How small is/was your apartment.

[Slappy san]

Small spaces are something that has intrigued me for some time. I always try to find ways to maximize small spaces.

So what's the smallest apt you've ever had? Have any pics?

I had a 300-315 sq ft. studio. It would have been ok if not for the odd shape.

[JerrBear81]

900 square feet.

[Shellhead]

My first studio was about 400 square feet. There was one square room, about 13 x 13, with two doorways on the far wall from the entrance. One door opened into a small kitchen, while the other one opened into a dressing area next to a small bathroom. When I first moved in, back in fall of '86, I was paying $225 per month in rent. I do have a couple of pics, but no scanner... one of these days when money problems lighten up, I'm going to buy a $50 scanner from CompUSA.

My comic and game collection was stored in banker boxes back then. I had them stacked three high, and they took up about two third of one wall in the main room. The opposite wall had the windows, so I didn't want the comics near there. The wall with the two doors had this ugly two-seat thing between the doorways. It looked like it belonged in the waiting room at a dentist's office... I got that from a garage sale. The wall with the door was the wall where I put my twin bed, and it doubled as a couch when I had friends over and we watched tv on my 13" black and white TV. Even though my friends were all middle class or upper middle class, my place was the place to hang out, because I was the first one to stop living at home.

I was poor back then, just finishing college, but I was fairly happy, too. I had my friends, I was old enough to drink, I covered my monthly expenses and still had some money left to buy comics and hit the bars.

These days, I earn ten times as much money, pay three times as much rent, but I'm gasping for breath from the credit card debt. I really sacrificed too much for Amy last year, and it's going to take years to recover. I could put my stuff in storage and move into a tiny efficiency, but first I'd have to break my current lease. That's not going to happen unless things get really desperate.

[howyadoin]

Mine's around 525 sq. ft. It's a fairly good-sized one-bedroom, by Vancouver standards.

[Grant]

The bedroom at my old West Village apartment was about the size of a walk in closet. I want to say 50 square feet...

...and it was above a boiler....

... and the window was outside the trash area...

...and mice would crawl under the door...

...and my half of the rent was 625 a month...

...so I moved to Brooklyn. No regrets.

[Noir_Dark]

My first apartment had a normal sized kitchen bathroom and bedroom, but the living room was literally 6x4. The couch stuck outside the door and the t.v. was on a shelf above it. Sore neck and red eyes.

[Orchid Thief]

12 x 7 feet...

What can I say, the only place I've lived so far has been my dorm room!

[Dreadstar]

I once had an apartment in Huntington that was so small that if I wanted to stretch when I yawned, I had to open the front door and the window.

[Naldo]

You were lucky. We lived for three months in a paper bag in a septic tank. We used to have to get up at six in the morning, clean the paper bag, eat a crust of stale bread, go to work down t' mill, fourteen hours a day, week-in week-out, for sixpence a week, and when we got home our Dad would thrash us to sleep wi' his belt.

[Jesus Horsewood]

My first place was in a shared accommodation house, no shared living areas, 12 of us in one house, my room was 7x8ft, I loved it, I 'organized' and designed my arse off to get my few bit of furniture in, I had a bed, drawing table and designers stool, a double wradrobe a double seat sofa, plus the usual, stereo TV computer.

£240 a month (nearly $500 US I think)

[Shellhead]

You were lucky. We lived for three months in a paper bag in a septic tank. We used to have to get up at six in the morning, clean the paper bag, eat a crust of stale bread, go to work down t' mill, fourteen hours a day, week-in week-out, for sixpence a week, and when we got home our Dad would thrash us to sleep wi' his belt.

Yeah, this thread reminds me of Monty Python, too. The Secret Policeman's Other Ball.

[Naldo]

Yeah, this thread reminds me of Monty Python, too. The Secret Policeman's Other Ball.

The Four Yorkshiremen is one of my favorite skits.

A thread like this seemed like the perfect opportunity for a quote! :)

[Michael P]

The bedroom at my old West Village apartment was about the size of a walk in closet. I want to say 50 square feet...

...and it was above a boiler....

... and the window was outside the trash area...

...and mice would crawl under the door...

...and my half of the rent was 625 a month...

...so I moved to Brooklyn. No regrets.
And the sad thing is, that's a good deal in the Village.

My current apartment is actually pretty good. I dunno the aquare footage, but it's a four-Br with pretty decent-sized rooms. Kitche's small but useable, ditto living area. The stuff that sucks is that (a) the landlord's a cheap bastard who never gets around to fixing stuff and (b) I'm on f-cking 238th Street, and it takes 30 minutes to get anywhere interesting.

[Slappy san]

This might be of interest.


http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/main/archives/cat_all_smallest_coolest_apartments.html

[howyadoin]

My current apartment is actually pretty good. I dunno the aquare footage, but it's a four-Br with pretty decent-sized rooms.Four bedrooms? Holy shit. Around here there just aren't any apartments with 4 bedrooms. Even 3-bedrooms are pretty rare.

I pay just under 900 bucks a month for my 1-bedroom. Love to get a 2-bedroom so I could set up an office, but it would mean at least doubling my rent.

[Typo Lad]

Michael,

I know of an apartment in the Bronx that's available. Two bedrooms, but huge...

[howyadoin]

I'm on f-cking 238th Street, and it takes 30 minutes to get anywhere interesting.And there's the tradeoff, of course. I want a bigger apartment, but I'm not willing to move out of the downtown core - because everything I need, including work, is within walking distance. And as much hassle as apartments can be, owning a car would be much more complicated and expensive.

[Brandon Hanvey]

Nicole and I share a one bedroom atpartment. It is about 600 sq. ft.

Here is a floorplan (http://www.thevillasparkmerced.com/floorplans/tower_1bed_1bath.htm) .
We pay about $1400 a month for it.

[Slappy san]

Nicole and I share a one bedroom atpartment. It is about 600 sq. ft.

Here is a floorplan (http://www.thevillasparkmerced.com/floorplans/tower_1bed_1bath.htm) .
We pay about $1400 a month for it.


For that!

I may never leave the midwest. :eek:

[howyadoin]

Nicole and I share a one bedroom atpartment. It is about 600 sq. ft.

Here is a floorplan (http://www.thevillasparkmerced.com/floorplans/tower_1bed_1bath.htm) .
We pay about $1400 a month for it.That's not a bad layout. Most of the extra space you have over mine is in the living room, which makes sense. Plus it sounds like it's a nice place in general.

[howyadoin]

For that!

I may never leave the midwest.What do you pay for your place?

[Slappy san]

What do you pay for your place?

565 for a one bedroom with all utilities. I dont know the sq ft.

[howyadoin]

565 for a one bedroom with all utilities. I dont know the sq ft.Wow, that is a substantial price difference.

[howyadoin]

I guess I could compromise on square footgae if I had lots of vertical space. I've had apartments in the past (back East) with 12-foot ceilings, and if I had that luxury here, things could definitely be stored vertically.

But as it is, my ceilings are only 7-8 feet high, so that rules a lotta options out.

[Slappy san]

Wow, that is a substantial price difference.

This is why I cringe when looking for apts in my desired states. You guys have it so bad.

[Brandon Hanvey]

For that!

I may never leave the midwest. :eek:

For San Francisco, that is about the average for a one bedroom.

[Slappy san]

For San Francisco, that is about the average for a one bedroom.

Good thing I don't want to move to CA.

[foxfire]

Doesn't really count, but my single dorm is going to be about 120 square feet next year... :(

[Justin Davis]

Some of your small apartments and the price you pay for them make me cringe.

Mine is a 625 square feet one-bedroom apartment for $430 a month and that's because the rent went up by $10 a few months back. In fact, the only time I've lived in a place over that amount is when I lived with two other people (worst housemates EVER) in a three-bedroom, two-bath house for a total of $650 a month for a year while I was in college.

Sure, I don't live in a cool place like New York or San Francisco, but . . . but ... um... yeah.

God, those are tiny, expensive apartments.

[howyadoin]

Some of your small apartments and the price you pay for them make me cringe.

Mine is a 625 square feet one-bedroom apartment for $430 a month and that's because the rent went up by $10 a few months back. In fact, the only time I've lived in a place over that amount is when I lived with two other people (worst housemates EVER) in a three-bedroom, two-bath house for a total of $650 a month for a year while I was in college.

Sure, I don't live in a cool place like New York or San Francisco, but . . . but ... um... yeah.

God, those are tiny, expensive apartments.Keep in mind that salaries in those cities are probably a lot higher, too.

[Phrozen]

Keep in mind that salaries in those cities are probably a lot higher, too.

But the cost of living is higher also. Not that great of a trade off.

[howyadoin]

But the cost of living is higher also. Not that great of a trade off.Depends on your priorities, I would think.

[Grant]

And the sad thing is, that's a good deal in the Village.

My current apartment is actually pretty good. I dunno the aquare footage, but it's a four-Br with pretty decent-sized rooms. Kitche's small but useable, ditto living area. The stuff that sucks is that (a) the landlord's a cheap bastard who never gets around to fixing stuff and (b) I'm on f-cking 238th Street, and it takes 30 minutes to get anywhere interesting.

Four bedrooms is really good for New York. Probably when you and your roommates move out they'll split it into two 2 bedrooms and charge the same price. My last place was pretty cheap and I could easily afford it after college. By the time I was looking to move out I couldn't find a decent place in Brooklyn that matched it.

30 minutes isn't too bad that's how far it usually takes me to get to work (sometimes 45). Brooklyn isn't bad though. There's plenty of interesting stuff here too. I do pay 100 more for rent but considering the space and location I say it's worth it.

[Grant]

But the cost of living is higher also. Not that great of a trade off.

Considering I basically can either live in New York or LA for work reasons it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make. The plus side I don't have to own a car so I save a lot of money on that.

[Slappy san]

Depends on your priorities, I would think.

Priorities? You mean bragging that you make X amount of dollars.

That doesnt mean shit if you give back the extra cash to live there.

[Michael P]

Keep in mind that salaries in those cities are probably a lot higher, too.
You'd think, wouldn't you?

[Michael P]

Four bedrooms is really good for New York. Probably when you and your roommates move out they'll split it into two 2 bedrooms and charge the same price.
No, because that would require the landlord actually putting some money into the building.

[howyadoin]

Priorities? You mean bragging that you make X amount of dollars.

That doesnt mean shit if you give back the extra cash to live there.No, I mean a lot of it depends on what you do for a living, or how much you just want to be in a particular city. I could do graphic design work just about anywhere, but in Canada I could only freelance the way I do here in maybe Toronto, Ottawa or Montreal. If I wanted to live in Halifax, I'd probably have to go back to working a 9-to-5 job for a lot less money, and I'd be back to taking only 2 weeks vacation a year, as opposed to the 10 or so I take now.

And I have a lot of close friends here. They're a big priority, too.

Stop being so cynical.