Single Australian mother on the brink of homelessness after divorce builds her own tiny house for just £7,000 - with materials from her local DIY store (13 Pics)

Charlotte Sapwell was a struggling single mum of two young children, living in regional Victoria, and fast running out of housing options.

"The housing market doesn't really look at single stay-at-home mums. I even looked into getting a home loan, it would have worked out cheaper than my rent but, basically, no chance. I was on the brink of homelessness.”

Charlotte, 27, was getting worried about where her children would sleep when her grandfather Rob suggested they build a tiny house together in his backyard. Part of the deal? She'd have to be on-tools with her grandpa, and build the house alongside him. Desperate to provide accommodation for her kids, she agreed.

"Because I worked with Grandpa I didn't pay any labouring costs, he is very experienced. And it turns out that I'm pretty skilled myself. I never would have guessed it considering I failed Year 9 woodwork! I've never spent so much time in Bunnings. People are so surprised, mainly people who know me, personally three years ago I wouldn't even get dirty, now I'm a bad-ass nail gun slinger!”

But Charlotte doesn’t pretend it’s all been easy, or fun. Building a house - even a really little one - has been a mammoth task. 

“Some days have been really hard. It's definitely hard work, my grandpa doesn't let me slack off because I'm ‘just a girl’ or I had no experience. I've learnt so many skills but I've learnt more about myself. I was a bit vapid before, I liked material things but since the tiny house I'm more about getting outside and having experiences and getting my hands dirty. I'm also more aware of what I'm physically capable of.”

Charlotte says her sense of achievement has completely changed. “It was so exciting to have other things become important. Brand new flooring, running water, flushing toilet, a shower! Then the boys' room - and I don't think I've ever been so proud and excited to see their faces as when the whole thing was built and we had our own home."

Ballarat-based Charlotte managed to build, insulate, furnish and decorate her tiny home in her grandfather's backyard for $13,000. That's, well, tiny, compared to the average house price of $420,000 in her regional home town. Her words of advice? "Every millimetre counts. Don't chuck anything out because you never know where else it could be used. And believe in yourself."

A portion of her tiny house was funded by selling everything that wouldn't fit into her new home. "I sold a lot of things from my previous house, like a couch, fridge, carpets, toys, clothing, shoes. [Second-hand sale site] Gumtree should be your best friend. This has taught me that as a society we have too much 'stuff'. You really don't need a media room, or extra lounge room, even a spare bedroom as well as the content that comes with those rooms - it's just too much".

Now, she’s building a second tiny house – a prototype of the tiny houses she hopes to sell. “The movement is really taking off in Australia and I want to get in front of the craze.”