Tiny houses big with consumers seeking economic freedom

Oct. 14, 2010 Jay Schafer, owner of Tumbleweed Tiny Houses is seen inside one of the homes he built for himself in Graton, Calif.

Ben Margot, Associated Press

Doug Immel recently completed his custom-built dream home, sparing no expense on details like cherry-wood floors, cathedral ceilings and stained-glass windows in just 164 square feet of living space including a loft.

The 57-year-old schoolteacher's tiny house near Providence, Rhode Island, cost $28,000 a seventh of the median price of single-family residences in his state.

"I wanted to have an edge against career vagaries," said Immel, a former real estate appraiser. A dwelling with minimal financial burden "gives you a little attitude." He invests the money he would have spent on a mortgage and related costs in a mutual fund, halving his retirement horizon to 10 years and maybe even as soon as three. "I am infinitely happier."

Dramatic downsizing is gaining interest among Americans, gauging by increased sales of plans and ready-made homes and growing audiences for websites related to the niche. A+E Networks has begun airing "Tiny House Nation" a series on FYI that "celebrates the exploding movement."

The pared-down lifestyle allows people to minimize expenses and gain economic freedom, said architect Jay Shafer in Cotati, California, who founded two micro building and design companies and is widely credited with popularizing the trend.

"It shows people how little some need to be happy, and how simply they can live if they choose," said Shafer, 49, who shares a 500-square foot home with his wife and two young children.

Despite gains in the labor and housing markets, Americans choosing mini houses remain wary of tethering themselves to a mortgage.

People want "a more modest lifestyle now," said Derek Diedricksen, who travels nationally to lead building workshops. Those who opt for super-small structures don't want to "waste their time or be a slave to a house they don't fully use."

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Tiny houses big with consumers seeking economic freedom