Compact Houses: 50 Creative Floor Plans for Well-Designed Small Homes

Since I'm looking to put a small cabin/cottage on my property in the low (4000' level) Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, I bought both this book - Compact Houses - as well as its earlier (2009) sister book Compact Cabins (see separate review). Like Compact Cabins, this uses the first half of the book to present 50 house designs/ideas (not "full blown" plans) for a variety of houses. There are a variety of plans up to 1400 square feet in size, most single level, a few two story. The latter half of the book goes into the author's ideas re: small house design, siting & construction, which I found very useful for a potential DIY'er.Between the two books, I preferred the Compact Cabins book since the designs in it lent themselves more closely to what I was looking for/needed. Unfortunately many of these designs were not suitable for what I was looking for in that 1) those with steep enough roof pitch to work in an area/altitude where "snow load" on a roof would be a consideration, were also going to have a vaulted ceiling which would cost the proverbial "arm & a leg" to heat at 4000' level for a Sierra Nevada winter, while 2) too many others were of the "Atomic Style" with roof lines too shallow to meet snow load considerations without having to over-engineer the roof and other considerations. For a different locale and/or area of the country many of the Compact Houses would be an excellent choice!I found the information in the latter part of the book did not duplicate what the author said in Compact Cabins, but complimented it, so was happy to have both books & believe anyone who bought both would not regret it. Very well done on both counts!

This is fascinating! And the big surprise was a floor plan I had come up with based on an old London apartment I'd seen years ago. I think this book is really fun and helpful with floor plans. I found it a touch stone to imagining and reimagining my own existing space. If you are as interested in tiny an small living as I am, check out my review of Tiny House Living: Ideas For Building and Living Well In Less than 400 Square Feet. That has my "philosophy." This book proves helpful in making all of this practical for me. And one floor plan is a U shape that surrounds a lovely idea for an outdoor space ... very unSunset magazine meaning no barbecues, etc.Don't get me wrong: I like Sunset Magazine as it showcases small spaces well used ... but making up for a lack of indoor space by moving essential living space outdoors doesn't work in areas where the weather challenges you to do that. And sometimes small is not a great term as the magazine uses it. One year the magazine did an article on small bathrooms the size of which would hold both of bathrooms!

Most of these plans are pretty good, with a few having extravagant extras that go against the grain of "compact". Nearly all of them have bathrooms that open out into common areas like the kitchen or living room. So if you're a shy pooper, you might have to look harder for more privacy. Still a good book, and I'm glad to have it.

I really thought this would be the book my fiance and I would pluck a small house plan from without the need for too much modification, but I was a little disappointed in this second book in the 'Compact' series. I actually preferred the design and layouts from Compact Cabins in the end. The interior layouts were good, but the aesthetics of the outside of these homes were SO basic as to be unattractive. Vast exterior walls with tiny windows or no windows at all. Uninspiring shapes. Bland front walls that screamed for a functional porch or even a roof over the door had none.The compact cabin book did a much better job of breaking up space or having the quirks of the design have function or make sense. There were many instances of wasted space (long hallways connecting what are essentially two small houses) that we found odd for a book that touts maximizing the energy efficiency and function of minimal space. Quite a few of the home plans were kind of 'too big' in that they were normal size. One house in particular had a garage that was literally as big as the rest of the house, if not bigger. Seems like a waste of space to me. The small section on tips to make multipurpose features like drawers in stairs or having fold-away elements in the home was great but all too brief. Those are my only complaints, and they are personal taste, of course.If nothing else, the book got us thinking about how to start with these plans and tweak them even more, and I love the retro look of the illustrations and the feel, layout and presentation of the entire book.Despite these gripes, I actually like these books very much. I hope to see more of them in the future and work from them.

This is a great book for someone downsizing from a 4,000, 3000, and even 2000 sq. ft. home, but may not be ideal for the tiny and micro-home lovers, although there are some great space saving ideas in the middle of the book they might like. This book is for someone who wants a small home, which is much bigger than tiny or micro homes. I read a review with some complaints that I personally did not completely agree with. Yes, there are a couple of windows out of place or missing in the drawings from the plan, but only a few and you still get a very good idea of what the house would look like when finished. There are some plans with long hallways, but to me that screams "Storage Space". Long hallways can be ideal for bookshelves and storage cabinets. You may have to bump them out a foot or two, but there are those who have stuff to store like books, craft supplies, hobbies, and seasonal holiday décor that need a place. You could have storage without using an extra room for it. I really enjoyed it.

This book was not particularly useful for me personally as it is American therefore not always suited to British taste or housing styles. I did not realise this when I bought it.

Cover example attracted me to the book and essentially I ended up with a book with just that floor plan and no others I could use. Hoped for more northern climate options and several designs had snow load vulnerabilities. Cover should include subtitle indicating "mostly suitable for south of 49th parallel".

Was hoping this book would be a bit more "groovy-70's hippy house" style. The plans are fairly boring and uninspired. Could be a good jumping off point for a creative person, though.

Great book good ideas

Good start for tentative floor plans to get conversation started with architects and contractors. Highly recommended and illustrative for enthusiasts.