Cramped's Profile

I live in a 280sqft apartment, and it is fine, though I do have my own enclosed patio, where I can keep a grill and bike, and my own attic, where I can store things.

The problem I see with the model above is that it is laid out poorly - the kitchen intrudes into the living space, for example, and that makes it very difficult for a person to set up dividers and what not. For an apartment that small, everything needs to be in blocks. A block for the bathroom, a block for the kitchen, and a block for everything else.

My apartment has a murphy bed, though I never use it. I build a nice 8 x 10 loft that is enclosed on the bottom. I sleep on top, and I use the inside as my office (since I'm self-employed).

I prefer it this way because I can separate my working space from my living space. Also, the loft/cube give me two extra walls. The side closest to the patio doors/entrance door has hooks and a small closet and shoe stubs for coats and stuff. The other side I built shelves onto it for books, and a small section in the middle for my tiny TV.

Also, the kitchen in my apartment is divided from the main living space with a bar with cupboards above it - so that serves not only as a room divider, but also a decent-sized table that can sit 5 people, and it is much more efficient use of space.

The best part? I only pay $400 a month for my space. God help the people who bought that cube above for a quarter of a million bucks.