I’ve been living in my tiny home now for almost two years and it’s because of the generous individuals who have allowed our family to park our tiny home on their land. We would otherwise not have anywhere to park and live in our tiny house and the whole dream would be rendered nearly impossible for us in our area.
Having a place to park a tiny home is what holds a lot of people back from taking the big leap into tiny living.
Some are lucky enough to have their own land that they can pursue their newly desired lifestyle on while others are left searching for a place to park their beloved abode. Tiny house hosting on privately owned land has become one of the most common means of living somewhere in a tiny house. It is the openness and support of tiny house hosts that make living the tiny dream possible for so many families!
You might be very surprised who may be willing to host a tiny dwelling on their property and it’s important to be open to asking anyone.
Not everyone you ask may have the ability to host, but they may know someone who can. The first property we lived on was on the land of a wonderful friend and coworker who came to me after hearing me discuss my tiny house journey at work. She offered to let me park and live on her 10 acres about 30 minutes south of where I was working. She and her husband were so accommodating of our needs.
They allowed me to hire an electrician to install the necessary electrical outlet on their barn which also gave us access to their laundry room. They were so supportive of this new life I was building for my daughter and me.
Living on their land gave us a sense of community
We helped each other care and watch over our animals, provided a second set of eyes on the property for both their home and ours, and company since their property was somewhat isolated out in the country.
Both our families felt less lonely having great neighbors nearby. Eventually, my partner moved into the tiny house with us and it was time for us to move our home further north to be closer to my daughter’s school and our jobs. I began networking through local community groups and tiny house groups for my area. That is how we met Tara and Becky Lien and discovered Little Acorn Sanctuary.
Tara and Becky live on seven acres of land in Minnesota
They run a non-profit animal sanctuary named Little Acorn Sanctuary which rescues chickens and goats from tragic situations, some with various handicaps.
They provide the animals with a loving and safe home to live out their lives while teaching their two young daughters, as well as the community, about animal care, animal rights and how to live a more compassionate lifestyle through the love of animals.
Little did they know when they began their animal sanctuary that their land would serve as a sanctuary for tiny home owners as well! We are not the first tiny dwelling the Lien ladies have hosted and I really admired what they were doing with the sanctuary as well as their land. Tara was gracious enough to share some of their journey as tiny house hosts.
1. Can you tell us how and when you decided to begin a nonprofit animal sanctuary?
Our family of four lived in suburbia for a few years before deciding we wanted more land, and we happened upon a property for sale not far away. The land was overgrown farmland that had not been used for more than 15 years.
So we bought it, built a house and eventually got chickens and two goats as pets. Even though we were passionate about animal rights and followed quite a few sanctuaries on social media, we didn’t consider starting our own until we learned of Martin. Martin was a blind baby goat who was posted on Facebook.
The farmer stated stated he would “dispose” of Martin unless someone took him in. After rescuing Martin, we decided to go “all in” on the idea of a sanctuary. It’s been quite an adventure since!?
2. What brought on the idea of hosting a tiny dwelling on your property?
We have always loved the idea of tiny house living. I think we have watched ALL the tiny house shows on TV? and love the idea of increasing joy by living simply and tiny. With our sanctuary work, and all the things we need for that, tiny house living is not a possibility for us, but we still wanted to be part of someone’s adventure, and what better way than to host?
3. Did you have any idea that when you created an animal sanctuary that you would also be creating a sanctuary for tiny homeowners?
It didn’t occur to us at the time, but it makes sense. We are all about community and connection, empathy and understanding. Not only are we advocates for animal rights, we are also passionate about the environment and climate change.
The tiny house movement has done amazing things to decrease dwellers’ carbon footprints, and we want to support that as much as possible.
4. What were you looking to gain from being a host?
First, we were first looking for community. It was new to us to be out in the middle of nowhere, where cows were our closest neighbors, so the idea of a tiny house neighbor was very exciting. Of course, a little extra money and help around the sanctuary also sounded wonderful!
5. What do you enjoy most about providing sanctuary to tiny dwellers?
I think the sense of community is so enjoyable but also we really love seeing how excited visitors get about the tiny homes. When they come to visit with the residents, they always ask about the houses and have so many questions. We have had many people ask to tour the homes. They will talk at length about how they have dreamed about owning a tiny house.
6. What did you have to consider before making the decision to proceed with hosting another family at the Sanctuary?
We talked a lot about privacy and space. We want the homeowners to feel like they have their own space and freedom to make the area their own. Of course, we also talked about the logistics of having renters: utilities, parking, mutual respect and understanding, the usual stuff that comes with renting to anyone.
7. What advice would you give other people interested in becoming hosts themselves?
Know your town or city regulations, figure out electrical if they are using that. We were lucky enough to have an electrician as one of our tiny homeowners, but the setup was very intense. Also, get to know the family, find out their short-term and long-term plans, and consider the whole process an adventure! We have learned so much about the tiny house community and met wonderful people from the experience.
8. How do you think tiny house hosting impacts families and communities?
I think hosting has allowed us to help spread the word about the tiny house movement. We really enjoy being a part of the community in that way. We hope that our hosting allows others to consider either hosting others or going tiny themselves.
9. What are your visions for the future of this land and the sanctuary?
We are hoping to turn much of the land into native prairie grasses and wildflowers, to restore the land to more of its natural habitat. We also hope to expand our sanctuary, building a big, heated barn for our residents, and to continue to spread awareness about farm animal rights and climate change.
We are honored to call Little Acorn Sanctuary home and would have never been able to experience this if it weren’t for our willingness to network and ask. There are a lot of people who love the idea of tiny homes, but are unable or not interested in living the tiny lifestyle themselves. Hosting a tiny home on your property is just one great way to support the movement and provide a sense of home for someone who has taken the leap.
For anyone wanting to go tiny, be willing to talk about your journey with others. For those of you willing to host, reach out to the tiny house community and offer a safe haven to a tiny dweller. Tiny house hosts have the power to make dreams come true!
Little Acorn Sanctuary depends on donations to care for all their residents, some of whom require specialized care. They are currently focused on raising funds to build a large, heated barn to house all their residents throughout the long and brutal Minnesota winters.
Without this barn, Tara and Becky have to occasionally bring farm animals into their garage and home to protect them from some of the harsh winter days and nights. They are also raising funds to fit two of their residents with prosthetic legs, Timmy and Sven, two goats who came to the sanctuary with severe frostbite on both rear limbs.
Timmy and Sven have lost both their rear limbs and have slowly healed, but they are a tremendous example of how resilient animals can be when they are provided with compassionate care, love and support!
If you are interested in making a donation, please visit their Facebook page and click “Donate”. If you are interested in becoming a Patreon member and provide the sanctuary with consistent monthly donations, you can visit their Patreon page. If you are unable to donate please follow, share and invite friends to help grow their community! You can also find them on Facebook and Instagram.
Little Acorn Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) organization and all donations are tax deductible.
Written by: Stephanie Marie Kubes for Tiny House Magazine Issue 82
