Housebuilders turn to 'affordable', 'modern' and 'contemporary' housing

Mark R

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
8,513
16
81
Starting from only $200k, these new homes clearly represent the pinnacle of development for the 'first time buyer'.

What they try very hard to avoid mentioning is the floor space...

230 sq ft.

WTF?

Marketing page Check out the 'walk-through' video. Hilarious.

Seriously, who genuinely thinks there is a market for these prison cells?
 

shiner

Lifer
Jul 18, 2000
17,112
1
0
230 sq ft?

Hahahahahahahahahahha!!

The closet off our master bedroom in our new house is almost that big.
 

ShadowOfMyself

Diamond Member
Jun 22, 2006
4,227
2
0
Meh, you americans are spoiled, its not that small

Here alot of people have houses just a little bigger than that, and also I wouldnt mind living there, it has a bed and its comfy, dont need anything else

Although I agree the price is absurd
 

Excelsior

Lifer
May 30, 2002
19,047
18
81
Spoiled? No. We're just fortunate to not have to settle for shoebox-sized homes. 230sqft? I wouldn't go smaller than 2300sqft, at least not for a permanent situation.
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
I can see how they'd have their uses, but not for any long term, permanent living situation.
 

zig3695

Golden Member
Feb 15, 2007
1,240
0
0
my ideal house is a 1500sqft ranch with a full basement that i can finish off. i dont like things too big (too much work) but 230sqft? i wired 800sqft apartments and i thought those were tiny!
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
166
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Meh, you americans are spoiled, its not that small

Here alot of people have houses just a little bigger than that, and also I wouldnt mind living there, it has a bed and its comfy, dont need anything else

Although I agree the price is absurd

Shens. There aren't a lot of houses "just a little bigger" than that in the U.S. I'm assuming you're just bad at simple arithmetic. 230 square feet is just a little bit over 15 feet by 15 feet.

Those houses were just glorified hotel rooms.
I don't think I've ever been in a hotel room that was quite that small. Close maybe, but not quite as small as 230 sq ft.
 

Capt Caveman

Lifer
Jan 30, 2005
34,543
651
126
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Meh, you americans are spoiled, its not that small

Here alot of people have houses just a little bigger than that, and also I wouldnt mind living there, it has a bed and its comfy, dont need anything else

Although I agree the price is absurd

Shens. There aren't a lot of houses "just a little bigger" than that in the U.S. I'm assuming you're just bad at simple arithmetic. 230 square feet is just a little bit over 15 feet by 15 feet.

Those houses were just glorified hotel rooms.
I don't think I've ever been in a hotel room that was quite that small. Close maybe, but not quite as small as 230 sq ft.

I've been in hotel rooms in NYC that are smaller than 230 sq ft.
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
166
111
www.slatebrookfarm.com
Originally posted by: Capt Caveman
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Meh, you americans are spoiled, its not that small

Here alot of people have houses just a little bigger than that, and also I wouldnt mind living there, it has a bed and its comfy, dont need anything else

Although I agree the price is absurd

Shens. There aren't a lot of houses "just a little bigger" than that in the U.S. I'm assuming you're just bad at simple arithmetic. 230 square feet is just a little bit over 15 feet by 15 feet.

Those houses were just glorified hotel rooms.
I don't think I've ever been in a hotel room that was quite that small. Close maybe, but not quite as small as 230 sq ft.

I've been in hotel rooms in NYC that are smaller than 230 sq ft.

:) I don't doubt that there are hotel rooms that small. I don't doubt that there are a lot of hotel rooms that small. (I wouldn't want to stay in one) Even then, I wouldn't think you could get too much smaller than 230 square feet (including the bathroom.) What I doubt is that there are a lot of houses in the U.S. that are that small.
 

Tiamat

Lifer
Nov 25, 2003
14,068
5
71
damn, 15x15 is fucking tiny. My current apartment studio is already tiny and its 400 sqft.
 

Descartes

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
13,968
2
0
That's smaller than my damn bedroom. That's crazy. I've lived in small condos before, but that's ridiculous.
 

ElFenix

Elite Member
Super Moderator
Mar 20, 2000
102,374
8,499
126
i have that couch. the cheap one from ikea.


Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: ShadowOfMyself
Meh, you americans are spoiled, its not that small

Here alot of people have houses just a little bigger than that, and also I wouldnt mind living there, it has a bed and its comfy, dont need anything else

Although I agree the price is absurd

Shens. There aren't a lot of houses "just a little bigger" than that in the U.S. I'm assuming you're just bad at simple arithmetic. 230 square feet is just a little bit over 15 feet by 15 feet.

Those houses were just glorified hotel rooms.
I don't think I've ever been in a hotel room that was quite that small. Close maybe, but not quite as small as 230 sq ft.

perhaps you missed the bolded part. remember, the average poverty family in the US has a larger place than the average european.
 

rgwalt

Diamond Member
Apr 22, 2000
7,393
0
0
One thing to remember is that these are being sold in the UK for around 100K pounds. Sure, that is $200K US, but you have to remember that our economies are different... What someone is paid in the UK isn't necessarily half of what an equivalent professional would make in the US. So that 100K pounds becomes a lot more affordable than $200K in the US.

Those "homes" appear to really be studio-style condos. Virtually no exterior maintenence. Interior has a very basic kitchen (fridge, microwave, and two burner hot plate stove), small living area, small bedroom, and small bathroom with room for an efficiency washer and dryer. It isn't designed as a home for a couple with kids, or even for a couple. It is a single person home (instead of an apartment). They are probably tapping into a market for young professionals (recent university grads) who live in or near an urban environment and want to own a home, but don't want all the responsibilities of keeping up with the home. It wouldn't be much to clean after all.

That being said, I would go completely stir-crazy in a place that size, but that is mainly because I have a bunch of furnature and other shit that I have collected over the years (I'm 28 and single). If I had never had my own apartment in college and had graduated college into having a good job where I traveled a lot, this would be the perfect sort of space for me. I would a miniscule amount of worldly goods, and it would force me to streamline my life.

I'm going to be looking into buying a home in 2008 or early 2009, and I am thinking 2 bedroom, 2 bath, big kitchen, etc, but the truth is that I don't need all that space and in the end I'll just have to keep up with it if I have it... oh well.

R
 

Svnla

Lifer
Nov 10, 2003
17,986
1,388
126
Man, it is smaller than my bedroom (15X15).

How could you live in there with cooking/kitchen, bath/toilet, living space, and sleep too?