"Parasitic" homes are cropping up in Paris lately. Today, it is not uncommon to see a "unique" kind of architecture in the city where a small piece of construction is popping up or leaning on an existing structure. It's not really a pretty sight, but it apparently provides solution for Paris' condensed and limited real estate.
According to Architectural Digest, the so-called "parasitic" architecture that's becoming a trend now in Paris is one of the low-cost housing solutions in dense cities such as the French capital. Today, these "parasitic" homes can be observed in centuries-old streets in Paris such as near Canal Saint-Martin. According to the site, the small apartments that seem to have sprouted from the existing buildings there are part of the 3BOX project by the local company Stephane Malka Architecture.
The project's official site says that these 3BOX "democratic houses" "do not require any lot acquisition; the rights to built is obtained in exchange for a common parts of the existing building's renovation... Then, we are able to propose a green housing 40% below the real estate market price, built without any nuisance in workshops, in extremely short time thanks to our patented panels and unique technique of prefabrication."
The site further explains that building the "parasitic" apartments on top of roofs of existing buildings provides various benefits as it is deemed as an ecological and economical solution, and at the same time it reportedly provides a new perspective to the city as you get to discover "a new Paris above the horizon."
Citylab further reports that such "rooftop parasite homes" could be "the future of affordable housing" in the French capital, even though it wouldn't necessarily satisfy the architectural taste of some people. According to the site, the Paris apartments are rectangular and are made of steel and glass, and the interest in such kind of home has apparently gone through the roof (pun intended). As unusual as they may seem, these "parasitic homes" may indeed be an effective affordable solution to Paris real estate.
