The Latest

Name: Emily Ley, husband Bryan, toddler twins (Caroline + Tyler) and first-grader (Brady) Location: Tampa, Florida Size: a little under 4,000 square feet Years Lived In: almost 3, owned It was becoming a mom that led Emily to the life she leads today: A designer, author, and the creator of the wildly popular Simplified Planner.

Name: Tanya List, hubby Ry and daughter Reid Location: Muskoka — Ontario, Canada Size: 1500 square feet Years Lived In: 4 years, owned You saw a sneak peek of Tanya’s beautiful home in a house call last year, and now you can get a longer look and read more about her home. Tanya writes: We moved from Toronto to Muskoka about four years ago. The city was lovely, but once we had Reid, I craved moving home to my hometown of Muskoka.

Name: Erin and Creighton Barrett Location: Charleston, South Carolina Size: 3,600 square feet Years Lived In: 2 years, owned “Initially the first thing that sparked our interest in this particular house was the ’70s style ‘sunken’ living room,” admits Erin Barrett. “This is something that my husband has always wanted and was super excited about. It sort of sealed the deal for us.

Name: Salvatore and Amina and Worf and Princess Leia, the couple’s dogs Location: Downtown Los Angeles, California Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, renting Amina is a firm believer that your home “should be the ultimate happy place.” And the Downtown Los Angeles rental apartment she shares with her husband Salvatore (and pups Worf and Princess Leia) certainly shows that she practices what she preaches.

Name: Amelie Mancini, Rami Metal, and their daughter Babette Location: Crown Heights — Brooklyn, NY Size: 1,000 square feet Years lived in: Rented, 2 years Before getting pregnant with their daughter, artist and designer Amelie Mancini and her husband Rami Metal called Greenpoint, Brooklyn home. They loved where they lived, but knew that their tiny apartment (less than 400 square feet total) wouldn’t accommodate a growing family.

Name: Liz Sparacio Location: Northern Liberties — Philadelphia, Pennslyvania Size: 2,400 square feet Years lived in: 2.5 years, renting Liz resides in a natural-light filled loft space that was origionally part of an old textile factory in the Northern Liberties neighborhood of Philadelphia.

Name: Danielle Moore and Bryan Wang Location: Berkeley, California Size: 1,000 square feet Years Lived In: 1 year, owned You can feel the beachy California vibes in the air when entering Danielle and Bryan’s little Craftsman in Berkeley. Maybe it’s the open-space layout of the living area and the hanging macrame planters combined with soft colors.

Name: Sadie and Dana Solomon, and their cat Emma and rabbit Buns Location: Santa Barbara, California Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 7 years, renting Though Sadie and Dana have been living in their 1940s Santa Barbara home for seven years, the couple never stops letting the home evolve and grow in style and design.

Name: Anthony Conley, Elizabeth Hall and Olivia Location: Highland Park, California Size: 922 square feet Years lived in: 11 years, owned When Anthony “Antz” and Elizabeth were first looking to buy a home back in 2006, they never dreamed their journey would take them into LA’s Highland Park. But after 11 years in this dreamy 1923 California bungalow, the creative couple both agree that they lucked out in finding such a family-friendly and community-oriented neighborhood.

Name: Drew Vuong Location: Silver Lake — Los Angeles, California Size: 600 square feet Years live in: 7 years, renting With the constant sunny Los Angeles weather, Drew Vuong wanted to incorporate his love of outdoors and patio living in the inside of his home. He has created a great space for entertaining, leisure, and displaying his favorite artwork both personal and collected.

Name: Mona Hamilton Location: Plateau Mont-Royal Size: 650 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Mona is a 24-year-old retail florist by day and an aspiring web comic artist by night. And she had always lived with her parents in Toronto…until she decided to “kick-start her adult life” by moving to Montreal after visiting in the summer. For her, this apartment allows her to create and curate a space where she can foster her own growth.

Name: Sophie, Guillaume and baby Simone Location: Heart of the Plateau — Montreal Size: 900 square feet Years lived in: 5 years, owned Avid travelers and a creative couple, Sophie and Guillaume live in their warm renovated flat in the heart of the Plateau with their young daughter Simone. The flat’s architecture is at once rich and minimal, and the couple loves to merge old, timeless design pieces with newly acquired ones.

Name: Suzanne and Oliver Jeffers, and their son Harland Location: Park Slope — Brooklyn, NY Size: 1,600 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting Originally from Northern Ireland, Suzanne and Oliver Jeffers have called Brooklyn home for ten years. Before moving to their current rental, they were living in a tiny, one-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn Heights. The apartment fit their needs just fine…until they found out their family would be expanding.

Name: Morgen Walker Location: Lancaster, Pennsylvania Size: Approximately 350 square feetYears lived in: 7 months, rentingThis is my first apartment after my recent divorce. I work for HORNE so most of the furniture I have collected has been damaged items that I’ve repaired myself over the years. Other pieces have been in my family for over a hundred years that I’ve collected from family members.

Name: Aster Thomas Location: Harlem, NY Years lived in: Less than 1 year, renting Aster found her studio apartment less than a year ago. The biggest selling point? “The enormous bathroom/luxurious glam room,” which comes with a clawfoot tub and high ceilings. For the design of the rest of the studio apartment, Aster drew inspiration from European studio apartments on Pinterest.

You have to see this DIY library wall.

Name: Sandy and Mike Location: Downtown — Los Angeles, California Size: 970 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting The Santee Building in downtown Los Angeles was granted historic landmark status in 2001. The former textile factory-turned-modern loft building is now home to Sandy and her fiancé Mike; they’ve lived here for about two years with their friendly labsky (labrador husky mix) Bowie.

Name: Miriam Rieder and her sister Angel Location: West Hartford, Connecticut Size: 1,400 square feet Years lived in: 2 years, renting As the hardworking owner of Taste By Spellbound bakery, Miriam wanted to live in West Hartford for the hip young vibe of the town. But she also wanted to create a home that could be her oasis away from the rigors of owning a business. And, being self-employed, she needed to find something she could afford on a tiny budget.

Name: Francis Dominguez Location: Miami, Florida Size: 365 square feet Years Lived In: 2 years, renting Francis had been working at a job in Miami for eight months, but the commute from Fort Lauderdale was frustrating. One day, he stumbled on an ad for a small studio for rent near his office and the places in Miami he liked to hang out. The studio was “literally a seven minute drive” from work, so he decided to check it out one day during his lunch break.

Name: Eloisa Ribeiro and Anderson Ribeiro Location: Venice, California Size: 800 square feet Years lived in: 3 years, renting Eloisa Ribeiro is a mom, dog lover, model, actress and the owner of The Wolf Nest, a business that sells one-of-a-kind designed “pillows for pups + cushions for home.” Born in Brazil and raised in Florida and Texas, it was in New York that she met her husband Anderson six years ago. Three years ago, she moved to Venice, California for a lifestyle change.

Name: Raelyn Woltz and her fiancé Jon Location: Buffalo, New York Size: 1,100 square feet Years Lived In: 2 years, owned The house had been vacant for two years when Jon and Raelyn bought it…and it needed a lot of work. Not just to make it look better, but also to make it more livable. “We spent a little over a year planning and working on it ourselves (and a ton of help from family!).

Name: Tyler Karu, her boyfriend Bobby, two Great Danes (Clyde and Winnie Cooper) and a Brussels Griffon named Haddock Location: Falmouth, Maine Size: 2,200 square feet Years Lived In: 1.5 years, owned “This house had been vacant for a decade by the time we got to it and was in need of a major overhaul, but it had a nice layout, big backyard for our dogs and best of all, water views!” explains designer Tyler Karu.

Name: Sarah Jacobson Location: Lower East Side — New York, NY Size: 750 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned “Above all, I believe in comfort—in a home that makes you feel more relaxed the second you step through its doors,” describes Sarah of her style. You can feel and see that sense of comfort in features like the two-person breakfast nook or the living room area, at least once you get over the stunning style of the apartment (specifically the kitchen!).

Name: Claire Swindale Location: Blackheath — Southeast London Size: 1,500 square feet Years lived in: 15 years, owned Claire Swindale is fearless. She spent eight years seeing the world (with a prolonged stint in Nepal) where she trekked around Mount Everest and explored the countryside from the back of a truck.

Rachel and Jon made it their mission to DIY as much storage as they could.

Name: Bev Wilson Location: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Size: 975 square feet Years Lived In: 2.5 years, owned Bev is a lawyer, but has always been interested in interior design and photography. So when it came time to start searching for an apartment to buy, she wanted a space she could really design and customize. She wanted a renovation project. “When I bought my place, it had been used as a rental for over ten years and was not in good shape,” Bev shares.

Name: Pippa Small Location: North Kensington, London Size: 1076 square feet Years Lived In: 7 years, owned As a successful jewelry designer and business owner, Pippa Small travels a lot. To exotic places like India, Bolivia, Nairobi, and in fact, was just about to dash to New York with her four-year-old twins the day after our shoot. So travel definitely plays a big part in her home, with lots of colors and items that were picked up from all over the world.

Name: Bonnie Berridge Faxén and Per Faxén Location: San Francisco, California Size: 650 Square Feet Years Lived In: 3.5 years, renting Designer and interiors consultant Bonnie Faxén says she has a passion for “art, design, architecture, colors, fonts, materials, textiles, paint, wallpaper. If it has to do with design I’m thinking about it!” This healthy obsession for visual elements has spilled over into the small apartment she shares with her husband Per.

Name: Christina and Tor Location: Stockholm, Sweden Size: 376 square feet Years Lived In: 2 years, owned Moving the kitchen and opening up a wall in this small apartment are the key design decisions that turned what was originally a studio into a one-bedroom apartment. They’re also the secret to how this tiny, under 400-square-foot space can feel so much bigger. “Best decision ever,” confesses Christina.

Name: Anastasia Antoinette and Jamon Johnson Location: Columbia Heights — Washington, DC Size: 825 square feet Years lived in: 4 years, rented It’s not every day that you’re in the market for a new apartment and stumble upon an architectural masterpiece — which also happens to align perfectly with your profession — but that’s exactly what happened to Anastasia and Jamon when they were looking for their first home together.

Name: Lauren Rubcic Location: Upper East Side — New York, NY Size: 325 square feet Years lived in: 10 months, renting When Lauren found out that she would be relocating to New York City for work, she only had three weeks to find the right apartment. To her surprise she found an affordable studio apartment on the Upper East Side, an area of NYC that she associated with Carrie Bradshaw and a heavy price tag. Another great selling point: the layout of the 325-square-foot apartment.

Name: Jeff and Sara Jones and their two dogs Location: Waco, Texas Size: 400 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, owned You may recognize this couple from season three of HGTV’s Fixer Upper. After living in their Fixer Upper home for over a year, Sara decided to go back to school for nutrition…and it forced the couple to get creative with their finances.

Roommates Noël and Giselle have created a home that celebrates creativity.

Name: Suzannah Hamlin Stanley and Jason Stanley Location: Beaverton — Portland, Oregon Size: 1,683 square feet Years lived in: Owned You may remember Suzannah Hamlin Stanley and Jason Stanley’s first home just outside Portland, where they created a soft, light-filled space with color and gold pops. The dynamic do-it-yourself duo has struck again with their second home renovation project!

Known for her colorful homewares and textile designs, Donna's home is a gallery for her work.

Name: Danielle and Ely Franko Location: Tannersville, New York Size: 1,529 square feet Years Lived In: Every weekend for the past two years, owned “We purchased our home two years ago, somewhat on a whim,” begins Ely Franko. He and his wife Danielle love living and working in New York City, but after five years of a hectic urban life, they had started to yearn for “greener pastures.” The couple weren’t very familar with Tannersville, or the Hunter Mountain area.

Name: Yvonne Kusters, husband Steven, daughter Faye and their dog Tess Location: The Hague, the Netherlands Size: 3,444 square feet Years lived in: 1.5 years, owned The Hague is the third-largest city in the Netherlands and holds the seat of the Dutch government. Originating in the 13th century, it’s rich in history and filled with numerous monumental buildings. Walking past these stately old homes, you would never expect one of them to house a little bit of tropical paradise.

Name: Ares, her husband and their baby Location: Barcelona, Spain Size: 1,292 square feet Years lived in: 1 year, renting When Ares was on the hunt for a larger apartment for her growing family, the search was initially a bust. Nothing seemed to be what she was looking for, that is until this unit came across her radar. Which is kind of surprising considering the state of the space when she found it.

Name: Flavia and her family Location: Newport Beach, California Size: 3,600 square feet Years lived in: 10 years, owned It took looking at nearly 200 houses, but Flavia and her family found the perfect home in this house when they moved from North Carolina to Orange County in 2008. Well, almost perfect. While it was a very nice space when they bought it, it never quite reflected the family’s style and taste.

Name: Maddie Flanigan Location: Old City, Philadelphia Size: 500 square feet (approximately – slightly less) Years Lived In: 4 years, owned What’s old is new—that’s a theme that plays throughout every facet of Maddie Flanigan’s life. She is the founder of Madalynne Intimates, a Philadelphia-based lingerie brand (featuring bras, bralettes, undies and bodysuits that are made in the USA!