To be closer to her aging mother, she built a tiny home in her backyard

There’s a lot of reasons why someone might downsize their home.

Maybe it’s because mortgage rates are hitting record highs. Or kids have left the nest. For Drea Parker in Kernersville, North Carolina, she chose to downsize to be closer to her aging mother.

After her mother went through a total knee replacement and needed help recovering, Parker realized she could no longer live in the farmhouse she was renting.

“The farmhouse was 15 minutes away from mom, but I wanted to be like five minutes driving or even walking distance,” recalled Parker. Instead of finding another house to rent nearby, she decided to build a tiny home as close as she could possibly be to her mother without moving in.

“So I started scouting shed companies, and this one company had a cottage model that I fell in love with,” said Parker. From there, she went about customizing her tiny home that would be built in the backyard of her mother’s property.

“It has meant a lot that I could be here to help mom,” said Parker. “It’s definitely helped me to feel better that I'm able to be so accessible, while also telling her tonight I need to have me time.”

To hear more of Parker’s story, click the audio player above.