I quit my high-paying job to build off-grid tiny homes – my top tip for people looking to buy, don’t miss a ‘vibe’ test
A HANDY woman left behind a materialistic life of high pay and pricey treats to build tiny homes she rents out for cash.
Her lucrative career may have paid for a house, a car, a mini pet pig, and all the Magnum ice cream she wanted, but now she makes small B&Bs with her brother and has learned a ton about off-grid living.
Aimee Stanton, 30, from Melbourne, spent years working in the male-dominated plumbing industry before she became the co-founder of Tiny Stays.
She and her brother Ben Stanton, 35, both decided to quit their high-paying careers to build tiny holiday homes.
Aimee said: “I quit my plumbing job because there was more to life and I felt that I could be more creative.
“I went traveling for a bit, and then my brother quit his accountant job because he was sick of the nine-to-five grind.
“We wrote down a list of what we’re passionate about and what we’re good at.
“That involved working with your hands and traveling.
“Out of that, we were like why don’t we build tiny houses and rent them out as short-term accommodation?
“Then we’re waking up every day doing something we are passionate about and helping people to escape their bosses and their emails and get back to nature which we love doing as well.”
The sibling duo has been in business together since 2018.
“What I love about my and my brother’s relationship is we’re so alike but so different,” she said.
“I think partnering with someone who has different skills to you is the way to go. Ben has to do so much research, everything has to be perfect.
“He does research for days, whereas on the other hand, I’m let’s go, let’s smash this out. It makes a really good balance.
“Sometimes I’ll be like, ‘Let’s just do it,’ and he will be like, ‘We need to research it for 15 hours first.’
“It has caused conflict before, but we have a great relationship and he’s like one of my best mates.”
Their dad, who is a professional builder, often does work for their business without asking to be paid.
Aimee was expelled from school and considered becoming a beauty therapist like her friends before her dad inspired her to become a plumber.
She was inspired after her dad joked that only plumbers can afford Magnum ice creams.
She soon had a house, car, and even a miniature pet pig called Constable Crackles.
Aimee said: “I was making good money.
“I was buying so many Magnums, I was very materialistic and I stepped back and realized I had everything.
“All the Magnums in the world, a house when I was so young. I wasn’t happy though.
“That’s when I made the transition to building tiny houses and decided to chase my passion.
“One of the reasons I quit was because I looked at the older guys on site who had been working so hard every single day 10 hours a day for their whole life.
“I promised myself I’m not going to turn out like that. I want my life to be about family, flexibility, and doing things I love.
“That’s when I thought I might as well give it a crack because I can always walk back into the job later on if it doesn’t work out.
“The best thing about tiny houses is it’s just a little bit from every trade, so you learn how to tile, lay floors and kitchen cabinets.
“All of that kind of thing, the carpentry aspect and interior design.
“You don’t get sick of it because it’s just like we’ve tiled half of this wall then we can move on to painting.
“I’ve learned a lot about sustainability and off-grid because that’s a huge aspect of tiny houses that they are completely off-grid.
“Finding the perfect land is one of the hardest parts because you get such an array of people that would be happy to rent out their properties but we’re looking for something completely secluded.”
Tiny Stays has seven properties that each accommodate just two people and prices start at $233 AUD ($150 USD) per night.
Aimee said: “We get lots of people who come for proposals and wedding anniversaries.
“And if they’ve tried one tiny house they will most likely book another one in a different place.
“There are so many locations and they all have such different vibes.
“Our main goal is to get people to take a step back and realize your company isn’t going to go into liquidation.
“And you’re not going to get fired from work if you take one or two days of annual leave every so often to go on a midweek break.
“Spend time with your loved one and just disconnect from your phone. That quality time together makes a huge difference.
“Normally two to three nights is the ideal amount to stay.
“We get one-night bookings but it’s not enough, we really to promote immersing yourself in nature.
“Yes, take that picture for Instagram and tag us, but then put the phone away and really get back to the simple life.
“I think for people wanting to live in tiny homes, they feel with house prices and interest rates and things like that they could have a house on a hill and spend more time outside.
“I think in general, especially after Covid, people want to get outside more and do these experiences.
“They want to travel and tiny houses are a way to get back to the simple life without being stuck in a cold tent.
“You still have the luxury of a hot shower, kitchen, and a beautiful space but you feel like you’re sleeping out in nature with all of the windows.
“We get a lot of people who want to live in a tiny house.
“They come to us and I’m like, ‘Hold up, before you buy one, maybe stay in one a few nights and see if it’s your vibe, then go from there.’
“We’re building them purely for B&B purposes, they are set up differently to how you would live in one.
“You have a bed that’s in a loft with three massive windows so you can look out to the stars, very different to if you were going to live full time in one.”
Aimee explained that building a tiny home is similar to building a regular house and they can take between three months to a year to build.
She said knowing how much gas and the size of the water tank was difficult to decide when they first began.
She said: “We get our trailers specially made for the tiny house and then the flooring goes down.
“We build them basically like a normal house.
“You put the frame up and then the windows in. They are all the same layout but we’ve tweaked them and put more storage in.
“The hardest part is choosing a color.
“I remember the second one we built, me and Ben had the idea of painting it bright orange, we thought it would look sick.
“We started and was like, no, we’re not going with bright orange, and we repainted the whole thing.”
She and her brother have learned to warn guests not to bring things like hair dryers, rice cookers, and air fryers because they can trip the power.
Alongside running Tiny Stays, Aimee is set to launch a workwear brand for women and welcome her first baby.
She said: “I used to get mine and my dad’s work trousers mixed up.
“I’d go to work like I’m not sure if these are mine.
“I surveyed 1,000 women in the trade and only seven percent were actually happy with their workwear, so I thought if no one else is going to do it I will myself.
“They are already in a male-dominated industry, might be the only girl out of 200 people, and having pants that don’t fit you doesn’t help.
“I’m so excited to launch Zadie workwear.
“I’ve been so lucky and blessed to fall pregnant, but at the start, I was like, ‘Oh crap, this is a busy year with a lot going on.’
“I’ve come to realize it’s all part of the journey and I’ll just learn how to do things with one hand, dig a trench with one hand.
“It’s another journey that is going to challenge me but I’m sure it’s worth it.
“We have seven tiny houses and our plan is to just focus on them while I’m going through a type of maternity leave.
“We will start building them again and also focus on potentially buying our own land as well as having the rentals.
“Now I have such a variety in my life whether it’s in the office or in the tiny houses doing the plumbing or the building work.
“I do miss the banter and having that massive community as a plumber, when you work by yourself or just with one person sometimes you feel isolated.
“But my husband is a plumber as well and he still works for the company so I get to hear all of the stories through him.”
Aimee said Tiny Stays’ most recent build has the “best sunset in the whole of Victoria.”
The small green-colored house is on 1,000 acres and has 360 views of nature.
She said: “I want people to realize you’ve got to take a break from work.
“I always say every three months make sure you are.
“If it’s a tiny house or a trip anywhere, take that time for adventure and the things you love, or else life is just going to slip away.”