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4 people in 800 square foot house?

4K views 16 replies 16 participants last post by  Purplehaze 
#1 ·
Can this be done? Especially when 3 of the 4 are kids? Plus one big dog? I have 3 kids, ages 11, 5 and the baby is almost a year... because the 11 and 5 year old are so far apart in years (both of them are boys) they fight pretty badly... I'd love if they could each have their own room... but also know when my daughter (the baby) is older, she may want her own room too... the houses in my price range tend to be 2 or 3 bedrooms and 1 bathroom and like 800 square feet. the boys tend to have a lot of clutter. It is like pulling teeth to get them to part with their stuff- even things like old papers and what not... so I am really debating this... I would really rather a house over a condo, I think, but the condo would have 1100-1200 square feet and cost less but are almost always 2 bedrooms, around here...... I just love to garden and want a yard, even a tiny one so I can have a few plants here and there.

Somoene recently posted pictures of their big mess and the boys room is a LOT like this. It bumms me out. they have a 10 x 12 room with 2 dressers, a desk, a bunk bed and a book case, plus a wall book shelf. They have 2 fish tanks, one on one dresser, one on the desk... Their closet is full of older Ds toys, no real room for clothing, but the bedding does go in there. When they used to each have their won room it was not this bad. If I get a 3 bedroom place then DD and I can keep room sharing and the boys would each have their own space... I think if they each have their own space and plenty of shelving/storage stuff then I am hopeful we can keep the kitchen/living room more free of toys and "projects". I really need a kitchen/living room that is pretty free of clutter, I have all i can do to keep my own under contro!

I could really use advie from those who are living this, can it be done and can it be done with kids my kids ages??? i know things are so much simpler when the kids were smaller and I could toss/donate/rotate toys how I deemed fit.

Thank you : )

Sheila
 
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#2 ·
I think the mess was me.

We have just under 900 sq feet with 3 kids 2 adults, a large dog and 2 cats.

I think it can be done- I'm not there yet. And my kids are still 5 and under - so I dictate their stuff still.

No advice right now- except that in our house- dh seems to generate alot of the mess- if he would help- we'd be fine.
 
#5 ·
It can be done, however remember that one day one is going to be 17 and one be 11, and the other be 7. Yes it can be done, but also consider how cramped it could possibly get. Heck, my SO and I live in a 900sqft apartment with our 70lb. dog and 2 month old son and we feel a little crowded...but that's just us.
 
#6 ·
I would not call it a long term solution. The housing market is coming down some.
I took in 4 people who needed a home, they had 650sq ft of our house that included our 2nd kitchen and 1 full bath, it was tight, but it was also only temporary.
So, yes, it can be done.

At a min. I'd go with 1000 - 1200 sq ft long term at least -- but that is just me.
 
#7 ·
Well, I have three boys and they have learned like the rest of us to control the crud level and keep their rooms clean. You didn't mention if there would be a basement, so I'll assume there isn't.

While the condo would give you more sq. footage inside, you would have zero outside, so I would vote for having a yard. Being able to garden a bit and play outside increases quality of life in my opinion. It also means that at some time, you might be able to build on a bit.

For now, I would try to get a 3 bedroom, even if they are all small. You can take a small room for yourself, put your oldest in the next size and put the two youngest in the larger bedroom. By the time they are older, you can switch them around as needed with the two boys sharing the larger room. While you could put the baby in with you, as the mom I think you have earned some private space for yourself.

My kids all fight like three cats in a trash can. Drives me crazy some days, but you have to make do with what you can afford.
 
#8 ·
Yes, it can be done. However, you can't live in 800sq in the same way you live in 1800sq, but it definitely can be done, and it can be done nicely.

I think a yard would make a big difference. Having a yard will be extra space for everyone (including the dog), and the garden will be a nice retreat for you.

Your friend,

Roo_Online (recognize me?)
 
#9 ·
I think you can do it! Our home is 3 bedrooms, 900-ish square feet (it varies on all the documents, I need to actually figure it out someday) and the people before us had 2 teens and a large dog. They lived here for 15 years. We plan on having 3 kids and we think we will be able to fit very comfortably! I think if you look for a house with expansion potential (can you finish the basement? Put a rec room down there? etc.) with a nice sized yard, you can get by without feeling cramped. I would really shoot for 3 bedrooms though, that way your two boys can have rooms of their own right now.
 
#10 ·
Hey we are in the same boat, just add parrots and that the house is a one bedroom, one bath and the kitchen was designed by drunk monkeys. We have a small yard and just found a tiny vintage travel trailer that we are re-furbishing so that my teen son can have a room of his own. We are planning screened porches to give us some more living space...it is kinda funky, but it is so much cheeper then anything we could rent and we can change it as we have the money to do so...
best of luck
Kate
 
#11 ·
I would say it can be done. We are in a small 2 bedroom house and I think it's way to big for us... and we want to have 3 more kids...but not add on. I really would like a smaller place. My husband's dad- they had 8 people in about a 500sq foot home. All the kids shared a room, and the parents had their own.

I guess it just depends on how you look at things. Growing up our neighbor, they had about 15 people living in a 3 bedroom home. Lots of generations there.
 
#12 ·
here's the way that i would think about this:

yes, it can be done, either permenently or temporarily. if permanently, you'll have to start teaching your boys to purge. my mother taught me, and i'm practically addicted to it.
it can be taught, but you have to be firm.

as a temporary solution, you can look at it as wealth building. buy the house, enjoy the house for 5 or so years, then using the equity in that house, leverage into a slightly larger house and buy a new one. use the other house as an income-building rental property.

in this way, it might actually be better to buy a condo now, and then a house second.

anyway, there's a book called the Automatic Millionaire and he recommends buying three homes in one's lifetime--live in one, use the equity to buy another, live in that one while renting out the first, and then repeat for the third house, renting out the other two. property makes for good investment, btw, and typically by the time you have your third place, your first place is completely paid off. nice, huh?

then, if you want to downsize once your kids are grown, you can always go back to one of the other, smaller homes and rent out the other two until they're paid off.

ok, i just think about things in this way.
 
#13 ·
It can be done
We (family of two adults, two kids, two cats and one big dog), lived in a house that was just under 600 sq feet. It was awesome to be able to vacuum without unpluging the sweeper
We were lucky to have a large storage shed though, and a 7 X 10 basement. Granted, my kids were preschooler and toddler at the time, but the people who lived there before me had two teenagers.
 
#14 ·
I'd say of course it can be done. IME, however, putting the boys in separate rooms will likely do nothing to curb sibling rivalry issues, and instead of one mess, you'll have 2. That's what happened whenever my mom tried to give my sisters each their own room (they're twins). At various times we were in a 2 bedroom (all 3 of us sharing--sucked to be me, the eldest), in a 3 bedroom (a room for me and a room for them), a 4 bedroom (most of our childhood) with either them in one room, me in the other, the 4th spare, or one of them and me in one, a foster sib and the other in the other, or me and foster sib in one, them in the other, or...most every combination, anyway. For a while they were given separate rooms (while foster sis and I continued to share--she was a year older, same grade, zip common interests), and as I said, all that resulted was the Chaos that was my sisters was spread into 2 rooms instead of condensed in 1, and there were perhaps more arguments in the hallway. It didn't last long.

Now they live in separate states and only fight occasionally (I always know because one or the other calls ME to kvetch about it). Of course, they're almost 27 now, so...

My point is that your DD will eventually need her own room (w/ spacing she could maybe share w/ younger of brothers, but probably not for long), so if it was me I'd go for a 3 bedroom but plan for the boys to continue sharing.
 
#15 ·
Yes, it can be done. We had four of us in an 800 sq foot two bedroom for years. DH and I actually took the smaller room and let the children share the larger room (they have more toys). For the OP, I'd say try your very best to find a 3 bedroom, or even one with a garage that you can convert into a room for the oldest boy. Loft beds are wonderful ways to free up floor space and add more living space, too. In 6 or 8 years, hopefully your circumstances will be a little better financially and you will be able to move into a slightly bigger house. Then again, perhaps in 7 or 8 years, your eldest son might move out and go to college.

Good luck house hunting!

eta: I think each boy should get their own room for now...perhaps in a few years, if it gets to the point where DD needs her own space, then you can have the boys share, once the youngest is old enough to do so peacefully with your eldest. Just an idea.
 
#16 ·
Yep! Just posted on another thread, we are 2 adults, 2 kids in 960 sf or so. We are lucky to have a huge porch/deck and tons of storage space (basement, garage, shed), which helps a ton. But inside the space we really have to keep things simple, little furniture, few toys. My 8 yo dd has her dolls and a tiny bookshelf under her loft bed, my 6 yo ds has his books (his love) and a basket of stuffed animals and small toys under his. Then a toybox full of dressups. That's it. In the basement we have some legos and train tracks and art supplies that come up as needed then get put back downstairs.

Not a lot of furniture is key. And constantly going through and decluttering. Logging off to go do that now, myself!
 
#17 ·
Sounds like a lot of good food for thought here. I like your thinking Zoebird and i wrote that book on my list to see if the library has...

Hey Roo, CYE.....

We currently live pretty decluttered, it is sjut the boys room, ug! Am planning on having a heart to heart with the 11 year old... about clutter and moving and all that is going on. What he does, the 5 year old will (may) follow). For now I am thinking if we go to a 3 bedroom place I will hve the baby in with me (she is not yet a year) and will give each older boy their own room, then ina few years if I need a room for daughter and one can't be added on or created some other way, then I will see aoubt putting the boys back in together.

I'd love to hold out for more space but in this area (Noth East) that would mean a house with major structuaral issues and I really need to get a place in pretty good shape.

I agree, minimal furniture makes it a lot better feeling ina small space.

Sheila
 
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