants. But, I know it’s not for everyone.
It causes us to save money since we can’t buy things that don’t fit in our house or storage room in the barn. We live a very minimal lifestyle because of our tiny house, and as a mom I love it! There is less to manage, less to keep track of, and everything has a place!
We also save money on the cost of our mortgage (and utilities!) and will be debt-free in only a few years – the driving force behind the decision to live in a tiny house and not built a brand new house on our property! My husband and I value being debt-free more than having extra luxuries in life, like a big house and fancy furniture inside of it.
Another positive aspect is that there is less to clean. However, I will say that everything does become a more high traffic area, so instead of doing a lot of deep cleaning on a large house, I do more quick tidies and wipe downs throughout the day.
We also love that our tiny house keeps our family so close together. There are simply no secrets, no hiding things, and no way for anyone to distance themselves for too long. When my husband and I have a disagreement, we can’t just ignore the other person because you are still seeing them as you walk through the house.
Of course, we sometimes take time away from each other outside or in the barn to cool down, but we have found that it causes us to resolve our differences more quickly and we simply can’t stay mad for too long! That is what comes with living in a tiny house for one year.
Related Post: 5 Genius Space Saving Hacks For Small Spaces In Your Tiny House
The Cos Of Tiny House Living
While we do love living in close quarters, there are some downsides to it as well. For example, we enjoy being close all the time because it helps keep our relationships strong; however, sometimes we lack privacy and time to recharge apart.
Thankfully we have a barn and also the great outdoors to really expand our “living quarters” when those moments become necessary!
While we do have money on bills like electricity, water, and heat, it can also be a problem area. For our water, we have two small hot water tanks, so sometimes we have to time our showers or when we wash the dishes to make sure we don’t run out, creating an extra hassle.
For our heat, as soon as anyone opens a door in the winter, all the cold air floods in, and the whole house becomes cold, not just one small entryway or room. And for the electricity, often we still end up paying the same with using our barn throughout the day as well to get tasks done.
Another con would be a lack of space at times. While we love living a minimalist lifestyle, sometimes it feels like we just don’t have enough room. This rarely happens but seems to be happening a bit more as our family grows.
We have a smaller fridge and pantry area, and sometimes it can be like playing Tetris to fit all the groceries in our tiny house. It’s also going to be hard once I start preserving more garden produce this summer. We will need a root cellar soon to solve this issue!
Related Post: The 5 Best Tiny House Crib Options For Small Spaces This Year
Also, as I prepare for a home birth with my second baby, for example, it is hard to find an area to keep all the homebirth supplies. We have to get creative, and it isn’t the more convenient, but we make it work.
Especially after living in a tiny house for one year, we have found ways to make things function for dual purposes to save space.
Lastly, it is more difficult to host friends and family over. While we still do it, it is tight and awkward at times. We love having outdoor parties and bonfires still but, in the winter, it would be nice to have a bit more space at times to invite more guests over.
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Future Plans For Our Tiny House
Honestly, after living in a tiny house for one year we have to say that we wouldn’t change it at all! Now, will our opinion change when we have lots of little children running around inside and not just one toddler? Perhaps.
But, that’s why we have already considered expanding our tiny house. Adding on another bedroom or bathroom would really not be that difficult, or even a rec room or basement area. So, as our family grows, so does our tiny house.
And that’s essentially what we love most about it. It fits our needs, it grows with our family, and it functions well for us! Plus we know all the ins and outs of it.
Living in a tiny house for one year has been fun, but not always glamorous. Overall, we enjoy it and plan to live in a tiny house long-term!
What are your thoughts on tiny house living? Leave a comment below and I’d love to answer any questions you have for me!
Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma
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