Could Tiny Office Conversions Solve the Housing Crisis? Discover Micro-Apartments!

Ever heard of tiny homes? Now, get ready for even tinier apartments.

A fresh initiative aimed at tackling the housing crisis proposes transforming vacant office spaces across numerous U.S. cities into extremely affordable rental apartments. The twist? To keep rents low, these units would max out at 150 square feet, roughly the size of an average college dorm room, primarily designed for sleeping. Essential living spaces like lounges, kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry areas would be communal, shared with other residents on the same floor.

This concept of small personal spaces combined with shared community areas isn’t exactly groundbreaking. Single-room occupancy homes have existed for ages, and just before the pandemic hit, several “co-living” spaces began to pop up across the nation. Anyone remember WeWork’s “WeLive” projects?

The latest proposal by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the architectural firm Gensler is to merge this age-old idea with the recent surge in vacant office properties, overcoming the significant challenges that typically hinder their conversion into conventional one, two, or three-bedroom residential units.

Currently, about 20% of office spaces nationwide remain unoccupied, a situation exacerbated by the shift to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. This figure spikes even higher in certain urban areas. Meanwhile, the U.S. continues to grapple with a critical shortage of affordable housing, a deficit running into the millions of units.

By centralizing plumbing and kitchen facilities in the middle of each floor—where they are typically located in office buildings—the construction costs could be cut by approximately 25-35% compared to other office-to-residential projects, according to the report. “Due to the microapartments’ narrow and deep design, every resident would benefit from a large window, while each floor could house about three times as many units as a standard apartment building,” the report notes.

The feasibility of these conversions was evaluated in three cities: Seattle, Denver, and Minneapolis. These cities were selected for their high median rents, substantial amounts of vacant downtown office space, and significant rates of homelessness and housing insecurity—a term that describes ongoing difficulties in affording housing. Importantly, these cities also lack major regulatory obstacles that could derail such projects.

An example provided showed a proposed apartment in Denver costing about $850, which is less than half the city’s current median rent of $1,771.

Pew and Gensler envision these microapartments attracting a wide variety of residents, from seniors who might struggle with living independently, to newcomers in the city, and even government agencies seeking affordable housing solutions for the homeless. To enhance security, residents would only have access to their own living floors.

“This isn’t a solution to every issue out there,” stated Alex Horowitz, project director for Pew’s housing policy initiative, during a press conference. However, Horowitz emphasized that these microapartments would increase the supply of housing at the most affordable level, a segment notoriously difficult for developers to cater to effectively.

Placing affordable housing in the heart of city centers could also breathe new life into many commercial districts that have seen declines since the onset of the pandemic, noted Horowitz. Moreover, it could cut down on greenhouse gas emissions by making it easier for people to use public transportation or walk to work instead of driving.

Initial discussions with developers and investors have shown a strong interest in the project, but “the devil is in the details,” commented Wes LeBlanc, a strategy director and principal at Gensler.