The tiny-home movement has been a popular topic among design television shows in recent years, but there was some debate about whether it was truly a lasting trend or not. But a new survey confirms that consumers are definitely intrigued by smaller homes, often described as less than 600 square feet.
More than half of adults recently surveyed--or 53 percent—said “yes” or “maybe” when asked if they would ever consider the possibility of buying such a small home, according to a recent study by the National Association of Home Builders. That means a majority of adults would consider moving into a tiny home at some point in the future, the NAHB notes on its blog, Eye on Housing.
Younger generations tend to find tiny homes more appealing than older age groups. More than half of millennials and Generation X members said they were open to the idea of a tiny home. However, only 45 percent of baby boomers and 29 percent of seniors said they’d be willing to entertain the idea.
But local zoning laws may curtail the prevalence of just how big the tiny-home movement gets. “Many local zoning laws have minimum lot size requirements, which wouldn’t prohibit tiny homes, but would make them very expensive considering the cost of land,” the NAHB reports on its Eye on Housing blog. “In addition, many communities prohibit the construction of accessory structures, preventing existing home owners from adding them to their lots.” However, there has been a recent momentum among
some local jurisdictions to relax some of those restrictions.
Source: “Tiny Homes Have Potential Buyers,” National Association of Home Builders’ Eye on Housing blog (Feb. 7, 2018)
