Micro-apartments: rethinking sustainable housing | Australian Dealer Information

A world sustainable residing knowledgeable has known as for a accountable strategy to creating micro-apartments to satisfy the various wants of a rising inhabitants.

Within the face of a worldwide housing disaster the place an rising inhabitants battles towards a scarcity of viable residing house, micro-apartments are more and more touted as a possible resolution.

However as Colin Chee (pictured above), founding father of sustainable residing advocacy firm By no means Too Small, argues, the dialog round these tiny dwellings wants a significant shift.

Chee instructed shifting past the time period housing affordability and embracing housing accessibility. This reframes the difficulty to embody not simply monetary limitations, but in addition the wants of various populations, together with:

• Folks with disabilities and older people
• Low-income people and households
• These requiring bigger residing areas

“In fact, a micro-apartment is just not the only reply to sort out the broader problems with housing accessibility, however it may be a part of the larger image,” mentioned Chee. “We’d like several types of housing options for individuals from varied backgrounds and completely different family sorts.”

Micro-living: The enduring attract of cities

With Australia being among the many least densely populated international locations on the earth, the dialog round high-density residing could appear counterintuitive at first look.

Given Australia’s inhabitants is predicted to develop to 45.9 million by 2071, the necessity for metropolis residing will possible turn into extra essential as time goes on.

“Folks prefer to stay in cities,” mentioned Chee. “People have at all times desired to stay in shut proximity to one another because the starting of our existence.”

Chee mentioned good city planning due to this fact performed a vital function in making micro-living profitable.

“We can’t construct micro-apartments the place there’s no entry to facilities, public house, or public transport; it is merely inhumane.”

Why Australia’s cities want various housing

Whereas the necessity for high-density designed cities will possible enhance over time, does embracing residing in an residence below 32 sq. meters mechanically imply sacrificing high quality for dimension? The reply, like most issues in life, is not black and white.

Whereas the thought of residing in a shoebox may increase eyebrows, Chee emphasised that design is the true differentiator.

“A well-designed micro-apartment could be comfy and habitable for single or duo residents. The issue is that we’re giving an excessive amount of energy to builders in Australia to do as they please,” Chee mentioned.

“Relatively than specializing in creating housing, we’re producing funding merchandise, churning out many uninhabitable micro-apartments that give the general public a nasty impression that small residing means poor high quality of life.”

This may be seen within the lack of family-friendly housing in metropolis centres, with solely 14% of flats having three bedrooms or extra in keeping with a 2021 examine.

In lots of cities throughout Australia, you probably have a household and want a bigger house, you might be compelled to maneuver to the suburbs.

“This ends in our cities turning into demographic havens for younger singles or {couples}, whereas suburbs are full of households,” mentioned Chee.

“There’s no range by way of family sizes. If policymakers put restrictions in place and use huge knowledge to foretell the route of our inhabitants, we will restrict the variety of micro-apartments, small flats, and medium-sized flats inside our cities.”

Chee mentioned this knowledge could be communicated to builders, permitting them to cater to market demand.

“It is primarily stocktaking – understanding our inhabitants after which offering several types of housing to satisfy their wants,” he mentioned.

“In any other case, we danger having too many small flats within the metropolis, which can turn into transient housing, making our cities susceptible and fewer resilient to challenges, such because the occasions we confronted throughout the COVID pandemic.”

Customisable micro-apartment residing

Small residing ought to be adaptive and customisable, in keeping with Chee, catering to particular person life and desires.  

“We frequently assume the largest problem for individuals residing in small areas is storage. When builders construct small flats, they typically fill them with ample storage, considering they’re doing a great job,” Chee mentioned.  

“Nevertheless, there is no consideration for the residents’ way of life, tradition, and well-being. All of us stay completely different lives; all of us have completely different wants in our multicultural nation.”

For instance, in case you give an empty 32sqm floorplan to a journalist, a nurse, and somebody in a wheelchair, they’d possible give you very completely different floorplans due to their completely different way of life wants.

A journalist may want loads of storage for books, a pleasant desk dealing with the window to jot down, and a snug lounge chair to learn.

A nurse may prioritise a snug place to loosen up after work, with a big couch and TV;  whereas low storage entry and an L-shaped open kitchen  with out overhead storage and a kitchen island could be best for wheelchair entry.

Chee mentioned it’s totally doable in a 32sqm house, and the trick was “to not overdesign the residence”.

Nevertheless, present laws typically require builders to finish tasks with a set restrict of storage or joinery for a big fridge and washer.

“In lots of circumstances, it is an afterthought in design,” Chee mentioned. “Builders use the identical design and replicate it all through the event, leading to inflexibility and a poor high quality of residing in small areas.”

Ditching cookie-cutter flats for shells

In an effort to cater to the various wants of the inhabitants inside flats, builders and designers would want a special strategy.

Chee mentioned there have been many examples from different international locations that present that while you purchase an residence, you are shopping for a shell.

“Builders present a fundamental kitchen, fundamental toilet, energy factors, and water entry if you’d like a washer,” Chee mentioned. “This could make the price of constructing an residence extra inexpensive and customisable to fit your personal want.”

“With this strategy, you progress in and take your time to furnish it steadily, making the house suit you quite than you having to suit into the small house.”

Technological developments and extra merchandise designed for small house residing are making micro-apartments appear extra interesting for many individuals, not solely younger people but in addition singles and the growing old inhabitants.

Chee urged Australian builders and planners to have a look at examples like Singapore and Europe for a way they do small footprint residing and concrete design.

“All of us want to begin speaking about it collectively as a result of housing is a worldwide concern and it’ll higher inform the Australian public about small footprint residing,” Chee mentioned.

“Affordability, sure, accessibility much more so. Solely then do we all know we’re housing our individuals sustainably, guaranteeing well-being for our individuals and taking part in our function as accountable custodians for our nature.”