I got laid off and couldn’t pay my mortgage, so I live in a shed in my backyard.

This essay as told is based on a conversation with Lauren Patton, 36, who built a tiny house in her backyard in Texas. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

After a few years in Chicago, I decided to return to Texas and make a fresh start. It was 2022, when the real estate market was booming and homes in Central Texas were being snapped up quickly.

I found a real estate agent on Instagram and she helped me buy a small bungalow – two bedrooms and about 1,000 square feet – for around $400,000. I bought alone; It was just me and my dog.

I had made a very small down payment on my house and took out a 30-year mortgage. My monthly payment was around $4,000, which was a lot at first, but I thought it was affordable considering my well-paying job.

At the time, I was working in technology and doing very well. I had worked my way up in data science and thought it would be a lucrative field. But I was a little wrong about that.

At the start of 2023, many layoffs took place in the technology sector. I found out the day after returning from a trip to South Africa that I had been made redundant. I was only given two months of severance and fired.

I could no longer pay my mortgage

For the first two months after my dismissal, everything was fine. I took time to relax, spent time with my family, and did things you can’t do while working. Then I started looking for work.

I wasn’t very worried at first. I was like, “Hey, I was responsible for data science. I’ll be able to find something. » But after interviews in many places, nothing was happening.

At that point, money was tight. I had very little savings and was still paying off a lot of credit card debt. I filed for unemployment, which brought me some money, and I started renting out my house on Airbnb to help cover my mortgage.

To make it work, I rented a room on the other side of town for about six months. But when my unemployment ended, I had to start crashing on people’s couches and driving for Lyft — basically doing whatever I could.

In 2024, I contacted a former boss and asked if I could get my old accounting job back. I did it, and although it paid a lot less than before, it sustained me for a while.

However, I had no savings and had cashed out my 401(k). I was terrified. My mortgage was so high; I thought my house was going to be foreclosed on. I was already about 30% underwater on the house, and its value had depreciated, so I still didn’t want to sell it.

I was 35 and I thought, “I can’t keep doing this.” I knew I had to do something. That’s when I had the idea to build a small structure in my garden to live in.

I left my house to settle in my garden

I wasn’t quite confident in my carpentry or carpentry skills, so I decided to buy a cabin style shed kit that I found out about on Instagram. I took out a loan and bought it for about $8,500.

While I was building the shed, I moved back into my main house and found a roommate to help me cover the mortgage. I charged about $1,200 a month for the room. It wasn’t a big part of my mortgage payment, but it helped. Looking back, I regret buying a two-bedroom house because there just aren’t enough rooms to rent.

The shed is approximately 100 square feet and the kit came with stackable wooden slats, beams and large windows, but it did not include a roof or floor. I also had to build the foundations. I also added an outbuilding with an outdoor shower and built fencing and other features around the property.

For the build, I relied on YouTube and ChatGPT – although ChatGPT definitely led me astray on some points, notably the roofing.

I officially finished construction in March 2025, although I’ve made adjustments since then – it’s never ending.

Since moving into the shed, I’ve been renting out my main home full-time on Airbnb and have hosted hundreds of guests.

I let Airbnb manage the prices. On a typical weekend night, I charge around $200; on a weekday during the school year, it’s closer to $125.

October is especially lucrative because of the Austin City Limits music festival. Last October, my house was about 96% occupied and my gross income was about $6,516.70. This isn’t normal – occupancy and nightly rates were higher – but Airbnb deducted $619 in service fees. I also had the house cleaned seven times for about $100 each time.

I invested some of the money I made on my mortgage and the shed bills – my total electric bill including the shed and house is $550, which also includes other utilities.

But overall, Airbnb doesn’t cover my entire mortgage, which has increased by $400 a month this year because of home insurance.

Living in the hangar was difficult

At first, it was difficult to move to a small house. Emotionally, I felt like I was regressing in life, and physically, it was really claustrophobic. But it doesn’t bother me as much anymore. I’m better mentally.

I have most of what I need in a normal house: a TV, a desk, and a bed. But I have a tiny refrigerator and no ice or running water, so I have to stock up on jugs of water.

I had to learn a lot about how to live in space. When I first moved in, I had a portable air conditioner and the humidity was up to 80%. I would wake up soaking wet and think, “What’s happening? I’ve never had to consider anything like this before. Now I run a dehumidifier 24 hours a day.

The hardest part is remembering to keep everything I need close at hand, because there’s always one thing missing. I go to grill some chicken and realize I’m out of salt or it’s back in the main house. I’m constantly running out of things to buy and sometimes wonder if it’s really worth it financially.

Some days I’m like, “Man, this is harder than I thought.” »

It was a hard lesson

At this point, I literally tried everything I could to keep my house – I mean everything. If things don’t improve in the next few years, I’ll be comfortable giving up because I know I did my best.

Looking back, I wish I had done more research as a first-time home buyer. Aside from a high mortgage, my house is also almost 100 years old, so it often needs repairs. I thought I was handy and could do everything myself, but it really takes a toll on your soul.

I also wish I had thought more about the financial worst-case scenario. Your parents advise you: don’t let your mortgage absorb too much of your income. I would have liked to listen and not exceed this 30% threshold.

Next time I buy a house I will have to stay under it. I can’t be that optimistic either. I need to be more realistic because this has changed my life so much.

A few weeks ago I started posting about my layoff and the shed on social media. It’s really taken off; I gained around 12,000 followers on Instagram.

I am truly grateful. Most people have been wonderful and lovely. And even though I haven’t made any money from my reels yet, I’m working on it.

As for work, I’m currently working on a data analysis project and I’m still walking dogs. My income from my job doesn’t cover my mortgage, but I’m just grateful to have a job.

I feel sorry for the people who are being laid off and I can certainly understand. When I’m back on my feet and in a better financial situation, I want to help as many people in similar situations as possible.

Someday I would like to move back into the main house and rent the shed for a few hundred dollars to someone who needs affordable housing.