Would you pay $1,000 per month for a 160-square-foot unit? This developer thinks so.
Imagine living in a space no more than 160 square feet. That’s roughly the size of a shipping container or an average parking spot.
It may be a tight squeeze for some, but it’s the latest proposal from Raleigh businessman David Smoot for an apartment project along one of the city’s major thoroughfares.
Site plans currently under review call for demolishing a century-old home and replacing it with 100 partially furnished “micro units” at 1415 Hillsborough St. near Park Avenue. The units would be spread across a five-story building on less than a quarter-acre of land sandwiched between downtown and NC State’s campus. Amenities would include a central laundry and lounge on each floor, but no parking.
The proposed cost to rent: $1,000 per month, utilities included.
“That’s what I’m getting or more for the eight units in my [existing] duplex now,” Smoot told the N&O this week. “It will have its own bathroom and full kitchen, of course, and have a wonderful view of the city.”
“Micro units,” smaller-than-average studios with a footprint typically between 200 and 400 square feet, are not uncommon in large cities like New York and Chicago. But after two-plus years of plummeting inventory and sky-high rents across the Triangle, the trend is beginning to catch on in the Triangle as well.
Around the corner on Ashe Avenue, Pullen Station Lofts already offers micro units of 252 square feet for $950 a month. Atlas Durham, meanwhile, opened at 321 W. Corporation St. last year with 171 units — many between 360 and 500 square feet. In Raleigh, Kane Realty is also pitching micro units of up to 600 square feet in exchange for up to 40 stories for its North Hills expansion project.
For some developers, micro units are one way to build more affordable options as the region grapples with runaway growth. It’s also appealing to students and young professionals, they say, who are willing to give up space for lower rent and proximity to campus and work.
“If you look at demand as a pyramid, there’s a whole lot of people at the beginning end of the income scale,” Smoot said. “There’s no way to deliver an extra-large multiple bedroom apartment at a cheap price. The only solution is to offer a smaller habitation that is nicely located and convenient.”
The project is estimated to cost around $7 million, he says. Construction is expected to begin this summer and be completed by late 2023.
Claire Martin, 19, a student at N.C. State, lives next door at the Signature 1505 apartment complex. Her window overlooks the site of the proposed project. She says she wouldn’t mind seeing something replace the old house that has seen better days.
“This place is kind of a dump. My roommates call it a trap house,” she said. “It just looks kind of sketchy.” Still, it wouldn’t be her first choice to live in a micro unit. “My room is small, but I like living with other girls.”
Isaac Doves, 26, is a fourth-year PhD student, also at N.C. State. He pays $1,110 for a one-bedroom apartment nearby. He was unfazed by the micro unit’s $1,000-per-month price tag.
“Rent is very expensive, anywhere in the city but especially around here,” he said. “Paying $1,000 a month for a super small unit may sound like a lot, but honestly there’s something already like that around the corner. I wish rents were lower, but it is what it is.”
This story was originally published January 19, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
