This is actually a genius living situation.
The tiny home movement continues to sweep the nation. However, not every family is going about it the same way. Insider recently shared the story of Keli and Ryan Brinks and their two children, Lennox and Brody, who live in a tiny home “village” in London, Kentucky.
It all began in 2015, when the family had purchased a 21-acre piece of land there for $57,000, reports INSIDER. Instead of building one home on the land, they placed six tiny homes on the property, which cost them $20,000. They had no plans to rent these homes though—all six would be theirs.
The biggest of the six homes on the property measures 280 square feet. It has a (tiny) kitchen, living room, bedroom, as well as a full bathroom. This is where Keli and Ryan live. Farther down the property, their teen daughter Lennox, 18, and 16-year-old son Brodey, each have their own 160-square-foot-home.
“Initially, my husband wanted us all together in one cabin, but I argued on behalf of the kids for their own privacy,” Keli told Insider. While it’s true that the kids each have a reasonable amount of privacy in their own tiny home, their spaces lack one essential: bathrooms.
While three of the six homes are reserved for the family to sleep in, another tiny home is dedicated to bathrooms for the kids. Each teen gets their own bathroom; however, Lennox and Brodey have to walk outside to take a shower. The kids don’t seem to mind, though: “It seems much worse than it is. I just put a coat on if it’s cold or raining. I’ll just bundle up and run over there,” Lennox says. This tiny home also has a guest room and the family’s washer and dryer system, in addition to the two bathrooms.
So what are the other two homes used for? A 64-square-foot tiny home serves at the family’s office, which is where Keli and Ryan may go to work “from home.” Another 180-square-foot home serves as the pool house for the family. Here the family goes to spend time together and play games. The pool house also leads to the family’s above-ground pool.
Keli told Insider that her family chose this living arrangement to live a more sustainable lifestyle. These tiny houses conserve energy, as smaller spaces are easier to heat and cool. She also mentions that family is very adamant on following the rules of RRRR (refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle), and between the four of them, only produce one bag of trash per week.
