RETIRED WOMEN BUILT A TINY HOME SISTERHOOD IN TEXAS
Robyn Yerian needed to drastically cut her living expenses to retire comfortably, so she created an all-women tiny home community in East Texas. The village, called The Bird’s Nest, offered female retirees affordable housing and grew into a close-knit sisterhood.
Yerian was no stranger to downsizing. She lived for five years in a two-bedroom tiny home that cost $57,000 before deciding to expand the lifestyle, according to an August 16, 2025, report by Realtor.com.
To build the village, Yerian bought five acres of land for $35,000 in Cumby, a small town about 65 miles outside Dallas. She spent $150,000 from her savings and retirement funds to add septic systems, electricity, water lines and paved roads, as detailed in a September 5, 2026, article by Shaw Local.
In 2022, Yerian moved her own tiny home from Decatur to the new property. She initially founded the community to earn a passive income and created 14 concrete pads that residents could rent for $450 per month.
The property operated much like an RV park, allowing tenants to bring their own tiny homes or RVs to the 10-by-30-foot lots. While cities like Los Angeles opened tiny home villages to shelter homeless residents, The Bird’s Nest offered a permanent, peaceful retreat for retirees.
Yerian told CBS Texas on December 16, 2025, that the community just evolved into an all-women space. She noted that retired women on fixed incomes make up 85 to 90 percent of people living in tiny homes.
When word about the village spread, Yerian heard from women of various ages. She received interest from recently divorced women looking for affordable housing and women leaving abusive situations.
By late 2025, 11 women in their 60s and 70s lived there. The residents came from different backgrounds and moved to Texas from all across the country.
Yerian set one major rule for everyone living at The Bird’s Nest: they had to be kind and respectful.
“People want to say women can’t live together without drama,” Yerian said in her CBS interview. “Well, maybe think about women that are retired. Why would we want drama at this point in our lives?”
Sharing meals and support
The women spent their days talking and sharing meals in a freestanding covered patio they called The Kitchen. They also worked on home improvements together, went to building workshops and took group trips to local grocery stores and restaurants.
Resident Donna Welborn said she never expected the neighbors to become so close. She described their bond as literally a sisterhood.
The community provided a built-in support system when residents faced difficult moments. The women regularly drove each other to doctor appointments when needed.
Resident Cheryl Huff experienced a major health scare a few months before the December 2025 CBS report. She had unexpected and traumatic heart surgery, and the group rallied to support her through her recovery.
“We say you can’t come in here needy, but if you get here and you need something, there’s somebody there that’s gonna help you out because we have that relationship, even if we disagree on some pretty major things,” Huff said.
The community proved incredibly popular. Whenever a place opened up on one of the 14 pads, Yerian received as many as 500 applications.
