How small would you go re Housing

carefullycautious

I have just read the thread about tiny houses and would love to know who would live in a smaller property if they could.

I know if I could live with like minded people in a quiet area I would give up my existing property in a flash.

I realise that most folks will be single or in couples but would love to know if you would live simply with fewer possessions if you could to enable you to save and be financially less shakled

geordie_joe

I lived in a large 3 bedroomed house, with three large gardens, from 1977 until 1998.

Then I moved into a 2 bedroomed flat for around 10 years, then around 2 years ago I moved into a small 1 bedroomed house.

I loved my flat, and now love my little house, but I did have to get rid of quite a bit of stuff when I moved into my little house.

I don't miss the stuff I got rid of, mostly furniture and rubbish kept just to fill drawers. Clothes I will never fit into again, things kept "just in case" that were not used for years.

The only thing I miss is the garden, my house doesn't have one. Apart from that, I am very happy in my little house.

Starrystarrynight

I've owned my little 1 bed house for almost 10 years now and, when my partner moved in with me, people were shocked we didn't buy somewhere bigger. We make it work between us, and make good use of storage at his workplace, we're not saddled with a massive mortgage, council tax is band A and our utility bills are manageable. I dread to think how much it must cost to buy and run big houses sometimes.

carefullycautious

Thankyou for your replies. Anyone else prefer living simply on a small scale?

Primrose

We live in a smallish 4 bedroomed house with a reasonable size garden and whilst I would happily declutter and get rid of a proportion of our possessions, I would go crazy if my OH and I were forced to live on top of each other with our different hobbies, interest and taste in TV programmes. I would also go crazy if I couldn't get out and grow vegetables and potter in the garden, so even if that means our outgoings are higher than they would be if we lived in a two bedroom flat, I'm happy to take the hit as long as we can still afford to live here.

Hermia

I live in a studio flat so definitely would not be prepared to go any smaller! At the moment when I cook I have to put all my ingredients in bowls on the floor 'cause I have no surfaces in the kitchen area! It really gets me down that I have absolutely no room for anything and that I can't move without falling over something (and I am not someone who has clutter).

I can't see the point in just having a huge house for the point of it though. I worked in America for a while when I was a student. I just remember all these people showing me around their enormous homes which had tons of rooms they didn't need because they didn't have loads of kids. They would love telling me how big the house was, but I couldn't see the point of it as they had to clean all these rooms they barely used and they seemed to have a lot of clutter.

I would just like a house that is just big enough for me. I don't want to spend my time cleaning and maintaining lots of rooms. I would just like a big enough kitchen and a spare bedroom really.

To be honest I don't think small houses would be a problem if architects put in lots of storage space and furniture stores made decent small furniture. When I was looking for sofas I was amazed how many of the big furniture stores had hardly any sofas suitable for flats. A friend of mine lives in Tokyo and said the small size of the flats doesn't matter as much because the furniture is so cleverly designed.

guineapig

Good thread!

The problem is most people aspire to buy the BIGGEST house they can afford.

It's a bit like cars in sofar as some ( not all) people see their house/car as a reflection of their status in life and thus wouldn't dream of choosing something small and practical because it wouldn't occur to them.

This is very sad. We have a good income( helped by being very frugal;)) and chose to live in a tiny bungalow. All dh's colleagues live in houses 2 or 3 times bigger than ours and have posher cars.

We have NO DEBT, we have savings and we can afford to turn up the heat in the Winter, which to me is very important.

I don't want to spend my life freezing or cleaning all day on the off chance some saddo is "impressed" by my house:p

There are benefits to living in a small house.

Quicker to clean
Cheap to heat at a level you WANT;)
Cheaper to carpet/furnish
More affordable to "do up"

No space for relatives to stay or kids who want to move back home LOL!

We LOVE our little house and although de-junking is a way of life and I have put my fantasy of a utility/laundry on hold, I wouldn't swap my house for a bigger one for anything!

carefullycautious

Guineapig you are on my wavelength. I have never got the status symbal mentality. I too live like you do except for finding my ideal small home.

On the utility front could you use a shed near to your bungalow that could have electrics fitted and maybe plumbing for cold water? I know someone who did this.

xanthe

I currently live in a 2 bed flat with my husband and 2 young children. I appreciate being green but ideally I would like a 3 bed house with a garden for my children to play in. As I have a boy and a girl I would prefer them to have a bedroom each. And if I have a garden then maybe I can get my lazy !!! to start growing some vegetables!

Oldernotwiser

I need the space for all my books!

It isn't really the size of the property that matters, it's the amount of storage. We now live in a little 2 bed house but it has a full,dry cellar, so masses of storage.

Jacey53

I live in a small one-bedroomed house too. I have enough space for me and my cat, and agree with other posters about the utility bills and council tax (band A).

I have good neighbours and I live in a pleasant area.

I am lucky that I have a reasonable sized garden with a shed.

I have far too many possessions, left over from when I lived in a larger property (years ago) but recently I decided that I do not intend to leave and have started to clear my excess.

I love my little house.