text: Observations Of Living In A Small House – The Tiny Life
  1:15 pm on January 19, 2011
  In a way I think tiny houses are elitist, but in a good way. I see the whole tiny house movement as a a few simple "guidelines for living".
  1) I don't need 500 – 1000 ft/sq per person to live comfortably
  1a) Provided the space I do have is used well.
  2) I don't want to spend (or can't afford) a $150,000 – $200,000 on a house
  3) I want to live in a house that is built with all the best methods and materials. Hardwood floors, granite counter tops, Lo-e windows, the works.
  4) Because of tennants 1a, and 3, Mobile and modular homes are out.
  So yeah, it is kinda snobbsh / elitist, but I don't think it is wrong to want to build a high quality house that you can afford. In this economy, and with land prices what they are Tiny houses are the ONLY houses that make sense bang for buck, even if their price per ft/sq is much higher than a "normal" house.
  4:56 pm on January 19, 2011
  The source material came from Ben Brown, on the PlaceShakers blog. You can see the whole post here:
  http://placeshakers.wordpress.com/2011/01/14/livin'-large-in-small-spaces-it-takes-a-town/
  2:56 am on January 20, 2011
  I'll I found that last paragraph sounded a bit elitist. There is very obviously a stigma against mobile homes here, but I think we should remember when it comes down to it that it is all a matter of taste, as well as economic means. I think everyone should build and live in the size and kind of house they what, built out of whatever matierials make sense to them, and I think its important not to stigmatize certain options.
  I pointed out that because it struck me as elitist, which I didn't quite like that I had initial thought. But at the same time, I think regardless of what materials you use, you should do so with an honest approach and pride in quality craftsmanship. I have been in trailer homes that were quite nice, but the owners took huge pride in the little $5-10 upgrades/details. They did those little upgrades with quality. For example one that jumps out to me was a person took a dresser they got for free, spruced it up and added it as a built in, it looked great.
  I think my big issue with trailers homes is that they are generally manufactured at a low quality. They are insulated really poorly and next to no design.
  8:13 pm on January 20, 2011
  Okay, it sounds eliteist. Still, I want a Tiny House. I currently live in a 2002 mobile home so I have firsthand knowledge here. Not only that but it's not the first mobile home I have lived in. My home is about 1200 square feet and we placed it on our 40 desert acres. It was much cheaper than a stick-built home and we needed that lower price enough that it meant home or no home to us.
  Our house has 6″ walls and vinyl, double paned windows. It's not a fancy home for sure and some of it could have been built better or stronger. Mainly the interior walls could have been 5/8″ drywall rather than 3/8″ which is it's biggest drawback.
  My daughter lives in a 3500 sq.ft. California home and after one of the doors fell off it's hinges my husband went around and replaced every possible variety and size of screws used to hang them with some good quality screws. They've had more problems with their home than we have with ours. Yep, you've got an eliteist attitude but frankly, I am designing my tiny home with all the nice little upgrades that are too expensive to put in a big home like my daughter's or too nice to have been put into my economy mobile home. It
  s kind of like the three bears – I want the one that's just right! If that makes an eliteist stance then I am there with you.
  10:38 am on January 21, 2011
  I like the concept of tiny homes. It would be nice to have one that's expandable. And why can't the quality of trailers be increased to make them more liveable?
  7:43 pm on February 8, 2011
  I would love to live in a tiny home – I love the look of the Katrina cottages. But, I think you have a point – the home needs to be in an area with other like-minded homes – there is no point putting a home like a Katrina cottage in with a lot of McMansions.
  Even though the cost of outfitting a Katrina home with high end finishes might make it more expensive (to begin with) than a more cheaply built larger home, you are still going to save money in the long run with lower utility bills, property taxes, maintenance and repairs etc.
  1:18 am on July 3, 2011
  Elitism might have something to do with it, but how I see it… It all has to do with opinions and preferences. I personally prefer a well built, sturdy home with lots of character and charm, but some people are happy with other options that are slightly easier to obtain. For others, it's fine, but I know living in a mobile home would drive me insane.