Compact Homes: proof that bigger isn’t always better
The world is getting smaller. Well, no actually, it’s not. With the growth of urban populations worldwide, space is at a premium – leading to land and accommodation prices rocketing everywhere. Not only that, but the cost of running a larger home and garden are also moving out of reach for many within the middle-class range of affordability.
Invariably, those seeking more affordable homes are young couples beginning their life together, single-headed households, and retired persons who are often on their own. But whether starting small or scaling down, there are many ways to adjust your living space and your lifestyle to create affordable comfort, and nifty ways to save money in the process. The growing trend today is for smaller – a trend dictating designs for the future.
The growing change
The number of single-person households is on the rise – and even with many new smaller units, housing is struggling to keep pace with demographic changes. Not only are households smaller, but their profile is different. Today, most women work. Also, many are marrying later, and having children nearly ten years later than their parents did, so the demand for single accommodation is ever on the rise.
In addition, changing lifestyles and choices have led to a rise in the divorce rate. There is an increased number of single-parent families, mostly headed by women. A typical family – a married couple with young children – is not so typical anymore, and this decline of the ‘traditional family’ has led to the need for different sized homes, driven by both personal circumstances and financial constraints.
Opportunities for architects
Where we work, live, and enjoy recreation is becoming more meshed. Designs for living today are geared to avoid the long commute. The modern concept of combining offices, residential and retail space, with recreation facilities such as restaurants, sports centres and cinemas, is influencing the planning of urban dwellings. The challenge for city expansion lies in the need to be more compatible with the way people want to live – while effectively absorbing an increasing population without congestion.
But it is one thing to live in a smaller space – and another to be comfortable in it. Fresh ideas are needed to make this option efficient, convenient, private and snug. While an apartment can be squeezed to the size of a caravan, people actually want their micro-space to look and function like a home.
Clever ideas for space saving
For the last couple of decades, the approach to the problem has mainly encompassed dividing old houses and once fashionably large apartments. Often these structural alterations could compromise the building – leading to health and safety hazards – a situation that has added to the current flurry of creative new designs for one and two-person households.
Ingenious changes include:
Image Source: pexels.com
Image Source: pexels.com
Also see this video, where a bookstand is turned into a doublebunk bed in less than a minute!
Image Source: Houz
Image Source: pexels.com
The comfort of small
The Leapfrog Property Group
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