News

Cute as a button, practical, and affordable, tiny houses have become all the rage, scoring multiple series on HGTV and other home-centered stations. While such spaces may be too diminutive for you and your family, they still offer plenty of takeaways for when you buy one of our Orange County homes.

1. Leave the clutter behind.
Moving into a tiny house means leaving most possessions behind due to lack of space. Going into a larger home is no excuse to start acquiring meaningless items that simply fill space. Otherwise, your garage becomes so filled with boxes that it can no longer fit your cars. And your spare bedroom becomes a storage room.

Sell, give away, or donate as many of your items as you can before your transfer homes. Not only will it minimize the time and money you spend on the move, it gives you more room at your new place.

2. Exchange old for new.
Tiny house owners must practice discretion when buying anything. The only way they can make space for something new in the home is by getting rid of something old. If you follow the same strategy of exchanging new items for old, then you won’t risk running out of space.

3. Simplify the palette.
To make interior spaces look brighter and bigger, tiny homeowners stick with neutral and unified palettes for their interiors. You can do the same in your rooms by using colors from the same family, preferably in lighter tones. When you want to add brighter or unusual colors, put them in accent pieces that are easily changed such as throw pillows, rugs, window coverings, or table accessories. As a bonus, you can easily change the accents and their colors for each season without affecting the unifying palette.

4. Do double duty.
Sofas become beds, stairs contain built-in storage, and a single sink works for both kitchen and bathroom chores in tiny houses. Having furniture that serves at least two purposes makes better use of space and lessens your cleaning and maintenance chores. Consider using ottomans and coffee tables that contain built-in storage, sofas that pull out into beds for guests, and tables that expand with leaves when you need to accommodate guests.

5. Clear the floor.
Tiny houses make use of wall and ceiling space to allow more floor space for people. In addition, unbroken stretches of flooring that are uninterrupted by furniture make a room look bigger. When adding shelves and cabinets to your new home, make sure they extend all the way up to the ceiling, so you use every inch of available wall space.

Consider tables that hang from the wall and fold up against it when not in use. In the bathrooms, toilets, and vanities that mount on the wall make it easier to clean the floor and make these rooms look more spacious.

6. Take advantage of the great outdoors.
One way that owners of tiny houses maximize living space is by doing many activities outdoors on front porches or rooftop decks. They use these areas not just for lounging but also for dining, working, and sleeping (in fair weather). Fortunately, in Orange County, the pleasant weather encourages outdoor living.

Serve dinner outdoors at least once a week. Hang a hammock or two on the patio so you can take a nap or spend the night under the stars. Your kids may find it a novel idea to do their homework under moonlight, although you may need to give each one a battery-operated lamp so they can see what they’re doing.

If you need more ideas on maximizing your residential spaces or want to check out potential homes for yourself, please contact us.