When Koven and Josh Bruce were ready to buy a home, the couple knew they didn't want to build a house from the ground up. They liked the idea of a tiny home, but it didn't work for their plans to start a family one day or for Koven's growing antique collection, one of her favorite hobbies.

They decided to buy a manufactured home. After years of dreaming and searching, the couple found their perfect home, the Sedona, at Freedom Homes of Tyler.

Josh toured a few homes on his own before bringing Koven to tour the Sedona. "I saw this one online, and in the pictures, it looked like a home," he said. "When I walked in, the first thing I said was, 'Koven's going to love this one. This is just so her.'"

When they both returned to Freedom Homes to tour the Sedona together, Koven knew it was the house for them. "I think I was crying," she said. "(I thought), this actually feels like it could be our house, our home forever."

Once they finalized their decision to buy the Sedona, they added customizations like quartz countertops and upgraded insulation and appliances.

"If we're going to do this, we're going to do it right," Josh said.

Rooted in Family and Hard Work

Their new home is on 400 acres that's part of Josh's family land. They live there with their dog, Lena, and their cats, Eloise and Nora. Josh's parents live next door, and they all share a farm with chickens, geese and cows, including a calf named Penny.

"We both worked really hard," Koven said. "We aren’t people who have just had things handed to us. We're very fortunate that we have this land, but we've worked really hard for all of this."

A Place for Friends to Feel Welcome

Their new home is known among their friends as the crash pad, because it's always full of life and a welcome feeling. "Our friends stay here a lot. They sleep on our big couch," Koven laughed. "We’re always cooking for people, and I think (they like staying here because) we're not the most fancy people."

The open kitchen layout is Koven's favorite feature of the home. "I love being able to cook and still talk while hosting," she said. "Being able to hold multiple people is really important to me."

But for Josh, nothing beats the large shower. "When we first moved in, his opening phrase to everyone was, 'You gotta see our shower,'" Koven laughed.

A Love for Antiques

When you walk through the Bruce home, every corner is perfectly curated with beautiful antique finds and family heirlooms. Koven grew up antique shopping with her grandma, and it is still to this day one of her favorite pastimes. Their guest bedroom is dedicated to her grandma, where you'll find love letters from Koven's grandpa, family photos and heirlooms. Koven attributes her eye for design to her grandma.

A Full Circle Moment

Koven's journey to homeownership is a deeply personal one. She grew up in a manufactured home behind a funeral home. She didn't have a bedroom of her own, and she remembers being made fun of for where she lived.

"My grandpa worked so hard for that house. It was not much to us, but it meant everything to him," she says. So, years later when she stepped into the Sedona, she was blown away. "I didn't know there was such a thing that was so nice," she says. "And to have a home so quickly, at such a young age — it's a prideful feeling." One of the most meaningful moments was when her grandmother walked through the door of their new home for the first time. "To have my grandmother walk in here and be so proud of it — it's been really cool."

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