LIVE SMALL

In Europe and North America, the size of an average family is getting smaller, but homes are not. In many countries, they are getting bigger. Bigger homes are more expensive, and heating them in cold weather is worse for the environment. Many people believe it’s time to think again about the size of our homes. Sixteen-year-old Austin Hay is building a home on his parents’ driveway. It has everything important, including a bathroom, a kitchen and an attic bedroom with a low ceiling, but it’s only 2.4 meters wide and 3.7 meters long. “When I was a kid, I wanted to build a treehouse,” Austin explains. “But this house is on wheels, and that’s a lot cooler.” Austin doesn’t do any building during the week— he’s busy with homework and playing baseball. But he usually works hard on his house on the weekend. “Right now I’m working on the doors. They’re really easy, so my dad isn’t helping me. He only helps with the difficult things.” Austin is sleeping in his little house this summer. There isn’t a fireplace yet, so in the winter he’ll move back across the yard to his parents’ house. And in the future? “College is very expensive in the US, but it’ll be cheaper for me because I can take my little house with me. I can live in it anywhere.”