I love to watch HGTV, especially when they show houses I will never be able to afford. Being an avid HGTV watcher allows for me to know all the cool housing trends that are going on, and right now the one that I am seeing everywhere are tiny houses. A tiny house is defined as anything less than 1,000 square feet, and millennials are turning toward them for multiple reasons.
The first reason is that the tiny houses, whether they be standalone or on wheels, offer quite an experience. It is often said that our generation would rather have experiences than money. My little brother was faced with choosing between the pier or the restaurant, and when asked he said he would rather make less money on the pier because he would get a better experience. This mentality transcends to the housing market when this generation is out looking. The tiny house takes everything that is in a "normal"-sized house and shrinks it. Usually, they come with a kitchen, a half bath and a loft where a bed is held. Rarely do the tiny houses hold more than two people.
Millennials are also fascinated by these homes because they offer a much cheaper alternative to living in an apartment or home. Most of these houses come with solar panels, low utility bills (if any) and the biggest expense is renting the property to put the house on. With this in mind, there is also an attitude to work less because one needs less money in which to survive, an interesting thought process as more and more millennials are rising to the tops of companies. On more than one occasion I have heard that CEOs are starting to require that their employees take their vacation days. No wifi, no cell phones, just a nice, relaxing vacation.
The third reason that one may want to go on this tiny house bandwagon is for the exclusivity of it all. Henry David Thoreau is famous for going into the woods and advocating that everyone should live closer to nature. He wrote a whole book of poetry about it, "Walden," in hopes that he would inspire people to do as he did. A log cabin where your mother and sister deliver you pancakes each morning is a far cry from the tiny house movement, but good nonetheless. A lot of people are turning a bit more introspective in hopes of finding their “true” selves and living life as fully as possible. Even one of my college’s values is reflection and discernment, but does one need to reflect without the internet?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRn9cAWb1Qo
In the end, the tiny house movement really only makes up 1 percent of the housing market currently. Although I see it on television, I also see the Kardashians on television and something about both realities seem a little off (for the record I love the Kardashians). The creativity and logistics that go into building and living in a tiny house will never not fascinate me. Almost every single one is handcrafted and customized for the person living in them. Will I ever live in a tiny house? Probably not. Should others do it and continue to post it on the internet so I can live vicariously through them? Of course.
