Micro-apartments: A New Option for Future Urban Living

Background

With the acceleration of urbanization and the continued population growth, housing problems are becoming increasingly serious. According to United Nations data, by 2050, 68% of the world’s population will live in cities( United Nations, 2018). The traditional housing model must find a way to meet the diverse needs of modern urban residents. As a new type of living model, micro-apartments are becoming an essential choice for future urban life due to their economical, efficient, environmentally friendly, energy-saving and flexible characteristics.

Strength

(1) Cost Effective

Micro-houses usually have a size of 20 to 40 square meters. Their sales prices and rents are relatively low, making them suitable for young people and singles just entering the workplace( Dovey & Pafka, 2014).

(2) Energy Saving

This type of housing consumes relatively less building materials and energy, which is conducive to reducing carbon emissions and is in line with the concept of sustainable development. Therefore, it can protect the environment.

(3) Flexibility

The interior design of micro-apartment often uses modular and multi-functional furniture to adapt to different living needs, such as folding beds. This allows various functions to be implemented in a limited space. They also improve the comfort and convenience of living (Friedman, 2021).

Successful Example

Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world, and its housing problem is also very serious. High housing prices make it difficult for many people to afford traditional housing. The Opod Tube Housing project in Hong Kong, designed by architect James Law, is an example of the successful application of micro-housing. This project uses discarded concrete water pipes to transform into small apartments. Each unit is only about 9.3 square meters. These water pipes were transformed into cylindrical living spaces ( James, 2018).

Figure 1: The distribution pattern of micro apartments in the city ( James, 2018)

Each unit can be easily transported and stacked to adapt to different urban space needs. In addition, this project also focuses on environmental protection and sustainable development. They utilize discarded water pipe materials. This reduces the generation of construction waste and the consumption of resources required to build new homes. Therefore, residents can also reduce their cost of living (Lee, 2020).

Figure 2: Micro apartments are easy to transport ( James, 2018)

Challenge

First, people living in small spaces for long periods can have a negative impact on their mental health ( Van, 2020). Secondly, designers need to consider how to provide people with sufficient supplies and social functions in a limited space.

Conclusion

Despite many challenges, micro-housing has broad development prospects as a new living model. With the advancement of technology and innovation in design concepts, future micro-housing will be more intelligent and humane (Han, 2022). In addition, as a new choice for future urban living, micro-housing is gradually becoming an important solution to urban housing problems. Because of its cost-effective, environmentally friendly, energy-saving, and flexible characteristics. At the same time, we also need to improve the existing issues in this type of housing actively.