The “Tiny” House…Is there room for it?
In the quest for affordability one of the interesting developments has been that of the “Tiny” house. But what is it, and is there room for it in the marketplace?
The days of Australians aspiring to the quarter acre block of land, 4 bed, 2 bath, 2 car house, have not only passed, but have almost become myth. Affordability is the buzz word, but what that looks like has yet to be defined. You can only take so much out of the scope of a house before it ceases to be a “home”, and you can only subsidize rent so much before it becomes a poor investment.
The “Tiny” home has been around for a few years and has never really been a mainstream product, but where it is starting to gain ground in recent times has a lot to do with the GFC and the impact on peoples’ willingness to spend and fears about the future. Some things that are changing are –
· Decrease in finance availability and increase in cash deposits required for buyers
· The search for extra cash flow to help with the mortgage
· Children staying at home longer than the generation before
· Aged care and the drive to “age in place”
These issues have led people to investigate how they can add value to their home and how they can cater to the needs of their family and this has led to things like Granny Flats and Fonzie Flats. But where the “Tiny” home differs is in its innovation in space design, and I think most importantly, its sense of individuality. The Tiny home can be a home on its own, set apart from the existing home, and with some innovative design, have its own sense of space.
So…yes…there is room for the Tiny Home, especially where it adds value to an existing property, and services the needs of families that have been trending back towards the extended rather than the nuclear.
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