Kay Wilson packed up her life in a hurry and moved to Los Angeles… only to find that what she paid in Pennsylvania for a nice studio apartment would only get her a 2.9-square-meter box in California. Her new home is a capsule, inspired by the famous hotels in Japan. AFP reports:
Each room contains up to six capsules, which Wilson describes as “cozy.” They contain a single bed, a bar for hanging clothes, a few compartments for storing shoes and other items and an air vent.
By most standards, the accommodation is still not cheap — $750 per month plus taxes. That works out at around $800, which is slightly more than the 26-year-old was paying in Bethlehem, around 70 miles outside Philadelphia.
“I couldn’t afford a studio by myself. Not at all,” she told AFP. “It’s $1,300 or more.”
Jeremiah Adler, founder of UP(st)ART, said each capsule costs roughly half the rent of a studio in Los Angeles — the US entertainment capital, and one of its most expensive cities.