{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-c03aa079.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-517835be.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Hot property market fuels rise in micro-flats' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54d4a2d8eafeecae1f4419' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54d4a2d8eafeecae1f4419' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nHot property market fuels rise in micro-flats\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eLEADIN: With land prices sky high and dense living the norm, apartment sizes in Hong Kong are getting smaller and smaller.But when your entire living space measures just eighteen square metres or less, how small is too...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eLEADIN: With land prices sky high and dense living the norm, apartment sizes in Hong Kong are getting smaller and smaller.But when your entire living space measures just eighteen square metres or less, how small is too small?STORYLINE:With its marble-clad lobby, sweeping balcony views and sleek, modern decor, Donny Chan's apartment building would seem the kind of upscale tower most young Hong Kong professionals aspire to live in.But not for Chan, who avoids spending time in his 19th-floor apartment because it measures just 193 square feet (about 14 feet by 14 feet or 18 square metres). His parking space-sized studio in the grandly named High One building is part of a growing trend for so-called micro- flats or micro-apartments that are diminutive even by the standards of space-starved and densely built Hong Kong.Donny Chan says he finds life in his tiny apartment difficult.\"In the downside I feel like, 'oh come on, I'm back to this box once again.' And I have stay to in this box for another like 10 or 11 hours including sleeping time.  So every time I step back into this area I do have this feeling, kind of like a cat squeezed into a box, something like this.\"To avoid returning to his cramped and claustrophobic apartment before bedtime he plays basketball or badminton, goes to the movies or karaoke bars, and gets together with friends and family. Life in a micro apartment has forced Chan to downsize across the board. When he moved in, he estimates he sold off or threw out 40 percent of his possessions - suits, basketball shoes, comic books, model cars and planes - because they wouldn't fit. He stores the rest of his stuff at his parents' place or in boxes supporting his single mattress. There's a narrow wardrobe, a pint-sized loveseat and an undersized coffee table, but no space for a TV.  Parties are out of the question: there's only enough space for one or two visitors.The apartment's minuscule open kitchen includes a space-saving sink that converts to countertop. There are six cans of soda in his half-size fridge - Chan says he never cooks.Chan says he plans to move to Hong Kong's semi-rural suburbs when his lease is up. Transaction records show Chan's landlord bought the unit from developer Henderson Land for about 500,000 US dollars in 2015. Chan's rent is 1,300 US dollars a month, or a third of his monthly salary. Chan says the flat is reasonable for an investment but not to live in.\"If for investment it's OK, I know that there's a market here for people like me to pay money to afford to rent a place like this.  So if for investment, if I can afford it, I wouldn't resist. But if you say I have to buy an apartment to live with this size I wouldn't agree, I would say no, I prefer somewhere bigger.\"These tiny apartments, dubbed \"mosquito-size units\" or \"gnat flats\" in Chinese, are drawing online ridicule and underscore worries over the Asian financial hub's overheated real estate market and widening inequality. Its micro-flat boom parallels tiny house and minimalist living trends seen in the U.S. and other developed countries. The difference is that in Hong Kong, few make the choice willingly. Chan moved in last year because it was all he could afford to rent at short notice after splitting up with his wife.  When they first appeared, micro-flats were mostly snapped up by investors renting them out for above-average returns. Even by Hong Kong standards these apartments are getting smaller and more expensive.The squeeze is, however, spurring the younger generation of would-be homeowners to come up with creative ways of coping with Hong Kong's crushing property costs. One innovative solution is Andy Knight's transforming flat. Inside the flat floor panels mounted on hydraulic lifts automatically open up to reveal storage compartments that he and his wife use to store their possessions. In one corner, a wall swings out to reveal yet more storage, as well as a hidden ladder for their cat, Dumpling, to climb up and access a network of overhead ledges for exercise. There's a 55 inch flatscreen TV that's tucked away on a sliding frame that can be pulled out from a pocket hidden behind another wall. Behind the couch, there's a bathtub that can also be converted into seating for more guests. It's all packed into an apartment measuring just 309 square feet (28.7 square metres). Knight and his wife bought the one-bedroom apartment secondhand and renovated it. They tore down the walls to remove the bedroom and hired an architect to design and build the apartment's eye-catching space-saving features. Knight says they figured it was more cost effective than buying a slightly bigger apartment, which would have cost more than the money they spent on the renovation. \"When we bought this apartment we made a choice between buying somewhere that was small and buying somewhere that was marginally bigger.  And this is Hong Kong and this is Central so it's the most expensive part of the most expensive city to live in in the world. And we basically worked out that for the cost of a few extra square feet we can do a very, very complex and very innovative, as it were, renovation instead. And we figured that by doing the good renovation we could live more comfortably in a small space than we could in a slightly bigger one.\"He says they are happy with all the space-saving features.\"My favourite features in the apartment home would be for me the home cinema system with the kind of on-demand surround sound and two-tier seating. For my wife it would probably be the kitchen and the fact that she can lie in the bath while watching her TV shows.\" Hong Kong is often ranked as the world's costliest housing market.  One group of architects working in Hong Kong have come up with an imaginative proposal to help ease the burden, especially on young buyers.The design named 'The Pit Stop' by the group of five architects features cooperative \"co-living\" space with shared storage facilities. Yannis Chan and Derek Lau are two of the architects involved in the project.Lau says he loves the way the private flat can open into a public space.\"My favourite feature of this flat is the openable bookcase, not just the bookcase is openable but it actually functions as an...openable boundary between the interior and exterior of the flat.  By merging the private space and the public space we can actually share a common area with our neighbourhoods or we can invite guests to come play with us.\"Yannis Chan, another of the architects involved, says such cooperative spaces are one way to help young people find a place of their own.\"It is ... in a way we think the land price here now is very crazy, maybe it's not the right time to buy in but we are waiting for the property market to cool down for several years but it never happens. It definitely affects lives because when you get married, you have bigger family, you need to move out from the family eventually. Actually it's such a big investment that will affect the stability of your life.\"Like Andy Knight's apartment, their design for a apartment unit incorporates furniture that can be converted into other pieces of furniture or furniture which can serve multiple purposes. In 'The Pit Stop' one of the walls can serve as a bookcase but also swings out to open the area to the corridor, transforming corridors that are usually ignored into communal spaces. A sleeping platform over the bathroom is accessed by steps that also serve as storage cubicles. The desk or dining table can fold up into the wall when not needed. It has taken decades for the government to provide housing for the city's hundreds of thousands of refugees from mainland China, and personal living space has always been at a premium in Hong Kong.  Last year (2016), developers built 206 apartments smaller than 20 square metres (215 square feet), up from 79 in 2015 and none in 2012. This year (2017), 30 percent of the 17,122 apartments set to be completed will be smaller than 40 square metres (430 square feet). That ratio will rise to 43 percent in 2018.Hong Kong - 10 June 20171. Various of micro-flat (tiny apartment) building exterior2. Tilt down of micro-flat building exterior3. Mid of micro-flat lobby entrance with building name 4. Wide of micro-flat Donny Chan at his apartment reading in bed5. Close up of Chan lifting cover of storage box6. Chan opening wardrobe7. SOUNDBITE (English) Donny Chan, Micro-flat resident: \"In the downside I feel like, 'oh come on, I'm back to this box once again.' And I have stay to in this box for another like 10 or 11 hours including sleeping time.  So every time I step back into this area I do have this feeling, kind of like a cat squeezed into a box, something like this.\"8. Chan talking about micro-flat's kitchen, opening fridge9. Mid of kitchen counter top being transformed into sink10. Mid of Chan washing cups11. Reflection of Chan as he turns off tap12. SOUNDBITE (English) Donny Chan, Micro-flat resident: \"If for investment it's OK, I know that there's a market here for people like me to pay money to afford to rent a place like this.  So if for investment, if I can afford it, I wouldn't resist. But if you say I have to buy an apartment to live with this size I wouldn't agree, I would say no, I prefer somewhere bigger.\"13. Chan walks on to balcony14. Wide of balcony viewHong Kong - 2 March 201715. Floor panels opening up as cat jumps off16. Wide shot of floor panels opening up to reveal storage compartments17. Resident Andy Knight takes bag from compartments18. SOUNDBITE (English) Andy Knight, Owner and designer of transforming apartment: \"When we bought this apartment we made a choice between buying somewhere that was small and buying somewhere that was marginally bigger.  And this is Hong Kong and this is Central so it's the most expensive part of the most expensive city to live in in the world. And we basically worked out that for the cost of a few extra square feet we can do a very, very complex and very innovative, as it were, renovation instead. And we figured that by doing the good renovation we could live more comfortably in a small space than we could in a slightly bigger one.\"19. Wide of Andy Knight opening up swivelling wall compartment to reveal hidden storage20. Mid of cat at top of built in cat ladder in swivelling wall21. SOUNDBITE (English) Andy Knight, Owner and designer of transforming apartment:\"My favouite features in the apartment would be for me the home cinema system with the kind of on-demand surround sound and two-tier seating. For my wife it would probably be the kitchen and the fact that she can lie in the bath while watching her TV shows.\" 22. Knight opening up hidden panel23. Knight pulling out sliding TV set from compartment24. Knight watching TV on couch with catHong Kong – 11 March 201725. Tracking shot of architect Derek Lau walking up stairs26. Mid of Lau sitting down on bed and watching video on screen27. Wide of Lau sliding a door and pushing a bookcase28. Architects Yannis Chan and Derek Lau sitting in show flat,UPSOUND (English) Derek Lau, Architect: \"My favourite feature of this flat is the openable bookcase, not just the bookcase is openable but it actually functions as an...\"UPSOUND (English) Yannis Chan, Architect: \"...Openable boundary...\"UPSOUND (English) Derek Lau, Architect: \"....Openable boundary between the interior and exterior of the flat.  By merging the private space and the public space we can actually share a common area with our neighbourhoods or we can invite guests to come play with us.\"29. Top shot of Derek Lau, Yannis Chan and fellow architect in the 150 sq ft show flat30. Tilt down of Yannis Chan on the bed, with fellow architect is downstairs31. Pan of the living area32. SOUNDBITE (English) Yannis Chan, Architect,\"It is ... in a way we think the land price here now is very crazy, maybe it's not the right time to buy in but we are waiting for the property market to cool down for several years but it never happens. It definitely affects lives because when you get married, you have bigger family, you need to move out from the family eventually. Actually it's such a big investment that will affect the stability of your life.\" 33. 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