The Tiny house Blog

Why A Tiny Home Would Benefit People with Disabilities

By
Jason Francis
Designed and built over 100 custom tiny homes, lived on a sailboat for 9 months, and loves to live life to the fullest with his wife and their 4 kids.
Updated on:
October 27, 2023
tiny house ellie

View Ellie by Teacup Tiny Homes

People everywhere say that owning a big mansion is the best symbol of success. 

And, think about it, after years of saving up and working, wouldn’t residing in a big, spacious, luxurious home be a dream come true?

While the dream is definitely alluring, the reality is often much less desirable. For a certain subset of people—particularly the elderly demographic and people with disabilities—owning a large home is simply more trouble than it’s worth.

From the extra maintenance costs to the frequent upkeep, living in a large home can come with its fair share of drawbacks. 

And, while it may feel like you’re returning to square one, moving to a tiny home may prove to be an unlikely but simple solution to combat these large-scale problems. This is especially true for disabled individuals living alone or in a small household.

Keen to learn more? Here are some reasons why living in a tiny home beats living in a spacious one, particularly for folks with mobility and chronic health issues.

  1. Makes moving around easier

If you need crutches or a wheelchair to move around, you’re much better off living in a single-floor home with a modest surface area. 

A tiny home will make it easier for you to go from one place to another without overexerting yourself. For people with mobility issues, this can be a blessing as they won’t have to request additional assistance or risk hurting themselves by covering more ground than they need to.

Furthermore, a compact house design ensures that essential items and amenities are within arm's reach. 

Disabled people wouldn’t have to rely on others to do simple tasks like picking up niche items like a photo album or a medical report in an out-of-the-way cabinet—a compact home ensures that these items are safe, sound, and highly accessible.

This enhanced mobility can promote a sense of self-reliance among disabled people, all while keeping their living conditions approachable and convenient.

  1. Downsizing gives you more capital

If you are disabled and currently own a big home, selling it may be in your best interest. This is especially true if you’re not maximizing the rooms and amenities in your present house. 

And once you’ve secured a deal, transferring to a tiny home can be both an excellent liquidation strategy and quality-of-life improvement.

Selling your home can be an ordeal on its own, but once you’ve successfully reaped the gains of a property sale, you can use the additional income for a lot of things.

This increased capital is especially useful for individuals with disabilities as they have more hospital bills and health-related expenses that they have to pay off. 

Besides medical expenses, a house sale can grant disabled people additional funds to pay off existing bills, scale their business or make smart investments—helping increase the quality of life of these individuals in the long run.

tiny house ellie room
View Ellie by Teacup Tiny Homes

  1. Lowers utility and maintenance bills

A big house comes with even bigger expenses. If you’re finding it increasingly more difficult to keep utility expenses at bay, a sound strategy is to switch to a tiny home.

Big houses tend to have more rooms, appliances, bathrooms, and lights in their vicinity. If these things are constantly running, it can take a toll on your electricity and water bills.

Furthermore, temperature control units like A/Cs and heaters generate more power in spacious rooms. This can further increase the utility costs.

And, of course, let’s not get started with the upfront expenses of acquiring enough appliances and assets too. Repair and cleaning costs may also be higher than average due to the number of appliances a big home necessitates.

By switching to a small home, you’ll be in more control of your appliance list and utility bills. This can help you save on ongoing, operational costs—which can add up significantly over the years.

  1. Easier to turn disable-friendly

When you live in a small house, making modifications to suit specific disabilities becomes much more streamlined and approachable. 

With a small space, adding railings, wider doorways, or other disability-friendly equipment becomes more straightforward and cost-effective. 

This doesn’t come as easily for large-scale homes, as they’d need extensive renovations to reach the same level of impact as renovations done in a smaller home.

Furthermore, there’ll be a lot fewer moving parts for the family and the disabled person to put on top of mind, such as fewer chances of items breaking down. These perks make a smaller home a more suitable option.

  1. Quick and easier to clean

Another incredibly underrated perk of living in a tiny home is the increased ease of cleaning. Disabled people tend to have reduced mobility and tire more easily when compared to the average person. This makes cleaning duties a much more challenging undertaking.

Fortunately, you don’t have to do cleaning duties alone; you can also enlist the aid of NDIS cleaning services with Absolute Domestics to accomplish the work for you.

Furthermore, a large home can cause feelings of being overwhelmed with the amount of cleaning tasks you have to do every period. While some people are lucky to have family and outside help to do their duties for them, not everyone is as blessed. 

If you want to maintain a clean house (which you absolutely should) while also staying healthy, moving to a tiny home may be a more fitting lifestyle choice.

tiny house ellie bathroom
View Ellie by Teacup Tiny Homes
  1. More location and property flexibility

Unless you’re loaded with cash, you probably don’t have your sights on moving from your current home to a stately mansion in the city center. 

With real estate prices continuing to skyrocket annually, it’s not an uncommon sentiment for the average person to feel squeezed financially by the nationwide housing crisis—disabled folks included.

That said, we all have our reasons for wanting to move away from our current home, whether it’s due to opportunities, medical reasons, or a growing family.

Regardless of the reason, there’s a higher likelihood for small-to-average-sized accommodations to be advertised and available in the market. This includes studios, flats, condominiums, apartments, and average suburban houses.

If you want to move near the city, whether it’s for medical reasons or otherwise, there’ll likely be a larger supply of ready-to-go, tiny houses in the area.

  1. Helps in reducing carbon footprint

Besides the personal benefits that come with owning a tiny home, you’re also doing the world a favor by living more compactly.

Living in a tiny house means you’ll be expending fewer resources daily. You won’t be consuming many non-renewable resources as compared to living in a bigger home.

Furthermore, you’re also using fewer construction materials to build the house. This translates to less construction and commercial waste being produced.

A smaller home can also subconsciously alter your lifestyle. Given a small living area, you may be inclined to purchase fewer things and live with minimalism in mind. This can be healthy for both you and the community at large.

With the world grappling with an ongoing climate crisis, it takes the collective effort of the people to reduce their waste production. 

The struggles of living with a disability can’t be understated. By reducing your carbon footprint, you’ll play a small but vital role in reducing the odds of heat-related incidents, which disabled people are at high risk of.

Conclusion

In conclusion, tiny homes offer unique advantages for individuals with disabilities, providing a more accessible, cost-effective, and sustainable living option. These compact spaces can be customized to meet specific accessibility needs, facilitating greater mobility and independence. With a focus on minimizing clutter and maintenance, tiny homes can make daily life more manageable. They also promote a sense of community and are often located in peaceful settings, contributing to overall well-being. Whether for physical, sensory, or cognitive challenges, tiny homes offer a fresh perspective on comfortable and inclusive living.

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