The death of Amy's father six years ago spurred her on to make some big life choices.
If you had told her she would soon be packing up their four-bedroom rental house and moving into a tiny home with Greg, her husband, and their two small children, Amy would have laughed.
"I would have said it's not practical … But I would've been so wrong," she says.
But the death of her father was the starting point.
"After a lifetime of working hard, Dad took his life after being unable to find employment.
"At the time, we weren't able to help him financially," she says.
The couple have been living in a tiny home that's 7.2 metres long and just 2.4 metres wide for the past three years in south-east Queensland.
Early in the tiny house process, the couple say they rarely spoke about their plans with family and friends.
"We were initially fearful of judgement or being called 'trailer trash,'" she says.
"But today, we're on a good track for financial freedom.
"To quote our daughter, 'tiny home, large life'."
Where do you put a tiny house?
For many aspiring tiny home owners, finding a 'parking spot' is often the most difficult part of the process, Amy says.
The tiny home sits in an unused paddock on a property. It had been suggested by one of Greg's colleagues shortly after the couple had made the decision to downsize.
"We don't own the land, we pay a weekly rent for the space," she says.
"We've been very lucky as even when the property sold, the new property owner was happy to continue our arrangement."
And because their parking spot has power, the family have an individual meter to pay for electricity use. The smaller footprint also means less space to cool, heat and light which Amy says has "significantly reduced" the family's bill.
Their use of a compost toilet helps save on water, but it also helps finding a tiny house parking spot easier.
"Not having to hook into an existing sewerage system means we only need to have a powered site," Amy says.
What about privacy?
"We have split custody of our children, if we had the children full time it would no doubt pose more issues and we'd need to reconsider our design," Amy says.
The conversion of an old garage into a teen retreat is on the cards. But surprisingly, Amy says the smaller space has been a benefit for family bonding.
"We didn't think our children would adjust so well. Especially with the transition from tween to teen," she says of Jayda and Zack, who are aged 12 and 15.
It’s two loft bedrooms for this family of four. And privacy could be considered a luxury with the bathroom the only room in the house with a door.
"It can be a little challenging especially when we are all trying to get ready for work and school.
"But we usually get up before the children, so this isn't always an issue."
The couple spent a total of $100,000 on their tiny house build, organised through a Queensland-based manufacturer.
"Before going tiny we calculated that purchasing our tiny house equates to just under five years of rent. For us it was a no brainer," Amy says.
As advertised rents hit record highs, the couple believe they've made the best housing decision for themselves.
"My mother-in-law is about to retire in two years, and she doesn't own any assets.
"We should be debt-free by the middle of next year. And then we plan to get very aggressive in our savings."
The couple say the plan is to buy a plot of land for themselves in the next four to five years.
"And this [tiny home] will become my mother-in-law's retirement, she can live on the property with us," Amy says.
"We can offer her that security that we couldn't offer my father."
What are the rules around tiny homes in Australia?
It's a complex issue, Heather Shearer from the Cities Research team at Griffith University, says.
They're not legal, they're not illegal, it's largely a grey area.
Tiny houses are built as moveable dwellings in Australia, usually on wheels or skids – much like Amy and Greg's.
As such, most councils consider them caravans.
"Some councils tolerate them but other councils are very anti tiny-houses," Dr Shearer says.
"But this varies, depending on the state, zoning, and even the specific planning officer."
'Outside' of the housing crisis
Often tiny home dwellers live "under the radar" in rural or semi-rural areas, Dr Shearer says.
Such is the case with Jimmy Hirst, he has two tiny houses perched on rolling hills in the Sunshine Coast hinterland.
"I have no mortgage, outstanding debts, loans, rates to pay," he says.
"The current housing crisis does not directly affect me at all.
"I live outside of it."
Jimmy has been living in a tiny home for more than four years. He runs an organisation supporting sustainable and community-based living. A lifetime ago he worked as a DJ.
Due to the classification as caravans, some councils will strictly adhere to their policies on tiny homes – only allowing occupancy from zero to about three months.
Jimmy says he's "parked" his tiny home in "over 30 locations".
"I have recently been seeking out friends and landowners who need a hand with property maintenance and upgrading their properties," he says.
His current 'parking spot' involves renting the land from the landowner and helping with jobs around the property.
"We all have a right to live somewhere," he says. "And we should be able to do this affordably, economically, environmentally, and sustainably."
If a tiny house owner also owns the land, then they are much freer to do what they want on their property, Dr Shearer says.
"Because land ownership is the big barrier of entry, finding a secure parking spot for many tiny home owners is a huge issue."
While swanky inner-city suburbs aren't exactly known for tiny home living, it's these areas that many Australians are priced out of.
Tiny home living in St Kilda
Tiny home owner Elle Paton has been living in the inner seaside Melbourne suburb of St Kilda since early 2019.
She’s a passionate advocate for tiny homes to be considered a viable form of housing having co-founded the Australian Tiny House Association, although she adds that it can be easy to get caught up in an over-romanticised, social media version of the tiny house lifestyle and think of it as a "cheap fix".
"It isn't and it requires a lot of planning and research, like other forms of housing, if you want a quality outcome," she says.
Elle spent 20 months going through council processes to gain pre-approval for long-term occupancy for her tiny home on the residential block. She says there are no similar buildings in the suburb.
“I was fortunate to be working with a council that took the time to educate themselves and be open to the points of difference.
"It was acknowledged that this was more in the style of a studio apartment rather than a caravan- from the trailer up, and with that, we could move forward and reach an agreement about long-term occupancy."
Elle doesn't own the land and has a private agreement in place with the landowner.
"In my case, the land was not difficult to acquire, but the work to prep it for the installation of the tiny home was challenging.
"The site was covered in garbage, in places piled high… on one 60 square metre patch we moved off 5.5 tonnes of rubbish in one day."
Her tiny home is off-grid with the option to be on-grid should her circumstances change.
"I have a composting toilet, solar panels and collect water. I have a 45kg gas bottle for cooking and hot water," she says.
"The gas costs me approximately $200 per year. The only other utility I have is the internet. And that's it! A basic and easy-to-maintain set-up.
"Although it's a great way to live, which I highly recommend, the path to going tiny is not always an easy one.
"I recommend that anyone considering this option do a lot of research so they know what they are getting themselves into."
