The Not-So-Big House

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Here are two great articles on the upsurge in the Not-So-Big House, embodied in the Katrina Cottage.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1002/p01s01-ussc.html and

http://www.cnu.org/news/index.cfm?formAction=press_release_item&press_release_id
=77&CFID=12865200&CFTOKEN=640623

These small houses are one answer to housing affordability. They are made affordable by virtue of their small size and not because of inferior materials or construction techniques. They can be added on to as the owner's financial condition changes. And when you think of the ancillary dwelling unit, think of a Katrina Cottage over a garage and you will get the idea immediately. These are very flexible and offer many different live and work options. They can be occupied by the teenager or college student or bounce-back kid, by the mother-in-law (aka "granny"), by whole family (an entertainment, media room), by guests, or by the home business. They can be rented out for rents that by all reports exceed the amount of mortgage payment necessary amortize the added loan used to build them. These types of "not-so-big houses" are one way the new traditional neighborhood achieves higher densities. You can look for ancillary dwelling units throughout community as well as small houses in the bungalow courts in the new traditional neighborhood on State Street.
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