The additional photos on the architect's website show a really lovely apartment. I dig it and think it's a great way to utilize the potential of living spaces to their maximums in areas where one can only afford smaller dwellings. The natural light in the apartment combined with the brick and warm wood floors is particularly appealing as well.

I think it's a wonderful idea but having to bring up and down the table each and every time you eat or needed desk space would be a pain. I think I'd leave it down and close it up when having people over for movie night.
I do love all the 'convertable' furnishings.

it seems like LOT of built in cabinetry but I guess that's what you need in such a small space

I love seeing families stay in the city. It's a great place for kids to grow up! However, I'd like to see a family of four with two teenagers living in an apartment like this. Whenever there's an article about compact family living the kids are always young and small.

Just because you can physically fit in a space doesn't mean you won't go absolutely insane from the lack of noise separation.

Looks great, though.

I know a lot of people who live in 800-900 sq ft 2 bedrooms in San Fran with 2 kids. I think that's my minimum for keeping the peace!

I cringe when people say they have to move out of a city to have a child. More so than space, I think most people would not dare to send their children to urban public schools.

I dig the pictures and think this is such a smart set up.

I cringe when people say they have to move out of a city to have a child. More so than space, I think most people would not dare to send their children to urban public schools.

I dig the pictures and think this is such a smart set up.

I don't think it's necessary to move away from a city to have a child, but I also don't think it's absolutely vital to be in the city if you can be adjacent to it or if you have a good urban community of your own. I don't live in DC, but am a very short metro ride away. If I have kids, I'll still be able to give them the cultural experience of being in a city. You don't need to be in the suburbs to get more space, but you shouldn't force the whole family to live in 500 square feet if it doesn't suit you.

@ thorndale - what's wrong with wanting to send your child to a good school? Heck, I'm a teacher in an urban public (high) school and I know I wouldn't want to send my kid to a lot of schools in the local area. Not that I would boycott the entire city, but where I work is a fairly impoverished part of town.

Lovely place and if it works for them, great. I know I could never be that minimal with my belongings and prefer a bigger space (as seawhitney said, that extra 300-400 sq ft makes a big difference.)

Custom-made everything doesn't exactly scream "affordable small space." Though it looks nice.

I see the challenge, but I also love the concept. The question...do you want to fill your life with experiences or with 'stuff'.

There isnt a lot of room for toys and other assorted items, but in the right city, lots of entertainment can be had by walking around, seeing the sights and experiencing things.

It would certainly be a different, and much more hands on, style of parenting.

This was featured in the NY TImes a few years back....it is a really innovative use of space...my sister is in a family of three with 650 sq feet in NYC...it can be done.

@ohwoah, I know. I live in Vancouver which was recently declared the second most expensive city, and developers are really pushing tiny spaces as "affordable" housing. I know most people in the city are stretched tight, and I personally couldn't afford a completely reno'd custom-built place like the one shown. They still charge top dollar for those "micro-spaces"- it's not affordable at all. Just developers squeezing more money out of people. We were looking at downsizing to a smaller condo to live more thriftily, but the small new places were more than our old 760 square foot place. So, we stay for now.

I admire the idea, but I don't think it was driven in the right direction. With the exception of the Murphy dining table (excellent idea), I don't believe the space is adequately utilized. Be it that maybe the photo in question was staged this way for the article, I find it impractical to hide your bookshelf unless you've got room for a revolving bat-cave entrance shelf. The cute cut-out makes for a very nice knick-knack showcase and I understand the symmetry and light being taken into consideration for placement, but that table could of just as easily been placed to the right of where it is now. Understanding that the table's primary function is to provide the family with a practical dining environment and it would only serve its purpose in that limited capacity.

Not a fan of folding chairs, but why not create a cubby to stash them behind the table. Maybe flush the table bottom with the retaining walls and mirror it to add more light.

I love the idea, just wish the "expensive custom cabinetry" would do a little more than take up the space the family is in dire need of.

@ Eudora-
I was in Vancouver for a few months last summer and a number of people told me that the chinese banks own over half of Vancouver and that a good many of it's gorgeous waterfront apartments are unoccupied and held for investment purposes only. Apparently Vancouver would be drastically different-more crowded and polluted if these places actually had people living in them. This came out of some deal the Chinese government made with Canada in the 80's. Is this true? Because if it is, I really feel sorry for Canadians trying to compete. China prints all the money it wants to buy up Vancouver and the average Canadian is left trying to buy housing with Canadian dollars. Impossible task.

When I was married we had a near 2000 square foot home in the suburbs. Now, as a single dad, my daughter and I share 651 square feet in a building 10 minutes by train from downtown.

Even under the duress of the situation, I found living in less space an exciting adjustment. I don't want anything bigger. Actually, if something became available that was a bit smaller and affordable we'd be right downtown.

We don't spend a lot of time sitting around at home. We can, and the size of our place is pretty average compared to other places in the world, but we spend a lot of time "out". There is so much to see and do. The experiences my daughter and I have both had I would never trade. And if someone says there is nothing to do here, I hope she's the first to tell them otherwise.

That they have to roll the cart over to support the tabletop kind of worries me. So if the top falls down for any reason (kids being reckless?) will it break off and destroy everything? Or can it at least support itself when nothing's on it?

ingenious, bright, modern and friendly, I like it!

It's nice, but if you can't afford a multiple bedroom apartment, then I think you can't afford custom made cabinets (and all the other custom made enhancements) in that apartment either.

EstherH: A one-time purchase of custom made cabinets is a lot less expensive than having to pay more for rent, month after month after year....

I was born in the mid 50's. By the time I was in Jr High my parents bought their final home and it seemed ok to me at the time anyway. It was the size of give or take a few ft of any other house in the subdivision. It was brand new with brand new appliances and some furiture (not all) One bedroom was the norm back then but is was right next to Mu Mom and Dad's bedroom. I recently while cleanout the papers of my late father and the sq footage of that house was 740 sq ft!!! We had huge family get togethers all of the time and it was normal; just like most other kids houses!! (at the time) Oh, and I was an only child. That would make a huge difference I would think; although I had neighbors who had more kids in the same size house!

Sorry; ONE BATHROOM was the norm back then...see above post

I have a child who plays the Baritone and one who plays the French Horn. Practice time would not be pleasant in that home.

But I do love the brick, the woodwork and the bright windows!

The space is extremely well-designed, but I feel bad for the kids being cramped in the small rooms. I want kids to be able to spread out a bit more with their toys and their running around, and be able to do it privately if they'd like, instead of in the main living space.

I'm in the 'blended family of 4 with 2 teens' group. Plus, the two teens, even being the same gender, are like oil and water. Finding common ground between step-sibs can be hard anyway, but throw in such a tiny space, and life would be pure hell. As it is, our 950sf, 2 bedroom, 1 bath just does not afford any of us the privacy we all need. If we want a private conversation with one of the girls, we either have to kick someone out of their bedroom or leave home. Earbuds are a rule, but they are so isolating and are almost as much trouble as they are helpful. Walk to wall carpet is... Well, we hate it -but without it, the volume just from movement would be like nails on a chalkboard.

But! With a young family, starting out in a place like this tiny, but cute space, with its beautiful wood floors and light, airy atmosphere, not only would it be doable, but I think the kids would simply grow up with a greater respect for other peoples' space & privacy, as well as never getting into the habit of leaving a big footprint. Its a fine example of 'bigger & better' isn't necessarily better.

great table shelf support idea, love it
Bent-Erik Munch
homedesigners.dk

Autumn 1956, I was born in the late 50's. I grew up in a home that might have been similar to yours. It also had only 1 bathroom. There were four kids in my family and, yes, there were arguments (3 of the 4 are female) over bathroom time. We got over it! Because it was the baby boom era it wasn't uncommon for families to have 5, 6, 7 kids or more in this same model house. When I was married with 2 children we had a three bathroom house. I hated having all those bathrooms to clean! Plus, a small space can keep a family close. Now I'm divorced with grown kids and live in a very cool, tiny apartment in a great Chicago neighborhood. I love my small space. I went full circle and I love it.

It is very true that a vast majority of apartments are empty. More than half of every building I have ever faced has been empty over the last 10 years. It's impossible, as an average Vancouverite, to afford to purchase real estate here. Even renting is becoming ridiculous. But it's just so damn beautiful here!

there are 5 of us in our 800 square foot nyc apartment and we have plenty of built in storage and double duty furniture and it still is tough. There are times we wish we had a house and yard. One day!

My family and I live in a 1012 sq. ft home. There are 4 children along with the hubby. So many ppl criticize our home and make rude statements such as "how can all of you guys live in there" or " don't you want something bigger?" I'm a RN and my hubby's an attorney and we are perfectly fine living here, although we can afford something bigger. It's affordable, beautiful neighborhood that's high on walkability. We don't need a car to get a gallon of milk. The ice-cream parlor is 4 blocks away. Parks galore! It's not the size of your home but the amount of love in it. I also get comments like "it's so comfortable, I just want to take a nap". I say forget the naysayers! Small living can be done. Lastly, it affords us so much time to spend together!

In our small condo (with a family of 4), it's not the square footage that we miss. It's all of those "extras" that you get with a freestanding house: attic or basement storage space; a place to park bikes and scooters, and a little bit of outdoor space. Plus, the ability to come and go without weird encounters with neighbors, no secondhand smoke drifting from neighbors downstairs, or having to rely on someone else to fix things when they're broken (either a landlord, or a condo association). I love small-space living (I hate cleaning!), but I'd rather buy a tiny house.

Ditto the comment-- just because you can technically "fit" doesn't mean you are going to be happy. Some people want room for their kids to run around outside, or have that mental distance when you need it... or have a place to put your in-laws when they come to visit from out of town. All of these are very hard to do when you are living in a tiny place.

That being said, I live now in a smaller apartment in the city with my husband and little one, and we're very happy :) there are ways to make things work. But I don't think ill of those who want to move out of the suburbs for more space. There's something to be said for ease and comfort :)

This is such an old tour. I think it's ridiculously small for a family of two and not very useable for very long. As someone above mentioned: no chance to have bikes, camping or sports equipment unless they rent a storage locker somewhere which is really inconvenient. I lived in a downtown condo as long as I could but ultimately, even when living with minimal possessions, it was just sad. But that was us, and this is my own opinion of course.

ugh, I need coffee. I mean, a family with two children. I also have two children and it was about a year after we had our second that we realized the sacrifice of small scale living was too great.