Comments on: Family Sized Tiny Houses

By: CG

CG — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 16:38:06 +0000

Hubby and I bought our 800 square foot rancher when we married 11+ years ago. Since then we’ve had 3 children. Two have special needs that can make the space seem really small at times. Since we only have two bedrooms, our #2 child slept on the couch for few years as a buffer their disorders. This amount of space with small children makes me crazy. I homeschool and our yard isn’t so great so that adds to the caged feeling I get. As far as actual space used, we could get by with just 500-600 square feet if you confine needs to food preparation, a common flex area, beds, clothing storage, and a bathroom. That’s only the inner circle of needs. The second ring of needs is how many ways I need our space to function. This is more for mental and emotional needs. We need a place to play with toys, a place for schoolwork, my sewing nook, outdoor activities, tools and storage, etc. Yes I could use one table or desk for my office, hobbies, games, school and dinner but it wouldn’t meet my mental needs.
100 square foot per person is tiny but possible with exterior storage and an outdoor living zone. 200 square feet per person is small and I think, perfect if planned well.
I grew up in a 3 story, 900 square foot home with my family of 7. We all shared one bathroom and it wasn’t an issue. 64 square feet was added to the basement when we were teens so that the oldest could have his own room. My dad moved the bathroom, making the dining room smaller, to create separate bedrooms for my sister and I. It was tight at times but we always seemed to find space within that footprint to fit our needs. So that 1000-ish house had 5 bedrooms and one bathroom. My parents moved to a 900sqft trailer that had 2bd 2 baths. The house seemed like a mansion in comparison because of the layout.
Space isn’t about square footage so much as it is about “spaces”. Nooks and cubbies and zones make a place seem much larger. For me, small rooms give a greater sense of overall space than just one big open space with the same floor area.

By: Bobi

Bobi — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 17:38:25 +0000

I am a single mom with twin teen girls. I have 3 adult sons that under bad curcumstances have on occassion had to live with me. I own a small 3 bedroom trailer. When I had one of the boys living with us. I gave the girls the master bedroom, they used bunk beds to free up more floor space. I took their bedroom inserted a queen bed and dresser, there was only walking space. But, I only sleep and dress in there so it wasn’t a problem for me. Most of our wakeing moments are spent in the kitchen and living room which are nice open spaces. I think if you get a home with 3 bedrooms, and get a couple sets of bunkbeds it would work. Make sure you have a large living or kitchen where everyone can hang out comfortably. For now it’s just the girls and I. I have a fold out single cot, a queen air bed, and folding chairs for when we have guest over, always have room in my house for guest. Small space makes it a cozy home, ask anyone that has been in our home.When another son and his girlfriend were contemplating moving in, during the time I already had an adult son living with me, I was simply going to put a twin bed in my daughters room and sleep there while giving my other son and his girlfriend my room with the queen bed. Bedrooms only need to be big enough to sleep in.

By: Kate Down Under

Kate Down Under — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 07:13:11 +0000

Hi Kent,

It seems to me that there are a number of people on the net searching for tiny houses for families of more than 2 children. I would love to see you write about this.

Thanks for all the great articles I really love reading your work.

Kate Down Under

By: HS

HS — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 06:45:46 +0000

We are a family of 9 (some bio children, some adopted through fc), and live in 1400 sq. ft. The SPACE is more than enough, but the layout is awful. Our bedrooms eat up so much space that really could be used in common living if it’s going to be there at all. If I were looking at doing a smaller space overall, I’d cut the bedrooms down to the bare essentials, size-wise. You really just need a common gathering area–be that a kitchen with a cozy nook off of it for hanging out, or whatever. The bathroom, etc., are all negotiable.

By: Libby Aldridge

Libby Aldridge — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 03:33:39 +0000

I found this blog because I now live in a 1000 square foot house, downsized from a 2000+ house after adopting two sisters, we already had a biological son. It has been a few years, I was just wondering if you adoption was successful?

By: bill

bill — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 21:59:15 +0000

My wife and I have 4 kids. Based on this ,here is what i would concider min. square footage.
6 bedrooms 720 sq. ft min.
2 bathrooms 120 sq. ft. min.
kitchen 170 sq. ft.
2 family area’s 432 sq. ft.
closet( storage) 112 sq. ft.
TOTAL 1554 sq. ft. MIN….( our house is double this,and it seems like a hotel between our kids and thier friends. Average dinner is 7-9 people)
I assumed that you maybe required to have seperate bedroom.(child services requirements).
You do really need 2 family areas when the base family is 7 people. Now include maybe 3-5-7 kids friends or yours.
Good luck and God bless you.

By: Marsha Cowan

Marsha Cowan — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:47:58 +0000

My husband and I raised my our 4 children in a 420 square foot house and had plenty of room. Orgainzation of space is the key. We had a bathroom divided into 3 rooms; the main room housed a sink, then two other doors led into a small room with only a toilet, and another room with a tub/shower and washer/dryer. The girls shared a room (2 closets)and the sons shared a room (2 closets)on the second floor (where the only bath was located), and my husband and I had a small bedroom in the attic. The main floor was the very small but organized kitchen, a dining area right outside the kitchen door (with a window seat beside it), a small den flowing from the dining area with a wall of bookcases and storage. We had a small entry where the winding stairs led up (a closet under the stairs for coats and storage, and a small living room for a piano, sofa, and chair (and Christmas tree). THe house had a large wrap-around porch with a swing and rockers and a back deck. We lived outside a lot, so didn’t feel cramped. On any given weekend, there were as many as 4-6 of the children’s friends “camping out”. They loved our house! We were the “funnest” home of all. We lived there for 15 years, and all the children remenber it with love.

By: Jen

Jen — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 23:52:52 +0000

We raised kids without a tub. We had a shower with a sprayer on a hose, and a Rubbermaid tub that we filled to bathe the little ones.

By: Barb

Barb — Sat, 07 May 2011 23:41:03 +0000

Joe, I’m sorry for the misunderstanding, and sorry that this is an extremely late response. The reason for the concern of children not being able to share rooms is because when you adopt children from the world of foster care sometimes the abuses from their past make it unsafe for them to share rooms with other children. In a normal safe world, this would not be an issue. It is a safety that must be considered for special needs. There would be no way to give the necessary 24/7 supervision that would be required if certain children were to co-inhabit rooms. Sorry for the misunderstanding.

By: Becky

Becky — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 15:26:52 +0000

My family is a family of 6. We live in 1100 square feet. The two boys and two girls share a room, and that works out great. I try to ditch toys/clothes as soon as we are done.

The biggest issue is storage. One linen closet, one small pantry and 5(that’s right 5) kitchen cabinets is tricky. I would love to know how to create storage in this space that doesn’t mean I have to spend a fortune or gut my house and redo it.

We are trying to move but looking at maybe buying 1800-2000 square ft max. Small house means, quick to pick up, you actually see each other, and creates that warm home feel you can’t get from overly spacious (empty) homes.