The pandemic sent many Americans dreaming of more space and rushing to find it. Sales of large homes are booming. So do the little ones.
These homes often measure no more than 350 square meters or barely larger than a standard hotel room. They are mostly built in suburban yards or converted garages on the west coast, where new laws designed to alleviate homelessness in the region have encouraged their construction.
But they are also for sale or rent in rural Maine and Vermont. They have appeared in Wyoming, Alaska, Georgia and Texas. Florida officials have proposed zoning changes to allow them.
While tracking all of these mini-homes in the U.S. is difficult, records that include either small houses or other types of guest apartments have grown by an average of 8.6 percent a year over the past decade, according to a July study by Freddie Mac. There are now more than 1.4 million homes that share a lot with one of these units.
The high cost of housing is a factor. The average price paid for a home by a first-time buyer is about $ 266,500, according to the National Association of Realtors, which is not available to many younger homeowners. Small houses can be rented at the price of a traditional apartment unit of the same size. For small house owners, the units generate income or serve as guest houses. Landlords often rent them out to students or offer them to older family members so they can stay nearby.