Are Tiny Houses Going Mainstream?

The tiny house movement not only has the internet abuzz, it has now invaded your television.  It’s not surprising that television networks are eager to be involved after seeing the success of tiny house blogs, videos, and documentaries.

Kirsten Dirksen has been blogging and creating YouTube videos about self-sufficiency, simple living, and tiny houses for years.  Her YouTube videos have had over 100 million views.  One of her most popular videos is a full-length documentary called We the Tiny House People she released in 2012.  For five years, Kirsten traveled around the world filming segments about tiny houses and the people that live in them.  The result is a wonderful in-depth look at an assortment of tiny houses and why people choose this lifestyle.

Other filmmakers have followed suit.  Tiny: A Story About Living Small was released in March 2013.  It follows a couple who is trying to build a tiny house on their own, as well as features other families who have downsized their lives to be able to fulfill their dream of living in a tiny house.

Related: Add a home bar to your tiny home.

Tiny Houses on TV

There are now five main television shows that are all about tiny houses.  All five shows are relatively new, premiering within the last year and I’m sure we will be seeing even more tiny house shows in the future.

The very popular Tiny House Nation on FYI is now on its second season.  John Weisbarth and Zack Giffin are renovation experts and the hosts of the show.  They travel across America to show off creative small spaces and the innovative people who reside in them.  They also assist families who are ready to downsize design and construct their dream tiny house.  The show features both luxury and budget residences and anything from an NYC micro-apartment to a caboose car turned into a home.

Zack Giffin – Tiny House Nation

Also on FYI, is Tiny House Hunting.  The show is much like other house hunter shows, but focusing on perspective buyers interested in purchasing a tiny house.  Realtors show each potential homeowner three different small residences for them to choose from.  Full-time homes, as well as vacation homes are featured.

HGTV has also joined the tiny house movement.  Tiny House Builders is a new show featuring Derek Diedricksen.  Derek prides himself on building tiny structures around the world that make the most of their surroundings, which means the locations he builds in are some of the world’s most beautiful, but can also be treacherous.

HGTV has two other shows that feature tiny houses.  One is Tiny House Hunters, where potential home seekers view three houses under 600 square feet and then decide if they want to downsize and join the movement or remain in their current home.  The other new show is Tiny House, Big Living.  This show features couples going through the downsizing and tiny house creation process.  Some couples use a builder and some decide to build their tiny house on their own.

Many people view the tiny house movement as just being people living in cute little houses, but it’s so much more than that!  It’s all about the desire to consume less, leave a smaller carbon footprint, and live simply.  Thanks to the hard work of bloggers, film-makers, and mainstream television shows, more people can learn about the true economic and environmental benefits of tiny houses.

Are you ready to join the movement?  We can help make your tiny house dream a reality!  Contact us today!

The tiny home trend is on the rise! More people are beginning to choose simplicity over space. The tiny home movement is gaining large interest due to its uniqueness and novelty, but for most buyers the real attractions are the reduced costs, the reduced environmental impact due to less electricity and fuel use, and the simpler lifestyle.

Forty years ago, the average size of new houses in the U.S. was 1,525 square feet. Today, the average size has grown to 2,598 square feet, despite a decline in household size. Due to the growing tiny home movement though, many new homes will be drastically downsized. Just a simple Google search for “The Tiny House Movement” brings up thousands of images of beautiful tiny homes as well as blogs, videos, and articles all focusing on tiny homes. There’s even a popular television series called Tiny House Nation that began airing in July 2014.

What Is a Tiny Home?
The typical tiny home is around 100-500 square feet.  They can come in various shapes, sizes, and forms, but the main focus is simpler living in a smaller space. Tiny houses emphasize design over size and utilize multipurpose furniture and space saving appliances. Vertical space optimization is also an extremely common feature. There are many benefits of the tiny home including: mobility, reduced carbon footprint, little or no debt due to the low cost, lower taxes, and decreased maintenance. Scaling down on home size may not be for everyone, but for many people it’s practical and an effective solution to their housing needs.

The possibility of building one’s own home has fueled the movement, particularly for tiny houses on wheels. Tiny houses on wheels are often compared to RVs, but they are quite different. Tiny houses are built to last as long as traditional homes because the building techniques and materials are similar.

MODS Builds Tiny Homes

MODS Tiny Homes are built using conventional construction materials like plywood, dimensional lumber, insulation and standard windows and doors plus they have the added advantage of being encapsulated in a secure, hardened steel shell. They are also environmentally friendly, using shipping containers that might otherwise sit in a sea port storage yard, slowly rusting away. MODS inspects these units to check for any hazardous materials and applies a new coat of protective paint. We then outfit the interior and exterior for your desired configuration. MODS can also deliver and install to any location on the planet.

Though many people make tiny homes their main residence, you can also build them as a home office, guest house, cabin or even a great vacation home! If you are considering or are currently in the market for a tiny home, please contact us to find out how we can design and build it to your exact specifications. We can create any design. You dream it, we build it.

For more information about MODS Tiny Homes, click here