Each micro-apartment measures just nine square metres, which is under half the size of a typical studio apartment in Tokyo.
Subscribe to Guardian News on YouTube ► http://bit.ly/guardianwiressub

On the plus side there is zero deposit and no ‘key money’, a nonrefundable gift to the landlord. Rents range from 50,000 to 80,000 yen a month. The Guardian’s Justin McCurry spends a night in a model apartments to see if value can trump space.

The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://bit.ly/3uhA7zg

Sign up to the Guardian’s free new daily newsletter, First Edition ► http://theguardian.com/first-edition

Website ► https://www.theguardian.com
Facebook ►https://www.facebook.com/theguardian
Twitter ► https://twitter.com/guardian
Instagram ► https://instagram.com/guardian

The Guardian on YouTube: 
The Guardian ► https://bit.ly/guardiannewssubs
Guardian Australia ► https://bit.ly/guardianaussubs
Guardian Football ► https://bit.ly/gdnfootballsubs
Guardian Sport ► https://bit.ly/gdnsportsubs
Guardian Live ► https://bit.ly/guardianlivesubs

#Japan #TinyApartment #RealEstate #Shinjuku #Tokyo

36 Comments

  1. Tokyo's micro-apartments: Justin McCurry spends a night in a tiny home 0103am 20.3.23 indeed…..

  2. I don't know if the US needs efficiencies THAT efficient, but we do need a lot more affordable housing. I lived in a 23-foot travel trailer for a year, it was nice. Probably close to the same amount of space.
    You just can't accumulate much stuff.

  3. Seems efficient and sufficient for someone young and agile. (That ladder would be killer for my middle aged gotta go 2x/night bladder)😅

  4. $400 a month? Build this in NYC and people will wait in line for this😢

  5. I live in a 220 sq. ft. microflat in downtown L.A. which feels like a roomy single-family home in contrast to the crowded box seen here! 10-foot high ceilings so it never feels claustrophobic, two 6-foot tall windows. More than half of the square footage is open floor space.

  6. i mean if you have single & hav a job and stay outside most of the time its enough to meet the requirements

  7. But just one hour from Tokyo by train pay about the same price for a three bedroom two storey house with a small yard and deck ( and room for a pony!).
    But, would very much enjoy one of those apartments as a work studio beyond the noise of children and pets.

  8. Just done to keep people paying tax, and stop people living off grid, no wonder there's a suicide crisis in japan

  9. I was expecting it to be a lot worse but if you’re in your early 20s/30s single, slim, it’s not bad at all, and if it’s cheap then it’s great 🤔

  10. 50,000 Japanese Yen equals
    309.97 Pound sterling a month sounds great, but not for enough space 😢

  11. For $376 in a major city I could totally do that. I'm all about living in small spaces.

Write A Comment