Single-person households in Australia have increased significantly over the last 50 years, rising from 18% in 1981 to 26% (approx. 2.37 million) of households in 2021.
This is a choice, not a disease. And there is plenty of evidence that single people are happier, particularly when they are older.
So why do we persist in creating housing regulations that actually punish tiny living for single people?
@UkeleleEric it's mad. It's probably cheaper (counterintuitively) to build larger places because then you don't have complexities with plumbing and noise reduction. But that's not creating the building mix we need for the society we are creating, or even the one we have.
(Also I lived in London very happily in a one bedroom flat for 4.5 years - probably the best years of my life.)
Or married people.
Oh, my point was just that some married people live tiny.
@Wintergr33n I totally get that and of course I agree that everyone needs a chance to access tiny living. So your point is conceded; the regulations are affecting anyone wanting to live tiny - in couples, indeed in families, or singles.
I guess what I'm saying though, is that single living is a choice that is often sidelined, as a somehow degenerate decision. This seems punitive, and seems specifically aimed at people who choose to be single. This is a problem. And while I appreciate that it's not just single people who choose to live tiny, the rationale against tiny living seems specifically to attack single-occupancy living.
@ewen yeah so this is also the problem. There's a reason why developers don't do good tiny apartments. It's actually more expensive to build smaller apartments than bigger apartments, and the yield is lower.
I can show you why, but it's complicated. Nothing to do with developer greed as such. More to do with regulations.
But your point is correct; there are different small design apartments, which are often limited to accommodating students only, and there are luxury small apartments which are designed for the rich and stupid.
We need something in between. We don't have it. And there are zero development incentives for building *because of the regulations and the design limitations*.
@ewen so there are weird regulations regarding the space in front of a toilet (you need 2 metres because someone might fall forward off a toilet in a medical episode, and might hit their head on a wall or door - I KID YOU NOT!) or in spaces between kitchen areas and furniture (because of potential for sparks from a cooking surface causing a fire) that impact small space development.
Here's an idea. Understand that someone falling forward off a toilet has more problems than a wall. And understand that gas is probably not the best way of powering a stove.
I mean, just... Logic.
@DavidPenington well sure, it's entirely unfair. And I don't like it at all
But it's actually pennies in comparison to the many thousands of dollars of difference in cost of properties.
I am not criticising your approach in any way. But trying to compare energy costs with the costs of the actual accommodation is like comparing a sandcastle to a mansion house.
I respect you dearly. But please: let's look at this proportionately.
Herman Lentil
Joanne Jacobs
UkeleleEric
LIPSERVANT
Wintergreen
Ewen Bell 📸
David Penington
Otte Homan - remember Geordie