San Francisco is one city among many in the United States
that is seeing an influx of young professional workers flocking to city limits
for a new “live and play” lifestyle. Many of these young newcomers to the city
work jobs that pay decent salaries, but not enough to fully support the
skyrocketing monthly rent costs for studios, or one, or two-bedroom apartments.
To combat this dilemma, felt in the pockets of both renters and landlords,
developers are exploring a new and seemingly effective trend to offer
high-quality housing at a cheaper price. Micro-apartments, as they are being
called within the industry, offer a much more cost-effective alternate to
traditional apartment homes while sharing most of the features you would find
in a $3,000/month 1-bedroom.
The term “micro” perfectly describes the layout and
floor plan style for one of these apartments. Features of a standard apartment
home such as a kitchen, bathroom, living room, entryway, closet, and even in
some cases washer and dryer can be found within one general living space in a micro-style layout. The one difference is that all of these features are compacted into a small 300-400 square foot area. Micro-apartments may not be designed for young families intent on raising children but rather young individuals or couples who are willing to sacrifice space to better their future financial investments.
The market for micro-apartments has yet to be established and their development is still in an infant stage. How micro-apartments affect the housing market in Boston is unknown, in the coming years we can expect to hear a lot of feedback about this new urban style of living. For more information on micro-apartments and their expected arrival in Boston, check out this Boston Globe feature article