How much living space do you have?
 

This is on my mind for an obvious reason: The SO and I are currently in the market for a home after renting for too many years.

So, how much space do you have?

We're likely going to end up in a condo or a small house. We're hoping to get a bit more space, especially if we have a kid or two in the next five years.

Currently, our space is 716 square feet. That's 358 square feet per person. We'd like a bit more--maybe 900 if we can swing it, making it 450 square feet per person, or 300 when we have a kid. Though we might end up with anything between 700 and 800 total.

• Do you feel you have enough space?
• Where do you draw the line at "too much space"?
• What is a good minimum?
• What factors influence your needs and wants on space?

I have some difficulty answering these, as I'm used to small spaces: I grew up in a big family, and now I have a small-ish apartment. Help me figure out my own answers by sharing with me.

How many square feet per person does your home have?

I'd prefer more space than I have, but I'm used to very little, and generally, require very little. I'm basically in a cave and go outside when I feel I need space. The main problem is that I live in the desert as well as a city/suburbia and need more wild open spaces to fulfill that need. Thinking of Oregon.

The other thing is I'm tall, so I need decent vertical space as much as horizontal. Some kitchens with low ceilings and light fixtures have been way too claustrophobic for me. Besides that, I actually like the feeling of being underground, and in the future I may get one of those half-buried houses.

I think Square footage is a good starting point, but a good layout and good home design can maximize the amount of space you do finally end up with.

My previous apartment was a 400 sq foot studio. It was just too small for me, after downgrading from a 1,000 sq 2 bedroom townhouse. I'm now in a studio that is about 575-600 sq feet, but it feels even bigger because of the wall of windows, and the way the floorplan is designed.

I think we have around 1200 sq feet in a 3 bedroom house. We regularly use only about half of that. Its a little bit more than the two of us need but at least we aren't tripping over each other.

We have about 500sqf


We need way more.

Currently have about 1400 sq feet. A large part of that is studio space. But, I admit I am spoiled - with the downside that it costs me.

I actually need more space, at least in terms of studio and storage.

I rather like my house, despite the difficulty of paying for it.

2200 Sq. Ft, pretty open floor plan. 4 bedrooms 2 bath. I'm of the belief that it doesn't matter what floorplan you decide on, you'll always find a fault with it somehow.

I disagree...when we were house shopping, floorplan was more important than square footage. We looked at probably 50 houses before everything clicked into place. We could have afforded more (in fact, signed paperwork on a 2600 square foot 5 bedroom/4 bath, then changed our minds) but ended up with a very efficient (no wasted areas) 1600 square foot 2-story 3-bedroom/2.5 bath.

Our last house was 800 square foot 2-bedroom/1-bath, but the floorplan was AMAZING, so it never felt small--that's what we were trying to replicate.

Before that I shared a 400 square foot studio, and again, compliments of the good people at Ikea, we made it feel comfortable and not cramped.

So I guess I've been happy with 200 square feet, 400 square feet, and 800 square feet...I don't count the baby having any of her own yet.

Things I was looking for in a floorplan, by the way:

• All bedrooms upstairs, so we wouldn't have to clean them to host people (and to put a defensive choke point at the top of the stairs)
• A half bath downstairs for people who are visiting
• A full bath upstairs in addition to the Master for people who are staying over
• At least one built-in desk space upstairs and one downstairs (we ended up with two downstairs) so we didn't have to retreat to an office to use the computer...right now I'm in the middle of the living room and can easily talk to my wife in the kitchen.
• 3 adjacent walls in the living room to have a couch/couch/TV arrangement
• A distinct dining room table area, but open enough that you can see easily from kitchen to dining room to living room
• A smart kitchen with a good work triangle, a pantry, and good amount of cabinets.
• A breakfast bar--we didn't end up getting this, although we have a place we could eventually put one

I'm not saying floorplan isn't important ;) I'm just saying that if you live in it long enough you'll always wish something was different..there is no perfect floorplan.

I don't know the exact number for our apartment, but I'd estimate we're living in about 700 sq ft right now. It's enough room for the pair of us (and is actually fairly similar to Baraka_Guru's apartment in terms of space, although the layout is different; granted there are about three people here who that will mean something to, but all the same).

Like others have said, layout is the key issue. We don't have a huge space, but it's very open and we're very happy with it. I wouldn't mind having a kitchen that's a bit bigger, but I also have a studio that I didn't expect to, so I'm okay with having a slightly cramped cooking space. It's also much much bigger than my previous space (~400 sq ft, maybe a bit less), so that's a plus.

I don't think having a lot of space is really as big a deal as some people think it is. As long as it's enough for your needs, I don't really see the point in having more. A second bedroom for us would be pretty much wasted, for example. We don't have enough overnight guests to need a guest bedroom (and have the futon besides), and the living room works comfortably for our computer, television/entertainment centre and bookshelves. We have a room to sleep in, and it means that we can keep somewhat different hours without disturbing each other.

Which reminds me that I need to pick up another bookshelf; Magpie was shocked at how many books I have when we were unpacking, apparently.

Yeah, you could only keep one, maybe one and a half dead hookers in that space. ;)

I have 700sq/ft and loving it. Well, no furniture can do that to you, I guess. ;)

My house is just at 5000 sf. So that works out to 1666 sf per person. Of course one of those people is a baby, so he doesn't really use that much space yet.

Yes, it is more house than we need. And there are a few areas that we don't often use. I've always liked a lot of space for myself and this house has it. The house also has a very open floor plan. Our living room/dining room is 25.5 feet by 26 feet with no walls (an exposed laminate wood beam spans the house there to support the distance. And that is next to the kitchen/family room which is 14 feet by 32 feet. Between the two rooms is one 4 foot doorway, a 4 foot bar pass through, and another standard size doorway. Leads to the house feeling quite open and unencumbered.

We've happily lived in a 1800 sf house and a 1200 sf house before. The one thing that they had in common was openness in the floor plan, particularly in the living areas.

Do you feel you have enough space?
I'm perfectly comfortable.
Where do you draw the line at "too much space"?
I don't. I'm kinda flexible when it comes to living space. I could live in a mansion or a studio, as long as I've got a roof, 4 walls, a bed and bathroom.
What is a good minimum?
The smallest place I lived was about 12' sq. Anything less than that would probably be too cramped to be functional.
What factors influence your needs and wants on space?
It depends. If I'm living with other people they probably need space. If I'm by myself I need a bed, room for the Roland, maybe a desk for my computer and work, and my comfy chair. Everything else—living room chairs and sofa and coffee table, real piano, tvs, stereos, etc.—is kinda superfluous. Sometimes I feel like my house is furnished so that I seem normal. I'd be perfectly happy with a bedroom, bathroom and kitchen.

Oh, and having a yard is good for the beagle.

Oh, and the other important factor for me is that there is a quiet part of the house. I need a quiet place to go and be alone sometimes or I'll feel cramped.

My wife and I live in a house that has about 1600sq ft of living space with three bedrooms and what I think is a relatively large living room/dining area, all on one floor.The kitchen is small, used pretty much for cooking only. This has worked out well for us and we don't feel particularly cramped. The first house we owned was about 900Sq ft on two floors and that felt cramped.

650 just for me, and even that is probably too much. My bedroom has a night stand, alarm clock, and a bed. The rest of my place isn't much better.

In some circles,
my 400 square foot place is roomy.

I have a friend who grew up in prison.

6 foot by 8, for two people.
He adapted.
He spent his time drawing blueprints for sustainable living on the smallest scale.

I ain't much for countin' square footage, but let me tell you what you need, Baraka. You need a place with a kitchen about 3 times the size and maybe a slightly bigger space for all those critters you've got runnin' about.

Other than that, you'll probably only be in your first place for 5 to 10 years, so don't get too picky. As long as there's a 10 to 20% increase on the space you have now (especially in the kitchen).

Windows that open....
Primo!

When you don't have children, space is less important. We renovated our place (because we liked the position) for a few reasons:

1. The original kitchen and bathroom were tiny
2. there was only one bathroom (we now have an ensuite)
3. the actual living space (i.e. not bedrooms/bathrooms/kitchen) was tiny

We now have a spare bedroom (with our two boys sharing a room) which doubles as a 'toy' room/library, have two separate living spaces (we added a 10m x 4.3m room on the back of the house which incorporates the kitchen and this is down a set of 4 stairs from the original house, but is open to the upstairs living space).

This means there is more than enough space for our two boys to have friends over without feeling cramped on a rainy day. We still have a sizeable backyard (block is 800sqm), so there is still space to run around and also to grow vegies. This is almost as important as the inside space.

I'm sure we could live in something smaller, but won't even contemplate it until the boys are bigger.

Our space needs are different than most.

We began engaged life in a student cooperative that was shared with 40 other students. Entirely private space that was to ourselves included a single bedroom that was approximately 10 feet x 11 feet. It was enough space for Tt and I, considering that the home had considerable common space which we shared with our friends. This included a common TV room, kitchen, den, large decks/balconies, bathrooms, garden, a study room, and probably more that I didn't explore.

Our current living arrangement is a one bedroom apartment, which feels incredibly spacious. It is odd to have this much space just to ourselves. We have begun to enjoy the extra space. Here is the floorplan:
http://www.oxfordrents.com/images/pi.../floorplan.jpg

There are two humans and one rabbit in this apartment. It is exceptionally odd to have no roomates.

My wife and I lived comfortably for 7 years in a row house that was 12'6" wide and about 40' long with two bedrooms. It was even fine with our son but the addition of our daughter and a growing tension over noise with our neighbour through the wall was the tipping point.

As many have said before layout is key, especially in the Kitchen. Read up a bit on Kitchen design to help you while searching.

Minimizing furniture and clutter is also key. My parents have too much of it and no matter how big their house is, you're always trying to step around someone or waiting for them to pass by.

Also remember that if you have a backyard and deck or patio, your square footage will catapult upwards in the summer. Sweet, glorious Summer!

My partner and I currently rent a 800 sq. ft. apartment. It is 2 bedrooms/1 bathroom which suits us fine. We have one bedroom set up as our office/partner's closet/craft room.

There are two very nice things about this apartment which makes it feel quite a bit larger. One is a 50 sq. ft. deck which opens onto greenspace. The other is vaulted ceilings which make the entire space feel large.

We have enough space to store our things and not trip over each other. I don't want much more space because then I have to clean it.

I think the place we're renting right now is about 2700 sq ft, and for the four of us it's probably excessive. The design of the place wastes too much space in my opinion, with way too high ceilings and a master bedroom that's half of the upstairs. I've lived in rooms way smaller and been alright, as long as the bedroom has enough for my bed, tv, computer, chair and a bookcase or two I'm good for now. That and multiple bathrooms, I really can't stand sharing one damn bathroom anymore with a bunch of other people.
So that's about 676 sq per person disproportionally.

My current house is roughly 550sqf. Which would be fine if the kitchen were larger. In a few weeks I'll be moving into a 2300sqf. It's a lot more home then I need. I'm concerned as I'm in a mode of not obtaining new possessions. Thankfully the new home is furnished. I've found over life that the more space I have the more junk I acquire. Took me months to sell, give away and throw out all the crap I had before moving down here.

I have a pretty big apartment, especially in light of the fact I live alone. I'm not sure about square footage, but I have a good-sized living room, a dining room, a hallway, a galley-style kitchen, a bathroom, and a big bedroom. My apartment is ridiculously cheap, both in terms of size and neighborhood. It has a few issues (peeling plaster, stained ceiling, weird neighbors), but I adore it. I also have three cats, so the extra space helps.

Our first house was a 1200sq. ft. bungalow built in 1922. After 5 years and the birth of our daughter we decided we needed more space so we sold it and moved to a 2500sq. ft. airplane bungalow built in 1925. After 3 years of paying more in taxes, energy and maintenance on the second house we sold it. It was also a bitch to keep clean ... it was more than we could really do in a weekend. We hardly ever used the upstairs (although we completely remodeled it--down to the studs and completely new windows).

We rented for a while to see if we could live small again: 900 sq. ft apartment. It was fine so we started looking for small houses. We ended up buying a duplex and renting out the other side. Our side is about 850sq ft. Plus, since we live in the duplex we don't pay commercial tax rates.

I live in a 2500 square feet house with my wife and dog. It's way too big. We don't use 2 of our living rooms (3 living rooms total) or one of the bedrooms (has a couch and a TV in it, essentially a fourth living room). We could go down to 1000 square feet and be fine. Our old apartment was 700 square feet and it was fine. I don't require much space at all. The reason we bought a house this size was the price difference. When a house half the square feet is only $150 a month difference, it doesn't make sense to not pay that little extra every month and have a house worth a ton more.

My house in excessive but it was an investment when we moved here and also used money we made on the sale of previous homes. The main level is (it's a ranch) 2,700 sq. ft. with 3 bedrooms and 2 baths with all the usual rooms and a library as a bonus feature. The master bedroom hasas space for a sitting area with 2 stuffed chairs and a fireplace. 1,400 sq. ft. of the basement is finished and includes a yoga studio for up to five students and a full-sized pool table in a bar area. It is way too much space for two people but is sure nice to have in the winter.

I think you adapt to whatever space you have. We've lived in much smaller over the years with more family members at home. In moving we have lived in small apartments for 2-3 months while the moving process was under way so I understand the other extreme. And when we first started out many years ago we lived in a 10 x 50 foot trailer and moved up in house sizes over the years.

I do think you tend to stay home more when you have a larger living space and probably venture out more with a smaller space. Smaller spaces are also more likely to be in city settings where the larger spaces tend to be suburban or country so that may have something to do with my theory, at least from my experience.

I live in 1071 sq. ft with my daughter. It's pretty good space-wise and I like the way it is laid out - it's open. The neighborhood is not so nice, but the rent is low (relatively speaking).

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2..._Plan_1751.jpg

My house is 1600 sq feet (3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths). I could get by with 1.5 baths, but the guest bathroom is the only part of my house I don't regularly use. I'm not sure if the 2-car garage is counted or not in this number. And I try to keep stuff down to a minimum level, but still utilize all of the space, and I'm sure it would be fine for a family of 3-5. When my parents visit for a while, there is still enough space.

My apartment was 760 sq feet, and would have been fine if it had a 2 car garage. But 1/2 of the stuff that had to go in my apartment should have been in the garage (where it is now) and it felt cramped.