MICRO-APARTMENTS. DESIGNING PETITE URBAN HOUSING. SHRINKING URBAN SPACES


 Micro-Housing. Petite urban housing

REALLY TINY URBAN SPACES

As real estate prices are skyrocketing in major popular metropolises, like New York, London or Sydney, along with the fact that as of 2000, most people in the world live in cities, the size of urban housing is beginning to shrink! Urban apartments less than twenty square meters are being built in N.Y.C. Yes, petite urban spaces are a reality and they are bound to proliferate.

If a designer approaches these like a typical housing unit, he/she is bound to fail, for this is a different “animal”… Within these tight limits, the architect or interior designer needs to be very creative and come up with prototypical or custom solutions to maximize the use of space.

INGENIOUS PLANNING

Great architecture or design, often thrive under limitations or challenges, which necessitate new approaches or CONCEPTS

The space has to be conceived in all its totality, which is indeed a challenging exercise.  Various tricks are used, as one cannot simply buy all the furniture typically needed for a home and try to stuff it in such a tiny space.

These are often one room apartments plus the bathroom, which implies that the one space has to serve multiple functions: Bedroom, Living Room, Dining Room, Kitchen or even Home-Office. Of course with ingenious planning all this is possible and the end result can be stunning, giving the impression of a larger, more luxurious home.

 PETITE URBAN HOUSING IS THE FUTURE

Typically, these spaces range from about 18 to 30 square meters, while some designers are making a name for themselves specializing in this niche. For Micro-apartments and petite urban housing are here to stay, at least in large, sought after metropolises. More on this HERE (The link provided is to my #1 rated AMAZON book in its category).

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