Less clutter
By moving into a smaller home, whether it be tiny or smaller than your average New Zealand house, you’ll need to declutter and get rid of some of the stuff you may have accumulated over the years that you probably don’t actually need. That ‘stuff’ can be gifted, sold, swapped or recycled, which means someone else gets to enjoy it in its current form or upcycled. Win-win. We are such a consumer society that create so much waste, when in fact, it’s not hard to get rid of our junk that’s someone else’s treasure.
More Disposable income
Living in a tiny house means you should have less debt than if you were to live in a normal house. Less debt = more disposable income to do the stuff that matters to you. As they say Cash is King so I can’t see any downside to having more of it in your pocket. Because the house is smaller, it will be easier and cost less to decorate.
More Freedom
More disposable cash = more freedom to do what you want to do. Maybe it’s quitting your current job which you don’t like and taking the plunge into a new industry or going studying. Maybe it’s working part time and filling the rest of your time with fun activities. Who knows? At the end of the day, it means you’ve got the flexibility to do what you want. It gives you more time too because you’ll spend less time cleaning and tidying up.
Transportable
Whether your tiny house is on wheels or your small home is transportable with a hiab truck, this screams more freedom! Travel the country with the luxury of sleeping in your own home every night: bliss. Nothing quite like sleeping in your own bed yet discovering the beautiful places this country has to offer.
Sustainable
Having a smaller home means you make a smaller impact on the world around us. You can be as eco-friendly as you like. Some go totally off grid with composting toilet, rainwater catchment, solar or wind power. While others stay connected to the grid and use council services. Even then, smaller homes use less energy to heat and cool the air. Even though you’ll still get a power bill, it won’t be anywhere near what a 150m2+ house would use for example.
Easier to upgrade
Having a smaller foot print, you will be in a position to upgrade materials and fittings to suit your tastes and lifestyle requirements. Time to look at Houzz, Pinterest and NZ Home and Garden to get some cool ideas and make the space your own.
Resale value
Times are changing and more people are looking to smaller homes. Sure there will always people who want to live in mansions and that’s totally cool. If we were all the same, then it would be a pretty boring affair.
Whether it’s people who’s kids have flown the nest, first time home buyers who want to get in the market, property investors who want to add it to an existing property or parents who want their adult kids to live close by but not be at home anymore, there will always be someone interested in smaller homes. If those smaller homes are affordable (and I’m not talking about the $600k figure they talked about on the News a few weeks back!), there will always be demand because you’re talking to a larger pool of potential buyers.
Prefab is NOT a dirty word
There’s been plenty of talk lately about modular, prefabricated houses with everyone having an opinion, both good and bad. Personally, I don’t see the big hooha about it. It’s nothing new. Prefabrication has been around for decades and is very common in Europe. It’s about time we catch up.
