Have you ever lived in a studio apartment?
@highflyingxangel (9225)
United States
October 16, 2008 1:24pm CST
My partner and I have been looking at apartments a lot lately. We're trying to determine how we can finally make it out of student housing and into our own place so we can continue our schooling and become independent and not have to deal with immature young adults anymore.
One of the places we've been talking about is a studio apartment. The rent looks wonderful and would be even more wonderful with the two of us splitting it. The only issue I'm having is trying to wrap my head around the fact that we'd pretty much be living out of one giant room (that is if we did decide to rent that apartment). That and I know that space would be difficult to contend with as well. However, for two students and one about to graduate, a studio apartment with a nice rent is starting to look better and better.
Have you or do you know anyone that has lived in a studio apartment? Do you have any downsides or upsides for studio apartment living? Do you have any tips?
4 people like this
11 responses
@gitfiddleplayer (10362)
• United States
16 Oct 08
You have a lot of room but little privacy, unless that's not an issue. Studio apartments allow you to have a lot of room to have parties and gatherings but little room for time for yourself. I've never lived in one but I had a friend who did, they liked it but it wasn't a permanent home choice. Enjoy it while you can.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
16 Oct 08
LOL--I actually have lived in what I call a glorified studio apartment most of my life. When my grandmother, mother and I moved here it did seem a bit cramped but it was the only thing available and not expensive when we first moved here....my mother and I shared the alcove that served as a bedroom (size of a closet..LOL) and my grandmother slept on a sofa bed in the living room. Now that I live here alone the space seems comfortable...of course wouldn't mind a larger apartment (have tons of books) but it's adequate for my needs now. I definitely recommend a sofa bed...it'll save a lot of space during the daytime or when not used. A studio apartment is a good move for a first apartment, then maybe when you get more financially secure can move into a larger place
1 person likes this
@highflyingxangel (9225)
• United States
17 Oct 08
I was actually thinking about that. That it would be an OK thing to start with, just move somewhere else after we get settled with jobs and the like.
@danishcanadian (28955)
• Canada
16 Oct 08
I wish I'd moved into one of those. In Canada we called them batchelor apartments. It would have been a lot easier to keep organized. My husband and I are not overly social people, so it really doesn't matter for entertainment sake. It would just be easier to organize. We go out a lot anyway, so we wouldn't even be in there much.
1 person likes this
@highflyingxangel (9225)
• United States
16 Oct 08
We don't entertain much ourselves so I definitely don't think that would be much of a problem with having people over or anything. We'd just have to deal with living there ourselves and the occasional friend that we may have over.
@checapricorn (16061)
• United States
16 Oct 08
[i]HI angel,
I haven't tried living in a studio apartment but I have tried living in a small lodging house with a students and after years, My sister and i decided to move since we can't anymore handle the noise since we are tired from work and students are very noisy![/i]
1 person likes this
@thuhuong (823)
• United States
17 Oct 08
Basement garden apartments are actually nice. The one I had had a private room and restroom as well as a walk in closet. Not much for the living room and kitchen though. It's small but I loved it! I have not found another like it. I don't know what your preference is whether it be to live in the upper or lower level of an apartment and/or building. The basement has a little bit of a suffocating feel. The upper level more free in seeing across the sky and bit. Over all, depending on your situation, school might mean lots of studying and/or partying. Use dividers if you have to seal off some space and or divide the room to make rooms. Some creativity will go a long way!
1 person likes this
@ndaniel229 (419)
• United States
16 Oct 08
It's not too bad ... the bad thing is if you want an escape ... you can't just got your bedroom ... you'd actually have to retreat to the restroom or outside. Other than that it's not too bad. You could make dividers Ikea have these room dividers that look like a long clothes line... It's worth checking out - Plants could be a divider or like a big couch or something. I lived by myself in a studio at the time so I didn't mind too much about the space.
1 person likes this
@highflyingxangel (9225)
• United States
16 Oct 08
We did talk about using dividers to really give the room the look and feel of separate rooms. I just feel like I'd eventually get tired of one room living but I think if I had a way to keep things a little separate it might not be so bad.
@mtdewgurl74 (18151)
• United States
27 Jan 09
Nope Sorry I have never lived in a studio apartment before. But if the rent is cheaper is better probably with the way the economy is going now. gotta say where and when you can to keep your head above water.
@paid2write (5201)
•
17 Oct 08
I lived in a studio apartment for 16 years, but I lived on my own, so sharing with another person was never an issue, though I did sometimes share my double bed with someone overnight 
I used to joke that my home had a sitting room, dining room, bedroom, study, library and office, as these were all the functions of my one big room!
I think studios are idea for a low income single, or for a couple that get on really well!
I used to joke that my home had a sitting room, dining room, bedroom, study, library and office, as these were all the functions of my one big room!
I think studios are idea for a low income single, or for a couple that get on really well!
@minx267 (15527)
• Hartford, Connecticut
17 Oct 08
Yes, It was quite small and the downside is there is not a heck of a lot of room to put stuff.
the good thing about ours was that it already had a partition/ wall and foldable curtain to make a separate bedroom. but as there were 2 of us my roommate got that room and I had bunk beds set up in the "living room" so there was a place to sit- and
my bed was above. It was a tight fit. we did it for a year also with a big dog and 2 cats. But we also had a balcony to enjoy the woodsy view out the back - That was my favorite place!
@AndrewFreyne (6281)
• United Kingdom
17 Oct 08
Never! I did have a friend though once upon a time who mentioned something about living in a studio flat! I guess they are really cramped and have very little space. A studio flat would be a good idea though if it means that you are going to have some kind of independence. I live in a one bedroom flat myself so I don't know what it would be like to live in a studio flat. I'm sure as with anything, you will find out for yourself what it's like once you finally get there. Goodluck. Andrew
@Cunning_linguist (104)
• Philippines
17 Oct 08
We're currently renting a studio apartment for the family (myself, my wife, my daughter and the nanny). We just had a bedroom constructed using three plywood walls to separate us from the rest of the apartment, which are basically the kitchen to one side and the living/dining area on the other (apart from the bathroom). If you don't have the budget for carpentry to make the divisions, maybe you can improvise by using curtains so that each of you will have clearly defined spaces. The good thing about a studio apartment is that it's like an empty canvas; you can pretty much decide how you want it to look like. The downside is of course it's one big giant room, so it can be a bit of a problem if you're used to a living space with clear partitions.
We haven't used ours in a week or so since it's located in the heart of the city, and my daughter's skin is pretty sensitive when it comes to humidity and pollution.
