While technically possible in a city, it's going to generally be cost prohibitive - especially for a couple or a family.
My parents have a large house with 4 bedrooms. They are only filled when we come seeing them. To me it's just wasted space.
Multiply that by millions of houses and you have a huge volume of space that is built heated/ACed for basically nothing most of the time.
We must rationalized all this, same with office spaces or "4 persons cars" :)
Honestly, urban apartments are pretty wasteful. Why does everyone have a kitchen? A bedroom? To me, it's all just wasted space.
It would be far, far less wasteful if everyone lived in barracks and hot-bunked/hot-desked. Meals could be served in a common mess, in shifts. Communal activities could be available for recreation.
If we maximize colocation of work and living spaces, we could also significantly cut down on space wasted on transportation in general, not just cars.
The shift will be hard, but the efficiency gains will be worth it.
The kitchen and bedroom you use them everyday. Same with the "one-seat" in your car.
No, if wasted space is a problem, let's get rid of it. No half-measures that just happen to stop when it starts interfering with your preferences.
> The kitchen and bedroom you use them everyday. Same with the "one-seat" in your car.
Come on. Just used everyday? That's a total waste. They should be in constant use.
They have those: motorcycles and bicycles. Not family compatible though.
That's OK. Because the alternative is not having one of those spaces to begin with, or having to change a space to fit the needs (i.e. friction).
Specifically, how often would your parents have you over if they had a 2br apartment and had to change the function of the second bedroom (or living room) every time?
And honestly, they may be OK with it. But they also may not - they rationalized the additional cost of a 4br house in the first place.
> 4 persons cars
That space might not be used all the time, but again the friction of having to rent a different car when you do need the space would be pretty significant. Not to mention a 4 seat car is effectively required (assuming suburban or rural US) once you have even one child.
I’m sure that’s worth it for them
You can have all of these things and much more living in a small apartment in a city. The shop will probably be a basement or a garage and the greenhouse will be on your roof or at a community garden, but apartments with multiple rooms are not difficult to come by in cities lol.
Think "man cave." I understand it to be a personal space dedicated to hobbies/interests/decor not shared by one's spouse, so they can be pursued in a way that won't bother the other.
You can have all of these things and much more living in a small apartment in a city. The shop will probably be a basement or a garage and the greenhouse will be on your roof or at a community garden, but apartments with multiple rooms are not difficult to p in cities lol.
An example: I want to sand and revarnish a chest of drawers we have. If I do that inside the apartment I'll have dust everywhere and then the stink of varnish will pervade the space. There are also no suitable shared spaces for me to use.
It is what it is, I accept it as a price of city life. But it's definitely a downside.
It's basically a space with a door that's dedicated to one of the inhabitants and their interests.
Even the closest of couples needs their own space occasionally, and having a "man cave" or "she shed" (yes, sadly they're needlessly gendered) provides that environment. They can also frequently double as a WFH office.
> apartments with multiple rooms are not difficult to p in cities lol
Sure, but at what cost? How much does a 4 bedroom apartment cost in most cities? $4k a month?
You can have all of these things and much more living in a small apartment in a city. The shop will probably be a basement or a garage and the greenhouse will be on your roof or at a community garden, but apartments with multiple rooms are not difficult to findp in cities lol.