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Design Ideas for Small Houses

Looking for small-house inspiration? FHB has you covered with this collection of more than two-dozen articles about well-built compact homes.

What these houses lack in square footage, they make up for in both sensibility and style. A few are truly tiny houses, but most are just modest homes that have been designed to help their homeowners live well within their means. These small yet efficient homes reveal everything that there is to love about downsizing—and there’s a lot. From home plans to design inspiration and beyond, this collection of Fine Homebuilding articles is full of smart ideas to get the most out of a home.

  • Design 1
    Same Square Footage, but Bigger

    When converting this house on Martha's Vineyard from a two-family to a single-family, LDa Architecture & Interiors reworked the floor plan to make the home feel more spacious.

  • 2
    Small-Home Harmony

    Tight space restrictions, unique cultural requirements, and the desire to age in place informed this compact, efficient design.

  • Design 3
    The New Small House

    This book excerpt features 4 homes that represent essential design strategies for building comfortable small homes.

  • Design 4
    The Smaller, The Better

    Architect Nir Pearlson designs a compact, sustainable home on the edge of an Oregon hamlet.

  • Design 5
    Inspiring Ideas for Small Houses

    Inspiration for small houses and great ideas for living with less square footage

  • 6
    hutchins-small-home
    5 Small Home Plans to Admire

    To help get the design of your small home right, check out these 5 small home plans to inspire the way you live.

  • 7
    Small Houses are a Big Deal

    While there are plenty of really big houses being built (do 2.54 people really need five bedrooms and over 3,000 sq. ft.?), there's no missing that small houses are a…

  • Design 8
    Little House in the City

    A compact home can feel roomy if the living space expands into the yard and the neighborhood around it.

  • Design 9
    Downsizing Below Grade

    Lanefab Design/Build’s client downsized from an adjacent 1920s main house into this 750-sq.-ft. single-bedroom abode with detached garage. Both the house and the garage were designed around a large magnolia…

  • Design 10
    Laneway House: Affordable First-Home Alternative

    A young family decides to build an architect-designed accessory dwelling unit on land owned by a relative instead of settling for a crowded condo.

  • Design 11
    Small House, Built Right

    Think $50 per square foot and $50 a month for utilities are unattainable? Government-sponsored research proves otherwise.

  • Design 12
    Downsizing From Suburbia to an Urban Bungalow

    Two sisters hire an architect to turn a dilapidated Craftsman house in the city into a cozy shared retirement home.

  • Design 13
    small home in Oregon
    Small Home in Eastern Oregon Suits Its Site

    This compact, panelized home takes its design inspiration from the vast Western landscape and local building traditions.

  • Design 14
    Bringing in the Light

    This energy-efficient bungalow makes for a cozy — and warm — retreat.

  • Design 15
    Mountaintop Treehouse

    This 440-sq.-ft. house shows that well-designed homes can be comfortable and inviting no matter what their size.

  • Design 16
    Smart Storage for Small Spaces

    Add convenience and comfort to small kitchens and baths.

  • Design 17
    Beautiful Small Bathrooms

    These five bathrooms prove that good things do indeed come in small packages.

  • Design 18
    Compact Kitchens

    Smart design moves make these four small-house kitchens feel comfortable, not cramped.

  • Design 19
    Texas Transformation

    This small 1940s bungalow was redesigned to create an open and comfortable contemporary home.

  • Design 20
    Small-House Secrets

    This 800-sq.-ft. cottage uses 10 strategies for great comfort and style.

  • Design 21
    A Modern Modular At Home in Minneapolis

    A small house on a small lot is the right choice for a growing family.

  • Design 22
    7 Small Bathroom Layouts

    Learn some design secrets for remodeling a small bathroom floorplan layout without breaking the bank.

  • Design 23
    Live Tall on a Small Footprint

    Two projects smaller than 1500 sq. ft. illustrate how to design a comfortable home with little impact on the site.

  • Design 24
    Big Ideas for Small Houses

    Multiuse rooms, built-in furniture, and carefully orchestrated sightlines are just a few of the tools that can help you to get the most out of the space you have

  • Design 25
    Smaller House, Better Investment

    Whether you’re planning for retirement or looking to live life to the fullest right now, buying a small house might be the best way to achieve both goals

  • Design 26
    Small & Spacious

    Five ideas for making a pocket-size house feel like so much more.

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  1. Theresa_in_Tucson | May 22, 2020 07:34pm | #1

    Some of these houses are not what I would call "pocket sized". They might be "pocket sized" by the McMansion standard but the house I grew up in was 1700 sq ft (one addition, the original was 1300 sq ft) four bedrooms 2 1/2 baths and housed 2 adults and 8 children. A 1500 sq ft house (Small & Spacious) for one is very generous indeed.
    Theresa in Tucson

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