World Business

House built on parking lot

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-11-15 16:50

The ulta-small house in Tokyo is built on the land originally sold as a parking lot. [Photo / CNN]

In Tokyo, Fuyuhito Moriya, 39, and his mother, Yoko, live in a house that's built on 30 square meters, the size of a parking space for one car.

They live in what's called an ultra-small house -- about the size of an American walk-in closet -- a genre of single family homes bred of Japan's economic stagnation and brought to life by architectural ingenuity.

Moriya wasn't sure that the land, which was originally sold as a parking space for a car, would be big enough for a single family home. But when he started doing research into ultra-small homes, he began to realize it might work.

"Every single corner is used," CNN reported on Nov 15, citing Moriya as saying.

South-facing, large windows create the illusion of space. Minimal furniture and clutter keep the small home tidy. Hideaway cabinets for kitchen appliances and half size sinks shrink expected space.

Even the spiral staircase shaves inches, drawn as a triangle instead of a circle, slashing the space's diameter. The corners of the staircase become small closets, to stash shoes.

Moriya spent approximately $500,000 to build his home, a bargain for a brand new home in Tokyo, one of the world's most expensive cities.