Sadly, people often spend the last few years of their lives separated from their loved ones living in nursing homes. Thankfully, Dr. Kenneth Dupin has come up with an ingenious new way to provide comfort and security for the elderly while also keeping them close to their families: tiny houses!

Dupin calls the tiny homes “granny pods,” but they are officially known as MEDCottages. He said he was inspired to design the homes after hearing the story of a woman named Katie, who lived in a house she loved filled with memorabilia from her life. However, she was forced to leave everything behind when she had to enter a nursing home.

“I went over to her, and she pulled me down to where I could hear her, and she said [through tears], ‘Please take me home,'” Dupin recalled.

That got Dupin thinking of a way to give the elderly somewhere else to go besides a nursing home. He came up with these 400-square-feet mini-mobile homes, which can be parked in a backyard and hooked up to the main home’s water and electricity.

The homes go for around $2,000 a month in rent, and are equipped with all of the latest technology!

The homes are also equipped with webcams for safety reasons.

“This is something that we call ‘Feet Sweep,'” Dupin explained, adding that the camera can only see a person’s feet, so if that person fell, family members will see and be able to call for help.

The homes have an open-concept floor plan and are perfect for one person to live in.

There are also so many windows, which can give the home lots of natural light! Plus, the houses are equipped with a monitoring system so that you can check your loved one’s temperature and heart rate.

Jane Baldwin is a 67 year-old retiree who moved into a granny pod in California to be closer to her family, and she has no regrets about her decision!

“I am in love with it,” she told CNBC. “I can foresee living here until I’m dead.”

Dupin also sees a granny pod in his future!

“I’ll probably be in one of the backyards of one of my kids,” he said.

Find out more about these tiny homes in the video below, and SHARE this story so your friends and family can see this as well!