Size Matters

Would you choose mansion or mini?

By Leah Etling on Jul 23, 2012 in News

Imagine you’re on a game show – call it Real Estate Jeopardy – and have just been awarded a brand new home. The two prizes are behind unmarked doors – all you have to do is choose. (Drum roll please.)

Behind door No. 1, you’ll find: A mansion modeled on the French Palace of Versailles. Located in Florida, this is the home featured on the film “Queen of Versailles,” which featured the Florida homes’ current owners, David and Jackie Siegel, and their opulent taste in size and design. It’s current on the market for $75 million – as is, unfinished – or $100 million, a price tag that includes finishing everything up before you move in.

Take a look around on the house’s official sales video tour:

Behind door No. 2., we have another residence that’s been in the news recently: an apartment that’s no bigger than a suite-sized hotel room. Maxing out at 300 square feet and being heralded as the solution for space-crunched cities like New York and San Francisco, micro-apartments are geared toward young professionals who want to work and play out in the city, not entertain at home.

They’ll have a kitchenette, teeny-tiny bathroom, convertible furnishings and minimal storage space. Renters or owners will be simplifying their lives – and jettisoning possessions – before they move in. Some of these units are inspired by Airstream trailers, which define efficient mobile living. A look:

The two extreme styles of living say a lot about America’s transition into a new housing economy. The Siegels had to stop work on their home due to the financial crisis, which made completing a 90,000 square foot place that has 10 Segways on site to get around a little less than feasible, even for a billionaire. Whoever buys the home will have to have the resources to finish and maintain it, which is no small enterprise.

For those of us out here in normal-land, micro apartments may make sense on some level, especially for those looking to keep down costs, live in the heart of the city, and accumulate few possessions. But what happens when you decide to expand the size of your household?  Cramming more than one person into a micro-unit seems like a recipe for disaster. Perhaps these units could be an interim option between college life and a larger apartment, or for those who love the lifestyle, a permanent tiny space solution.

So, let’s say you knew what was behind each door. If you had to make a macro or micro housing scenario part of your day-to-day, which would you choose? Would it be the over-the-top extremes of the American Versailles or an apartment the size of a postage stamp?