5 Tips For Making The Most Of Small Living Spaces

Many of the world’s great cities are getting bigger, with property prices per sq. m. increasing dramatically. As a result, people’s homes are shrinking to accommodate growing populations. This doesn’t mean smaller homes have to be cramped or claustrophobic. On the contrary, across the world there is a booming trend in creative and minimalist design for small living spaces. With that in mind, CBRE has put together some ideas that are small on space but big on inspiration!

1. This 32 sq. m. apartment in Melbourne, Australia, showcases genuine creativity in a tiny space by using a sliding screen to store a dining table. This gives the owner power to change the atmosphere of the dwelling as well as allowing him to determine the function of the space depending on the situation.

2. This French architect turned his 24 sq. m. Parisian flat into a 31 sq. m. home by thinking about the space above and around him—a ladder leads up to a newly built sleeping area, taking advantage of the flat’s high ceilings.

3. It’s easy for a small home to become cluttered, so it’s important to take a novel approach to storage. Instead of having bulky sets of drawers and shelves in this compact bedroom, which would swallow up precious floor area, these owners made the unique choice to leverage the space under their bed.

4. Speaking of beds, just think about how much space beds need despite not being used at all when we are awake! In a small home this loss of living area can be intolerable. An easy solution is to install a fold-down bed (also known as a Murphy bed), pulling it down at night and pushing it back into position come morning time.

5. Minimalism is a design choice growing in popularity, but it’s also key to making the most of limited space. Consider taking a more zen-like and sustainable approach by prioritizing what you really need, just like this Manila-based graphic designer did in his tiny room.