Micro-Apartments

February 8, 2017

MKCA transforms 225-square-foot West Village pad into a super-multi-functional home

The master of small apartment design in New York is at it again. The architecture firm MKCA managed to transform a 225-square-foot space that connects to an adjoining five-foot-tall storage attic into a highly functional apartment. MKCA has made a name for itself by designing claustrophobically tiny spaces into enviable apartments through creative and space-saving techniques. (Read more about the firm's design style in this 6sqft interview with MKCA's founder, Michael Chen.) This apartment, located in the West Village, is no different--a customized wall of storage created space for a bed, table, hangers and shelving that can be taken out and tucked away as the owner desires.
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Architecture And Design

June 10, 2016

VIDEO: Spend a Night in a 300-Square-Foot Micro-Apartment at Carmel Place

By Dana Schulz

Just yesterday, 6sqft took a look at the available market-rate units at Carmel Place, the city's first micro-housing development. If you're debating submitting an application for one of these apartments--which at less than half the size of traditional studios are still asking from $2,570 to $3,200 per month--this video from the Times may help firm your decision. In it, reporter Penelope Green spends a night in a 302-square-foot unit that rents for $2,670 a month and features the building's host of space-saving furniture like a sofa-wall bed combo (which, though surprisingly comfortable, will give you your daily upper body workout) and a 17-inch deep desk that extends to a 10-person dining table.
Watch the full video here

New Developments

June 9, 2016

Micro-Apartments at Carmel Place Starting from $2,570 and Offering a Month Free

By Ondel Hylton

For you minimalist gurus who also relish on-site amenities, there is a now a building for you. Earlier this spring, leasing kicked off for the city's first micro-housing development, Carmel Place (formerly known as My Micro NY) at 335 East 27th Street. Developed by Monadnock Development and designed by nARCHITECTS, the newly finished no-fee building is a prototype meant to test compact and efficient living arrangements within the city's tight housing market, as well as accommodate the city’s growing population of one- and two-person households. Thee leasing team led by Citi-Habitats is offering one month free on all 12- and 24-month leases. According to CityRealty, there are seven micro-studios available ranging from 265 to 360 square feet. Though the units are nearly half the size of typical studio apartments, monthly rents are not analogously micro with current asking prices ranging from $2,570 to $2,920 per month. That's an average of $110 per square foot, significantly more than $83 per square foot median studio price in Murray Hill and $60 per square foot in Gramercy.
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February 17, 2016

INTERVIEW: Micro-Housing Architect Michael Chen Shares His Thoughts on the Tiny Trend

By Dana Schulz

It's hard to flip through the home and garden television channels these days without seeing a program about tiny homes. But the trend has been gaining momentum for years, long before it made its way onto our TV screens. One of the creative forces behind this revolution is Michael Chen, firm principal of Michael K. Chen Architecture. With design offices in New York and San Francisco and 14 years of experience, Michael is considered a pioneer of innovative micro-housing. Not only does he share his "love of tinkering, of drawing, of discourse, and of making" with his clients, but he teaches at Pratt Institute School of Architecture in Brooklyn. Having recently finished the 5:1 Apartment–a compact, 390-square-foot space that fits all the functional and spatial elements for living, working, sleeping, dressing, entertaining, cooking, dining, and bathing–MKCA is taking the design world by storm with their thoughtful approach and clever product design. 6sqft decided to pick Michael's brain on just how he packs so much into such small footprints, where he thinks the micro-housing movement is headed, and the secrets behind some of his most spectacular spaces.
The interview, this way

February 11, 2016

$685K Chelsea Micro Apartment Was Renovated to Maximize Space and Design

By Emily Nonko

If you're going to live in a really small apartment, you may as well get it custom designed to maximize as much space as possible. Such is the case with this very cozy one bedroom at 221 West 21st Street, a nondescript five-story co-op building in Chelsea. This unit has been gutted, renovated and redesigned by MySuites & Co., a boutique real estate and design firm based in Soho, and furniture and textile designer Nightwood New York. The result–the Chelseagold. MySuites says it feels more like a 700-square-foot apartment than a 500-square-foot pad, and we think the charming interior design almost makes up for the lack of space.
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Distinctive Homes

February 1, 2016

How Do Rents at NYC’s First Micro Apartment Complex Compare to Regular Studios?

By Dana Schulz

Just before the new year, listings went live for NYC's first micro apartment complex Carmel Place (aka My Micro NY aka 335 East 27th Street) in anticipation of its opening in March. The nine-story modular development in Kips Bay has 55 studios that are 260 to 360 square feet. Of these, 22 are affordable (more than 60,000 people applied for them), and they'll go from $950 to $1,500 a month depending on size and income. The remaining market-rate units will range from $2,500 to $2,900 per month, which has left many skeptics questioning why anyone would fork over nearly three grand for a space that is far smaller than conventional studios. To put this argument into an actual visualization, the data gurus over at NeighborhoodX created a simple, yet informative graph that compares the rental price per square foot at Carmel Place with that of regular studios across the city (h/t Curbed).
More here

Real Estate Trends

November 23, 2015

Listings Go Live Today for NYC’s First Micro Apartment Complex

By Dana Schulz

Carmel Place (formerly known as My Micro NY), the city's much-talked-about first micro apartment complex, began accepting applications for its affordable studios back in September (since then, 60,000 people have applied). And now, a press release from developer Monadnock has announced that listings for 12 of the market-rate units will go live today in anticipation of the February opening date. Along with the launch comes news of Ollie, "an innovative housing model that delivers an all-inclusive living experience." The nine-story modular development will have 55 studios ranging from 260 to 360 square feet, 22 of which will be affordable (of these, 8 will be set aside for formerly homeless veterans) and go for between $950 and $1,500 a month depending on family size and income. The remaining 33 will see prices ranging from $2,540 for a 265-square-foot, furnished, third-floor unit to $2,910 for a 335-square-foot, furnished, second-floor unit.
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October 28, 2015

VIDEO: Watch My Micro NY Get Built and Go Inside a Completed Unit

By Dana Schulz

6sqft reported in July that My Micro NY, the city’s first micro apartment complex, was fully stacked, reaching its 120-foot height at 335 East 27th Street on the border of Gramercy and Kips Bay. Then, just last month, it was announced that the $17 million development began accepting applications for its 260- to 360-square-foot affordable studios. Up until now, though, we've only seen renderings of the interiors, but a new trailer from the designers nArchitects takes us on a walk through of a completed unit (h/t Curbed), which, although tiny, is quite bright. The video also shows the entire construction process, beginning with fabrication at the Navy Yard to the units being stacked by crane.
Watch the video here

October 8, 2015

Long Island City ‘Micro’ Units Will Have Three Bedrooms

By Dana Schulz

To date, the city's biggest and most news-worthy micro housing complex, My Micro NY, has offered only studios, which makes sense considering a micro apartment is typically defined as encompassing less than 350 square feet. But the term "micro" is getting an expansion (figuratively and literally) in Long Island City, where a new rental complex will offer 57 two- and three-bedroom units ranging from 490 to 735 square feet, according to the Wall Street Journal. The project at 37-10 Crescent Street is being developed by Ranger Properties, whose managing principal Sheldon Stein said, "Our concept is we can offer really high-quality public amenity space, and better value with smaller private spaces, and bring the rental cost down."
More details

September 2, 2015

POLL: Would You Apply for an ‘Affordable’ $1,500/Month Studio in My Micro NY?

By Dana Schulz

Yesterday, we reported that My Micro NY, the city’s first micro apartment complex, was accepting applications for its affordable units, which account for 22 of the building’s 55 studios. Located at 335 East 27th Street on the border of Gramercy and Kips Bay, the building has units that range in size from 260 to 360 square feet. One person […]

NYC’s First Micro Apartment Complex Now Accepting Applications, Units $950/Month

By Dana Schulz

We knew this day was quickly approaching; just a couple of months ago, we reported that My Micro NY (also known as Carmel Place), the city's first micro apartment complex, was fully stacked, reaching its 120-foot height at 335 East 27th Street on the border of Gramercy and Kips Bay. Now, Brick Underground reports that the $17 million development began accepting applications this morning for its 260- to 360-square-foot affordable studios. According to the site, the available units are "11 $950/month studios for one person earning between $34,526 and $48,350, or two people making between $34,526 and $55,250; and three $1,492/month studios for one person making between $53,109 and $78,650, or two people making between $53,109 and $89,830."
Find out how to apply here

April 21, 2015

City’s First Micro-Apartment Project ‘MY Micro NY’ Ready for Stacking

By Ondel Hylton

Just in time for Earth Day, New York's first micro-unit apartment building, dubbed My Micro NY, is entering its final construction phase. When finished later this year, urbanites will have a chance to live within the center of the city in a brand new building flush with amenities, all for under $3,000. Developed by Monadnock Development and the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, the soon-to-be-nine-story structure wrapped up foundation work this past winter, and a one-story steel platform is ready to receive 55 modular units. The units are currently being built off-site at the Brooklyn Navy Yard by a team of 50 workers. In late May, the units will be shipped to the Gramercy Park lot at 335 East 27th Street where they will be stacked and bolted together along with stairs, an elevator, and other shared spaces.
More details ahead

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