The nation's biggest city, New York, is introducing a new trend into their housing market. Recently, more developments in the Big Apple feature apartments with little balconies, tall ceilings and less than 360 square feet of space. These housing units which are currently sprouting like mushrooms all over the city are called "micro" apartments.
More of these apartments will be seen in the future as New York City planning officials have proposed to end a limit on how small apartments can be. This move responds to the rising housing demand of single people in the city. However, critics fear that if approved, the growth of "micro" apartments will lead the city back to its tenement past. They also question if less space will indeed mean less expensive.
Carmel Place in Manhattan is the city's first experiment with building "micro" apartments. Developer Tobias Oriwol described the small dwellings as "efficiently designed micro-units" that make for "a nice apartment."
The development features 55 apartments ranging from 265 to 360 square feet and is slated to open next year. Most "micro" apartments in the building have long, flat walls without columns to give buyers more furniture-changing options while some units already come furnished with fold-out wizardry such as a desk that transforms into a 12-seater table and a bed that can be folded into a love seat. Developer Monadnock Construction and architectural firm nArchitects worked extensively to make use of the tiny space.
Forty percent of the units in Carmel Place have an asking price set by affordable-housing programs. They rent out for about $1,500 a month. Market-rate ones rent for $2,650 to $3,150, roughly the same price with many of the studios in the nearby Murray Hill neighborhood. Over 60,000 people have already entered a lottery for the affordable units while hundreds have requested information for 8 market-rate apartments.
