How big is your home? - Page 2

[rabbithorns]

We had a 1530 sq. foot manufactured house (3 bedroom) plus 6x8 shed for 4 of us and it was like an endless cave! Space for everything! One kid moved out so we moved to a 900 sq. ft. apartment. We just decided to get rid of everything in the move and one thing that helped was our old 21 inch tv was failing so I allowed my dh to get a small flat-screen tv. It sits on a shelf so it's not the living room "god" anymore. That helps alot.

[boingo82]

We have 840 sq. ft. 2 bd, 1 ba. We have one kid and one on the way.
Our house used to *seem* a lot smaller, but as we've gotten better at decluttering it's gotten managable.

[phathui5]

We have the five of us (no pets anymore) in a less than 800 square foot house. However, we are working on moving somewhere bigger.

[pixiemama]

We are in a place between 1400 and 1600 square feet (3 bed, 2 ba) plus garage, attic, and decent yard. It's certainly big enough four our family of 5, just not the greatest floor plan.

[MamaMonica]

We have about 1600 sq ft upstairs (3br 1 bath) and a partially finished basement. We have a playroom and living room. The basement is really not good for much because it is freezing most of the year. There are four of us- two kids. We also have a one-car garage to store bikes, tools and a car.

Our place is too big. We have way more space then we need and it is a bear to keep clean and maintain. It also lacks a "cozy" feel that smaller houses have. Our previous home was 900 sq ft and I loved that house. It was cozy and comfy and had a large country kitchen.

Ideally I would love a good layout of about 1500 sq ft max.

[KayleeZoo]

I'm struggling with the house size/clutter issue. Our house is 2700sf, with me, dh and our 3 kids, 2 cats and one 110lb inside dog. The more room we have, the more junk we get to fill it up. : I envy people that can make a smaller space more livable by keeping the clutter down to a minimum

[Wolfmeis]

1600 sq ft; big yard, attached 2 car garage.

3 kids under 6, 2 adults, 2 dogs.

I think we have more than ample space, although I am still working on decluttering and finding appropriate furniture. It's easy to clean-- EASY-- when you have a place for everything.

[rgarlough]

We have a 1940's 1 1/2 story 3 bedroom, 1 3/4 bath w/2000 sq feet (finished basement and upstairs). We have dh, me, ds here FT and dh's 2 kids every other weekend. Dh's kids are set up in the 2 main floor bedrooms with dh, ds and me upstairs.

We have 2 German Shepherds, 3 cats. We had 3 dogs and 4 cats for a while. Oh and a 90 gallon fish tank in the basement family room.

While our house doesn't have the 'open' floor plan that is so desired these days, we LOVE our house. Our yard is big enough to keep up busy w/ gardening and for the dogs and kids. We live about 8 blocks from a super park and a mile from a lake and public zoo.

With our finished basement family room, we have plenty of space for everyone to go off and have some privacy. We keep the main floor living room TV free for the most part which is great! The fireplace is so relaxing and I love to grab a book and kick back. The family room has the whole movie thing set up and ds's toys are mostly down there.

For the older kids, we did a 'boys' and a 'girls' room both with a set of bunk beds for sleep overs. It also allows for family growth. Both kids know that they will be sharing when the time comes when ds is ready to move from our bed.

I know that many families prefer bigger spaces but honestly I am FINE with ours. Its plenty big to be a cleaning challenge but doesn't take me forever to keep up with things.

My only peeve is I'd like at least a toilet on the floor that dh and I sleep on. We've been thinking of bumping out upstairs to add a small bathroom and possibly a den/sm bedroom. We don't need another bedroom but it would be nice to have a sewing/hobby room.

[lilyka]

ts not hoe much space you have, it is how well it is laid out.

we have about 3000 square feet if you count the basement (which is unfinished but dry, ventalated, heated and carpeted and the walls are not nasty gross - all this makes sense to people who have a basement )

we have 2 adults and 2 children.

the house has the basement which holds out huge furnace, washer dryer, dh office, his shop and the kids tunnels and tents (but we only got these because we had the room to spare. :LOL) main floor - living room dining room and kitchen (3 cupboards and 2 drawers in the kitchen, one closet in the dining room - otherwise no storage space) up stairs is three bedrooms and a bathroom and the 3rd floor is a low celing playroom with 2 big closets and crawl space storage. We have a small yard and a 2 stall but illegal (as in we could be told to knock it down at our neighbors whim. of if God should so choose to flatten it and we would not be allowed to rebuild )

and we are looking to trade it all in for a very small 1200 square foot, 2 bathroom, 4 bedroom dream home. I am telling you. a reasonable well used space is so much better than a very large poorly used space home. You are looking at someone who is a huge fan of the galley kitchen though. Also small bedrooms. Just big enough for a bed and dreser. On the up side we should get a good deal on the house that no one else wants.

[lilyka]

Oh and if you are intrested in living in small spaces I highly recommend visiting an Ikea store. they give lots of hope for small places. The right furniture (right shape and size and function) can make all the difference in the world. I was amazed when I went through thier sample apartments. They were tiny but you didn't feel cramped at all.

[tessamami]

Ummm we have 300 square feet

That's right, I said 300 square feet, and not all of it is usable (we've got a weird slanted wall in the living room).

I've got a queen sized bed, a loft bed for DD, and the refrigerator in the living room, so that I could fit a "butcher" block table in the kitchen, that provides our "counter" space. So it's very tiny, but I live in NYC, near the UN. 2 adults, 1 five year old, and hopefully another, if God blesses us with another. . . . though it's really tight, I think that if everyone has a place to sleep, then you have enough room. . . . .

[lilyka]

you rock!!

[nancyw]

Originally Posted by tessamami

That's right, I said 300 square feet, and not all of it is usable (we've got a weird slanted wall in the living room).

I've got a queen sized bed, a loft bed for DD, and the refrigerator in the living room, so that I could fit a "butcher" block table in the kitchen, that provides our "counter" space. So it's very tiny, but I live in NYC, near the UN. 2 adults, 1 five year old, and hopefully another, if God blesses us with another. . . . though it's really tight, I think that if everyone has a place to sleep, then you have enough room. . . . .

blessings to you, mama. we are in a tiny home too, and heading for smaller, but not as small as that.
thank you so much for the wisdom in your words.

[bu's mama]

tessamami

[tamaralv]

Originally Posted by RiverSky

What is the size of your house, Adamsmama?

4 years ago, we were in 800 square feet (all 4 of us) and it was cluttered and every inch of space was used. Then we moved into 1350 sq ft and thought it was one of those cavernous mansions PP mentioned. We quickly filled that place right up. Then we bought our current house, which is almost 2000 sq ft and we thought we were in heaven again. Yet, we have filled it right again, including a very full garage.

I guess my point is that even if you were to upsize, you'd probably find you have all the same issues again. Chances are, all you need is a really good decluttering, some more organizational tools and a resolve to stop buying more stuff. Or at least if you buy stuff, make sure the equivalent amount of stuff is leaving the house at the same time. (We're working on this ) Good luck!

:
I totally agree with this! Or at least, it has been my experience. I am trying to diverge from my "clutter-magnet" ways. it is hard. But it feels SO GOOD when you regain space.

Good luck!

[knittingmomma]

Well, there is my husband and I and our five children (ages 12, 10, 7, 5, and almost 2). We also have one cat and one beagle. Our house is just about 1000 square feet. What is wonderful, though, is our attached oversized garage and a newer unattached "barn"/garage. Seasonal items can be easily stored.
But in our small house we keep things simple. Each child has a few outfits, not too many toys and we have some furniture, but not a lot. We do have tons of books, though and there are many bookshelves throughout.

Warm wishes,
Tonya

[Alkenny]

840 sq. ft. 2 bedroom, 1 bath mobile home. 2 adults, 2 big kids and a toddler. We're doing pretty good, though I have to declutter a couple of times a year.

[Robin926]

The house we're in right now is probably about 700-800 sq.ft. It is not that bad except that there is NO STORAGE and only one bedroom.

We just bought a new house though (closing is April 30!!!), and that house is 1300 sq.ft., three bedrooms, two baths, carport with storage room, and a workshop/shed out back. It's going to be like heaven! Oh, and there's two adults, one toddler, and three (maybe 4 if we can't find the stray kitten a home) cats.

I absolutely despise clutter, though. I'm keeping some things, like baby stuff for when we have another kiddo. But for the most part, every time we move, I PURGE. It's hard with a DH who wants to keep every single little thing, but I do not want a ton of clutter going into my new house, even if it does have 8 closets! I really want to keep things manageable and not get into the trap of just filling a bigger space with more junk.

[alexisyael]

I actually have no idea what the sq footage is of the house (duplex, really) we're living in now is. It seems very big, tho, but that could just be b/c the layout is very good and we don't have a lot of clutter.

We're closing on a house March 31 which is a little over 1700 sq ft. We're adding a bedroom (3 bedrooms instead of 2), but I think the space is about the same as the one we're in now. But it has a screened in porch, which is heavenly, if you ask me! Also, a huge double sized yard (yay, I finally get to compost and garden!)

The smallest space DH and I ever lived in was 750 sq ft (in downtown Toronto). It was a bit tight, but not awful. The things we didn't like were not having a washer dryer on the same floor as us (we had coin op laundry in the building basement), the lack of closets for hanging up coats/ clothes, and only having one toliet (b/c um, sometimes two people have to "go" at the same time, you know what I mean!) But it wasn't really a problem in terms of space, more of a problem in terms of layout. We learned a lot from liivng there about not allowing clutter to fill our lives!

Right now, we're still two adults (one a very largely pregnant me) and a small dog and cat. But we'll have a newborn sometime in May.

The funny thing is, in these parts of the country, the house we're moving into is considered "small!" I don't really think it is (it's medium to me) but we were looking at really huge places... none of which would have suited us. I'm glad we were able to find something more modest, with a good layout.

[momto l&a]

I agree layout is everything.

Also because we live in the country we have good and play shoes good and play boots.
Same with clothes, good, play, cold and warm weather.

IMO country living does take a bit more room in the house for storage. When we lived in town we could just have good clothes, shoes ect.

Then there is the equiment needed for the things we enjoy.

We cant live too simply IMO