100 Square Feet Home in Hong Kong - a More Humane Approach to Redesigning Hong Kong's Subdivided Apartments

Hong Kong is considered one of the most affluent and dense cities in the world. Notorious for its astronomically high housing prices, it has an average property price of $1,987 USD per square foot. As a result of the vast income gap, over 22,000 low-income Hong Kong residents live in subdivided homes, which are standard flats divided into smaller spaces to accommodate more people. These homes, also ironically called coffin or cage homes, are often at most 20 sq feet, with many residents also having to share kitchens and bathrooms, leading to insufferably cramped, unsanitary and inhumane spaces. 

Just last year, the Hong Kong government enacted the 2024 policy address, which regulated tiny housing by mandating that subdivided flats must be at least 86 sq ft, and that each flat must have at least one toilet. Still, many residents live in poorly designed and overly compact spaces.

As someone who grew up in Hong Kong, I wanted to help think of solutions to mitigate the limited housing spaces in my hometown. Thus, I decided to re-design a Hong Kong subdivided apartment to maximize its space and create a more comfortable while still affordable house for its inhabitants.

3D Modeling:

1. Revit
2. Adobe Photoshop
3. Chief Architect

Sketching:

1. Paper
2. Pencil
3. Ink pen

Accommodating up to four people, my 100 square feet tiny home consists of all the basic amenities and maximizes every space. When occupants step into the house, they can hang their bags and belongings on a pegboard. Occupants can create different arrangements of shelves and hangers on the pegboard based on their needs, allowing for flexibility in organizing. The kitchen consists of a sink, stove and a minifridge with a counter on top. Wall cabinets are also installed for more storage space. 

The different flooring materials serve to indicate the different spaces of the apartment: the tiled floor indicates the kitchen/bathroom spaces, while the wooden flooring indicates the bedroom/dining/work area. The bedroom/dining/work area is also denoted by the raised wooden platform and the pegboard, which acts not only as an organizer but a room separator. The raised platform allows for storage drawers underneath the bedroom floor. During the day, the lower bunkbed can transform into a work/dinning area by raising up the retractable table in the middle of the platform (Image 4-6). The raised platform then becomes seating around the table where occupants can eat together and work. 

As I researched subdivided flats in Hong Kong, I noticed that many installed steel grid panels around their bunk beds to hang their belongings (Image 7). I was inspired by the use of such grids to maximize space, and incorporated it into my project in the form of a sliding bamboo lattice partioner on the upper bunk (Image 8). I chose to use bamboo instead of steel because bamboo is a sustainable, cheap, and accessible material in Hong Kong (this is seen in how Hong Kong still uses bamboo rather than steel scaffolding to construct buildings). In addition, the steel grid panels resembled too much a cage; to avoid this feeling of entrapment, especially in an already small space, I used bamboo lattice, which is more aesthetic and welcoming, while still highly functional as a hanger. It is also a movable partition, offering the added benefit of privacy.

1: Full 3D Overview

2-4: Elevations

5: Floor Plan

Because my design will be for low-income apartments, I wanted to retain as much as possible the skeleton and exterior of the apartments to minimize renovation costs. I maintained the original concrete walls and kept the exterior mainly the same, including the laundry rack outside the window to dry clothes (characteristic of HK apartments; image 2).

The small square footage of the home (100 feet) also makes the flat more affordable compared to typical nano flats in Hong Kong, which are typically 215 square feet.

The flat's sustainability is inherent in its compact yet efficient use of space, reducing overall energy usage. This is achieved through the dual use of furniture (sink on toilet), optimization of vertical and horizontal space (storage drawers under bed, wall cabinets in kitchen, pegboard at entrance, bamboo lattice panel for hanging clothes on top bunk, slidable bathroom door), and flexible furniture (bed that can turn into table, combining sleeping and dining space).

Because a subdivided flat is usually surrounded by other flats, it only has windows on one side of the home. To optimize the amount of natural daylight into the home, I added many windows facing the bunk beds and translucent glass boxes in the bathroom. This reduced the need for artificial lighting throughout the day, increasing the sustainability and energy efficiency of the house. I incorporated the glass boxes in the bathroom not only to allow natural sunlight into the bathroom, but also because their translucency offers privacy. Additionally, they are a distinctive feature in Hong Kong's architecture, (image 3: glass boxes used in a building in HK) allowing the remodeled apartment building to effectively blend in with its surrounding site. I also considered how the kitchen would receive natural daylight, since it is not directly near any window. To solve this issue, I made the panels of the sliding bathroom door opaque, so as to allow light from the glass boxes to penetrate into the kitchen (image 1).

Lastly, I chose to use sustainable and local materials such as bamboo and wood. I also retained the original concrete walls and structure to make the tiny home more sustainable.

Throughout the process of designing an efficient small home, I kept in mind the comfort of the inhabitants, which is even more paramount in an already tight space. To increase feelings of spaciousness and comfort, I used a neutral color palette. Neutral colors reflect daylighting, creating a bright atmosphere, which in turn, contributes to the illusion of larger space. My design was largely inspired by the Japandi style, or a fusion of Japanese and Scandinvian architecture. This style of interior design prioritizes minimalism, natural materials and abundant lighting, creating an inviting and comfortable living space. I incorporated the Japandi style by using natural materials such as bamboo and wood for the furniture and incorporated many windows to let ample sunlight into the home.

A major hardship inhabitants of Hong Kong's subdivided flats face is intense heat during summer. The cramped space exacerbates the humidity of Hong Kong summers, with indoor temperatures reaching up to 105.8 Fahrenheit. To alleviate this problem, I chose materials that do not absorb too much heat and can withstand humidity, such as bamboo and tile flooring, and reduced the use of steel. I also integrated passive and active cooling strategies, such as installing many operable windows, as well as a box fan on top of the windows to promote air circulation and cool indoor temperatures. Since many low-income residents are unable to afford expensive air conditioners, box fans are a cheaper alternative.

Ultimately, in addition to being efficient and affordable, my tiny home design is also a comfortable and enjoyable refuge for Hong Kong's busy city life and warm climate.

Through the process of designing a tiny home, I learned to think more creatively and work around extreme constraints. This challenge also taught me the importance of considering the needs of inhabitants and the context of the building. In addition to learning more about the process of creative design, I also acquired valuable software skills, as I learned to use Revit and Adobe Photoshop for the first time.

Overall, the Make It Small Challenge has been an extremely fulfilling and rewarding project. Even more so, I became more appreciative of the role of architects---Afterall, they have the power to craft spaces, however big or small, that can significantly improve the lives of their occupants and overall community.