How She Became a Debt Free Homeowner at 67, After Being Homeless

Original author：Tiny Home Tours

Original source：https://www.youtube.com/embed/hLsUYuWm-Sk

This video is sponsored by #MrCool. Learn more by visiting their website here: https://bit.ly/mrcooltht Check out our other social media platforms! https://linktr.ee/tinyhometours Join our newsletter for all things living tiny! https://bit.ly/THT-Newsletter Take our quiz to find what tiny is right for you - https://bit.ly/tinyhomequiz Interested In Being Featured On The Channel? : https://bit.ly/THTTourApplication Check out our Podcast: Podcast : https://bit.ly/tinyhometourspodcast VIDEO DESCRIPTION: After her aunt passed away and left her a house in a neighborhood that had turned dangerous, Laura sold it and bought her own tiny home outright: $152,000 all in for 300 sq ft, Charleston floor plan. No mortgage. No stairs to a sleeping loft. Just a home she calls total peace, and it is completely hers. Laura was caring for her mother when her mother died of cancer in 2015. She could not afford their place alone, lost all four of her jobs, and became homeless. She eventually saved enough for a 50 and over community, a 465 sq ft studio she loved. About a year in, her grandmother and aunt, who lived together, both grew sick. When her grandmother went into a care home, her aunt asked Laura to move in. Her aunt passed in 2023 and left Laura the house. Laura sold it and bought a home of her own in September 2024. Walk through the front door and you land in Laura's living room, which she calls a perfect layout. She had the builder skip the window near the entry so she could mount her TV instead, and kept the standard shiplap and wood grain trim throughout. Her sleeper sofa pulls out and has built in storage, cloth instead of leather because it fit the space exactly. She spends most of her time here watching wildlife out the window, turkeys, a red fox, goats wandering down the hill. A MRCOOL mini split, installed with the home by her builder, keeps the room comfortable with remote and app control. MRCOOL is the sponsor of this video, and their mini splits are DIY friendly, so anyone building their own tiny home can install one without hiring a technician. The dinette set and its two chairs came from her aunt's house, one of the few things Laura kept. Her pantry, bed, and armoires are from Wayfair, self assembled and measured to fit exactly. In the kitchen: a farm sink, soft close cabinets, and a compact convection oven she says fits perfectly. Magnetic spice racks, an idea she found on YouTube, keep ingredients close for the cooking she shares with neighbors. Across from the kitchen, Laura's bathroom has a standard shower, plus a vanity and shelf she installed herself. Her one regret is the sliding barn door, given the choice again she would pick a pocket door. In the bedroom, she swapped the rear window for a full door for a future deck. Nearby: a laundry nook with her washer and dryer combo, and a closet with her tankless water heater and storage below. Out back, Laura built her own sanctuary: artificial turf, a gazebo she assembled herself, Adirondack chairs, a privacy screen, and storage bins for grilling gear and holiday decor. Laura's home runs on a hybrid off grid system, solar with battery storage and a water tank, switching to grid or city water on demand. That flexibility carried her through Hurricane Helene in 2024, her solar kept the lights on after the power went out, until it ran out. Laura owns the home outright, no mortgage, no financing. THE DETAILS Home: Incredible Tiny Homes, Charleston model Size: approximately 300 sq ft Base price: approximately $89,900 All in price (solar, water tank, tankless heater, door/window mods): approximately $152,000 Financing: none, paid in full Lot rent: $675/month Monthly utilities: electric $175, water around $22, propane under $20 HER ADVICE "My major life quest is to one day have my own land and to be able to grow foods that are naturally grown and don't have pesticides in them, and to be able to give them out freely to people, because like I said, I was homeless and I didn't even have food at one time. And I had neighbors who bought me food. I had a best friend who bought me food, thank God for Debbie." SHOT BY: https://www.instagram.com/squyd_inkk/ EDITED BY: https://www.instagram.com/squyd_inkk/ TINY HOME TOURS LINKS: Business Inquiries - tinyhometours@thestation.io Subscribe - https://www.youtube.com/c/TinyHomeTours Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Tinyhome.tours/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/tinyhometours/ Newsletter : https://bit.ly/THT-Newsletter Podcast : https://bit.ly/tinyhometourspodcast Apply for a tour : https://bit.ly/THTTourApplication