This post contains affiliate links.
We see plenty of comments from people new to the tiny house movement, who wonder what’s so different about living in a tiny house instead of the tiny apartments they’re accustomed to. This article by Monica Humphries explains it so well! While small spaces have always been around, they aren’t all designed well to maximize space and efficiency.
A well-designed tiny house, like the BOHO model by ESCAPE that Monica stayed in at Think Big! Tiny House Resort in South Cairo, New York, doesn’t leave any space underutilized, and that makes all the difference! Monica also mentioned that the large windows and nature views added to the peace and comfort of the tiny house.
Even though her NYC apartment is about 500 square feet (shared with a roommate), in the end Monica said she could see herself living in just 110 square feet by herself quite easily. Read the full story at Insider.
Don’t miss other interesting tiny homes like this one – join our FREE Tiny House Newsletter for more!
Why Tiny Houses Are Better Designed Than Most Apartments
Images via Monica/Insider
Here are a couple pictures of Monica’s NYC apartment
Images via Monica/Insider
And here’s “The Green Bean” she stayed in.
Images via Monica/Insider
This is a BOHO model by ESCAPE Traveler.
Images via Monica/Insider
A peek at the tiny bathroom.
Images via Monica/Insider
And this is the sunrise she woke up to!
Images via Monica/Insider
Description:
Couples and solo travelers crush hard on The Green Bean: tiniest of the tiny homes. Even though this queen-bed studio is cozy, it has every little thing you need in its kitchen, dining area and full bathroom with a stand-up shower stall. Order takeout for delivery from restaurants nearby or whip up a little something on the two-burner cooktop or your patio’s Weber grill. You’ll love both the privacy and the location, steps from the waterfall, which is illuminated at night for extra romance. Nestle in for a night of sweet slumber in the country: the antidote to real-world stress. Sleeps 2.
Learn More:
Related Stories:
- ESCAPE Built the New IKEA Tiny House, It’s a Boho XL THOW!
- Nuggets Tiny House: Vista Boho ESCAPE in WA
- The First Resident at Escape Tampa Bay Tiny House Village (Part 1)
Our big thanks to Monica for sharing! 🙏
You can share this using the e-mail and social media re-share buttons below. Thanks!
If you enjoyed this you’ll LOVE our Free Daily Tiny House Newsletter with even more!
You can also join our Small House Newsletter!
Also, try our Tiny Houses For Sale Newsletter! Thank you!
More Like This: Tiny Houses | THOWs | Tiny House Vacations | Tiny House Builders
See The Latest: Go Back Home to See Our Latest Tiny Houses
This post contains affiliate links.
Natalie C. McKee
Latest posts by Natalie C. McKee (see all)
- Urban Payette Tiny House with Fold Down Deck! - April 25, 2024
- Luxury Home Realtor’s Tiny House Life in Florida - April 25, 2024
- Handcrafted, Eco-Bohemian Tiny House with a Deck - April 25, 2024
I agree with Monica. Having lived in a NYC apartment for years, trading that for a tiny house somewhere of your choosing, is a gift. In apartment living, it is hard to pick the view, you take what you can get unless you are wealthy. You cannot paint the rooms, or put nails in the walls, or install wood floors, even at your own expense. Sometimes a landlord will allow you, but then once you improve, the rent might go up.
With a THOW you control what is outside your window…the ocean, the woods, the mountains, or whatever else you enjoy. Had enough? Hitch up and drive away. The decision to own, to plan, and make choices feeds the spirit and soul. Some people love the security and companionship of living in a building with neighbors, others long for the open road, or a tiny home by the sea, or being tucked in the woods. I say, whatever the calling, go for it. Nothing is forever, so live in the moment with what you want, until you are ready for your next adventure.
A very good point, Monica and Brenda. I would have gladly downsized from my first apartment if it meant not living on a loud, busy street in a not-so-great part of town! A tiny house wherever you want it, is a totally different ballgame.
One big attraction of tiny homes is that they are single-family dwellings, not packed in with hundreds of identical units sharing walls. A tiny house with a big view feels much larger than its square footage. But it gets me thinking… It would be interesting to know if city apartment architecture will be improved by ideas developed for tiny houses. One big difference is that tiny houses on wheels don’t generally abide by standard building codes; they often incorporate narrow, steep stairs and ladders that would not be allowed in modern apartments. Bathroom dimensions and ceiling heights are also tighter in many tiny homes. I wonder if standard building codes will be altered at all to allow more cost-effective housing to be built. The building codes are (supposedly) mainly focused on safety, so I doubt they’ll be relaxed much, but it seems that we can learn from the many great tiny house innovations.
That’s a good point about codes, Alison. I know when we wanted to replace our closets with a bathroom, that we had to use wayyy more space than seemed necessary for the sake of codes. It seemed silly because I knew in a tiny house we could have have that second toilet without so much hullabaloo!
Well, depends on how up to date the building codes in the area are… The 2018 IRC update introduced Appendix Q for code specifically for tiny houses on foundations that are 400 Sq Ft or less, making allowances for lofts, etc.
Additional Appendixes are being introduced in the upcoming updates that add code for other structures like cob houses. So it’s evolving in that respect…
The building codes are (supposedly) focused on safety but the main focus is standardization and limiting liability, which are often influenced by special interests. Like how most modern codes are demanding higher energy efficiency in all new construction, for example, which doesn’t have anything to do with safety… While a lot of the system is just bureaucracy that feeds off itself and steadily becomes more bloated than it ever needs to be but each municipality has a range of freedom to interpret the codes, choose what codes to accept, how they get enforced and which get enforced more than others, and how it all interacts with zoning requirements and effects local economy with how property taxes, etc. So it can be a mess in that respect…
Overall problem being most of it caters to one size fits all but we aren’t all one size fits all and there has yet to be enough flexibility and adaptability in the code to deal with those of us who don’t fit the common ranges… So really needs a better system but at least there’s increasing pressure for everyone to think on it and there are those who are trying to fix it with the new Appendix additions, etc.