How to Find the Simple Joys in Downsizing to a Tiny House

You have too much stuff and a lot of space begging to be filled with more clutter. You crave simplicity, a more minimal way of living, and something tiny. Are you considering downsizing to a tiny house?

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It can feel like the light at the end of a 3,000-square-foot tunnel. It’s a life-changing commitment to minimalism.

The market for tiny homes is expected to grow by 4.88% annually between 2022 and 2027, with North America expected to contribute 57% of growth in tiny homes worldwide by 2027. 

Benefits and Drawbacks of Downsizing to a Tiny House

Let’s be honest: Americans are not racing to abandon the comforts of big living. The average U.S. home takes up more than 2,400 square feet, and only 1% of homes purchased are 1,000 square feet or less.

But if you want to break free from the chains of single-use appliances and the obligations of big house living, tiny houses make life simpler and even a little less daunting.

Perks of Tiny Home Living

• You’ll save money: Downsizing means less upkeep, fewer repairs, fewer utilities, less cleaning, and no mortgage payments. Big houses cost big money, and when you say goodbye to the square footage, you also say goodbye to the costs of filling and maintaining that space. A tiny home has a price tag of anywhere from $20,000 to $80,000, depending on if you go DIY or purchase one outright. (The median home price in the U.S. is $412,000.)
• Kinder to the environment: Beyond money, a tiny home can give you a tiny carbon footprint. The average American consumes an average of 889 kWh of electricity per month. Compare that to a tiny home, which consumes 85.2 kWh monthly. The average home releases about 28,000 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere yearly, while a tiny home releases just 2,000 pounds annually.

Be Prepared to Make Sacrifices

However, there are downfalls to extreme downsizing. As the name implies, tiny homes are incredibly small and not always feasible for families or people who require a lot of space or storage.

• You can’t have it all. Realize that you’ll have to make serious sacrifices. You may not be able to have a dishwasher or a clothes dryer. You can’t have a king-sized bed or a walk-in closet. You may not have indoor plumbing or personal space. Entertaining will likely be a challenge.
• Local zoning regulations can throw a wrench in your plans. Zoning regulations have not necessarily caught up with the movement. Many communities are not yet tiny-home friendly, and you are at the whim of local laws.
• Tiny homes don’t have as much bang for your buck as you think. According to Forbes, tiny living can cost between $200 to $400 per square foot. Depending on where you live, that can be hefty. Sometimes, micro apartments, carriage houses, RVs, and tiny homes are not a lifestyle choice. They are all that people can afford, especially in expensive communities.

You’re Ready to Downsize to a Tiny Home, Now What?

“The tiny life doesn’t involve packing 2,000 square feet of stuff into a 200 square foot structure. It is about downsizing your material so you can downsize your requirements,” says Andrew Odom, a writer who adopted the tiny living lifestyle.

According to Alex Lehr, a top-five agent in Redwood City, CA, the most challenging part about downsizing is that it’s an emotional process.

“The majority of it is sorting, physically and emotionally,” he explains. You’re not just tossing out random stuff but objects with memories attached to them.

“That’s what slows down the process,” he says. “Reliving memories.”

Take stock of what you have. Create an inventory so you can see redundancies and inefficiencies. You can also start making notes on what you currently don’t use and things that can be replaced with smaller or multi-use items.

Learning how to declutter effectively is essential.

Fitting your wardrobe into a tiny home is a big challenge for many who have made this transition. If you want to decrease the size of your closet, try Project 333, a minimalist fashion challenge that asks people to wear just 33 items over three months. The stuff you don’t wear? Donate it.

Or give yourself a capsule wardrobe, 20 to 40 flexible and timeless items that can be mixed and matched.

Insider Downsizing Tips Straight From Tiny House Dwellers

Tiny home dwellers love to document their lifestyle (there are dozens of tiny home blogs), so there is plenty of advice about downsizing and enjoying a little home life. We’ve pulled some handy tips and tricks from some of them.

• Think of your stuff in terms of two qualifications: Do you love it? Does it have a purpose?
• Go room by room: Prepare to say goodbye to everything in your formal dining room.
• Focus on priorities and needs instead of wants: Collectibles or knick-knacks must go. Focus on what you need to survive day to day.
• Have a packing party: The Minimalists developed this scheme to cut down on stuff: Pack up all your possessions. Make it fun, and have food and drinks. Make it an event. And then, over the next three weeks, unpack only what you need. After those 21 days, you know what’s a necessity and superfluous.
• Staying organized is key: With less space, staying on top of chores like dishes and laundry becomes paramount.
• Remember that downsizing never stops: When you live in a 300-square-foot home, shopping sprees and Costco runs are unrealistic.