Living large is everyone’s dream, but others just want to live in a small and accessible home. While there are others that are dreaming of having a large villa with a pool, a spacious living room, and a garage that can fit a lot of cars, there are also individuals who just want to live a simple life. Having a simple life means that a small home will do.
But whether you’re setting up a mansion or a small home, building a home is never an easy task. Planning a home is a major commitment that will need a good amount of money, time, and energy. As such, you’ll need to weigh in on several factors before making any decision.
Why Live in a Small Home?
But before we move into some important tips that we have to consider for a small home, we have to look into the perks of having a small home that’s just right for you and your family.
More Intimate — If you want more face time with your family and you want to build a good relationship with them, you might want to have a small home instead. Just having the right size for your home means that it’s cozier, especially when the temperature can be easily retained.
Less Maintenance — When you have a larger home, you will have to keep in mind every nook and cranny of your home. Having a smaller home means that there are less space and aspects that you have to keep in mind. Annually, an average home that costs $200,000 will need around $2000 – $8000 to maintain, depending on the materials and systems used. Smaller homes will take only a few hundred dollars to at least a thousand to maintain annually.
Cheaper — Naturally, the fewer materials that are being used, the less a homeowner will need to spend on the construction of the house. Although, most experts would suggest not using materials that are low-quality since there’s a good chance that it will only last a few decades before giving in to the elements.
Higher-Quality Materials — If you’re not someone who is in the mood of saving up, you can always look for the best building materials in the market. Since there’s not much space that you can worry about, getting durable and long-lasting materials can significantly extend the lifespan of your home. Higher-quality construction materials are also known for withstanding the elements throughout your lifetime.
Factors to Consider
Although living in a small home might not necessarily take as much work as living in a big house, there are still some factors that most homeowners will have to keep in mind.
HVAC Systems
It’s important to note that air circulation will always play a major role, especially you are limited in space with a small home. Dust, pet dander, and virulent particles can cause health complications if they are not appropriately addressed. Fortunately, there are air duct cleaning service providers that can comprehensively check your air ducts for issues while ensuring that they are in good condition.
A good chunk of the United States also faces a temperate climate, which means that temperatures can get below freezing at certain points of the year. If this is the case, you might want to invest in heating equipment.
For warmer seasons such as summer, you can opt for air conditioning. But with the incidents that have happened in the last few months, most experts would suggest an air conditioning system that won’t recirculate air.
You don’t necessarily need to spend much on your HVAC systems since your house won’t have much space.
Building Materials
Normally, the average size of an American home is around 2386 square feet. ; In order to compensate for a large area, most homeowners will prefer using cheaper materials to compensate for larger square footage. When you have a smaller home, you can opt for higher-quality materials instead.
High-quality building materials might have a heftier price, but most of these materials are easier to maintain. In the long-run, you’ll be able to save money that would have been used for the annual maintenance of your home.
Maximizing Free Space
Even for a small home, there’s bound to space that you can incorporate. Most would suggest using furniture that has some sort of storage that you can use. Too much clutter can be an eyesore, and that’s the last thing that you want people to think. An organized house can make it look larger than it seems. Still, it’s important not to make your home feel too “stuffy.” Most people are not comfortable staying in a home that doesn’t have enough legroom.
Living large might be a dream for a lot of individuals, but living a simple life in a small home has even more perks than what most people think. But whether it’s a large home or a small one, it’s still important to take a step back and think things through before anything happens. After all, planning is half the battle.
