A Portland resident shares her experience of living in a tiny home, and what to do when disaster strikes, in a new Tiny Home Tours YouTube video. Rosemary's 8.5x24-foot home, named Lemon Drop Tiny, has gone viral not just for its cute color but also for its incredible resilience. 

Rosemary describes that just as she was nearing completion of the build, a windstorm toppled a tree onto the house, causing extensive damage. Rather than give up, Rosemary used her tiny-home insurance policy to rebuild and finally move in. 

Viewers were struck by her upbeat attitude — as she walked us through the house, Rosemary frequently noted how living tiny has been a positive thing in her life, even after such a setback. 

Inside the tour, we see that every inch of the Lemon Drop was carefully planned. The kitchen has cabinets under a beautiful butcher-block countertop, along with a large farmhouse sink, a two-burner induction cooktop, and a toaster oven, all squeezed into 200 square feet. 

Like many tiny-home residents, Rosemary chose this lifestyle for freedom and savings. Tiny houses can cost a small fraction of the price of a normal home. The average tiny house is roughly 87% cheaper than a conventional home (about $67,000 vs. nearly $500,000), and 85% of tiny-home owners pay no mortgage.

This tiny home owner in Dallas says her 320-square-foot home allows her to ‌travel and do the things she wants to do, because she has essentially eliminated housing debt. Utility bills shrink, too, as heating and cooling a tiny house uses a tiny fraction of the energy.

A study from OilPrice.com found that heating an average house produces over 8,000 pounds of carbon pollution annually, versus only 558 pounds for an average-sized tiny home. These homes require fewer materials to build and significantly less energy to maintain, which substantially lowers the owner's carbon footprint. 

Pairing a compact design with efficient systems, and even rooftop solar, which can push your energy bill toward $0, makes the savings add up. Living small can be hard at first, but the payoffs — lower bills, less waste, and more freedom — are real.

Commenters on the YouTube video loved Rosemary's outlook. "I love the positivity," one said. 

Another commented: "So colorful, airy, and open!"

One YouTube user praised the interior: "The colors are very calming. The design is very nice. You did an excellent job."

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