10 downsides to living and traveling in a tiny house, according to a woman who has lived in one since 2013

"Living simply isn't simple," Spesard told Insider. "It can actually be challenging because you have limited space, so you need to be more organized, and you always need to do your dishes right after you eat. You have to go grocery shopping more often because you have a smaller refrigerator, smaller pantry."

Because of the small space, Spesard cannot fit a washer and dryer in her tiny house, nor can she fit a dishwasher. Instead, she has to go to the laundromat regularly and wash all her dishes by hand.

Spesard said she is aware that some tiny houses are able to fit in those creature comforts, but it comes at a price.

"If you're putting in all those things, you're reducing the amount of space in your tiny house, which is very important because you need to be able to stretch out," she said. "You want to be able to have a little bit of clarity and some empty space in your home. People disregard that sometimes when they're designing a tiny house ... and then it feels like you're living in a storage container filled with a bunch of junk."

"Let's say I just got done snowboarding, I'm tracking in snow. If I just got done with a hike, I'm tracking in mud," Spesard said in a YouTube video. "It's really easy to get your house dirty when you live in a small space, especially when you live with a dog. I am sweeping this house constantly."

Additionally, the dirty smells — like a wet dog — can easily get trapped in the small space and it's difficult to get them out, according to Spesard.

Spesard has one small cupboard with three shelves in the kitchen that acts as her closet for clothing. When she goes to friends' weddings, she purchases the dress and high heels and then immediately gives them away because they do not fit in her tiny house.

"When you have guests over, you probably don't have a spare bedroom for them or a second bathroom, so they're going to have to be the kind of people that don't need as much privacy," she said. "It's not for everybody."

"One of my least favorite things to do in my tiny house is make the bed, especially after washing the sheets," she said in the video. "I'm in a loft, so it's a very confined space. I kind of feel like I'm doing acrobatics [or] barrel rolls over myself to try to get the sheets on the bed the correct way."

Spesard said she was surprised at how expensive it was to tow her home. She originally wanted to save money while traveling in her tiny house, but it was difficult when she learned just how much money she'd be putting into the gas mileage.

"It's more expensive than an RV because it's built like a house, not like a tin can. Most of them aren't aerodynamic," she said. "You're also going to need a huge truck to tow a tiny house because they're so heavy."

To save money, Spesard had to find a permanent location in a community to park her tiny house long-term to avoid paying for gas.

While tiny houses are known for their small sizes, they're considered large when they're a moving vehicle on the road. Spesard found she had to plan out her journeys well in advance to avoid low bridges, old bridges, and winding roads because her tiny house simply wouldn't be able to fit.

"Especially, on the East Coast where bridges are 12 feet in height, you'll take off the roof of your house," she said.

In Savannah, Georgia, Spesard said she even struggled with the giant oak trees that had large branches.

"There's no app that tells you if the limbs of trees are 13 feet or lower," she said. "You have to get really good at depth perception, asking yourself how tall is that tree and how tall is that power line? I've taken out a few power lines and definitely a few branches."

Zoning laws are different all across the country, especially when it comes to tiny houses. This means Spesard can't park her house wherever she wants, even if she purchases her own piece of land. Instead, she has to research ahead of time and ensure she is following the local laws when parking her home in new areas.

"Everywhere you go, people are going to want to talk about it," Spesard said. "You better be an outgoing person because if you stop for gas at a gas station, or if you're at a rest stop or campground, people will come knocking on your door wanting to see the inside. That can get old, for sure."

She said several times people came knocking on her door at 1 a.m., asking to take a peek at the interior. Eventually, she had to put up a sign, directing people to her website to look at pictures so that strangers wouldn't wake her when she slept.

Nonetheless, Spesard said all of this is worth it for the freedom she feels while calling a tiny house her home.

"It's not for everyone, but it can be a really awesome life tool that will change your life in many, many positive ways," she said. "I hope one day, my kids will use my tiny house, or I'll be able to travel with it. I think it will have many more lives because it paid itself off in so many ways. I'll probably keep it forever."

• Read more:
• I paid $1,000 to sleep in a tiny house on a remote island in the middle of New York City — and it was not worth the price
• As RV living surges in popularity, a couple who's lived on the road for 5 years says the increased demand at parks is forcing them to quit RV life
• I stayed in a $1,000 tiny house in a city and in a $100 tiny house in the suburbs, but I preferred the cheaper option — here's why
• 25 disappointing photos that show the ugly truth of living in a tiny house