Comment on Apartments and metros
Semi_Hemi_Demigod@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Newly built American apartments aren’t much better than commie blocks
What? All the new American apartments I’ve seen are luxury and full of nice amenities. Which I think is a problem because none of it is affordable. Even older apartments get renovated and the rent shoots up. I would love to see some practical and efficient apartments.
This is Denver so your region my differ. From what I gather new bare bones apartments only exist in extreme cost of living areas like Sanfran or NYC.
Those “luxury” apartments are just plywood and sheetrock byult as fast and cheap as possible. They look good at first glance but start to come apart after just a couple years.
And the tenants get to hear each other’s every word and movement the entire time.
At least the commie blocks are built with concrete thick enough for the KGB torture someone without it bothering the neighbors.
Oh, and the commie blocks are in walkable neighborhoods
Those “luxury” apartments are glorified shoeboxes with shared patio and pool access.
I agree to some extent. They’re grossly overpriced. But I don’t see many shoebox options. All the layouts feel oversized and not efficient. Including the few studios. Hell a lot places have 2 parking spots for most units because of zoning laws.
I think American developers don’t like to go small unless they’re absolutely forced to.
Warl0k3@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Having seen the interiors, Khrushchevkas are way nicer than any 5-over-1 I’ve been in in the US. By a comical degree, really.
jaybone@lemmy.zip 5 months ago
What do they look like on the inside?
Allero@lemmy.today 5 months ago
About this way:
1000075017
I’ve personally been to some of them.
BruceLee@sopuli.xyz 5 months ago
Kitchen separating from the living room : 1p Big windows in all the living area : 1p Bathtub : 1p Entry and passage way : 1p Balcony : 1p Only windows on one side : -1p No window in the bathroom : -1p No separated toilet : -1p
Quite decent but the real question is heat isolation.
Is there space from a laundry machine in the kitchen and will there be enough space for a dishwasher as well?
Birch@sh.itjust.works 5 months ago
Uh, where do you sleep?
Warl0k3@lemmy.world 5 months ago
(Full disclosure that this response is transcribed from my retired civil engineer father, who is the primary source of any information I have on this subject)
Obviously most of the true Khrushchevkas are pretty old, but they were solidly constructed. Not huge, but the layout is pretty reasonable (square plan with living room / kitchen / bath / bed), you can look floor plans up online to get a better idea. The major points where they win over the modern hell that is a 5-over-1 are sound isolation (yeah famously they had no sound proofing, but it’s still a great deal better than what you find in any US stick n’ brick), access (you could pretty easily move a couch up the stairwell), fixtures (this one is both my own subjective opinion and not uniform across all designs, but the ones I have seen were quite nice - decently modern gas appliances (water heater and stove) and branch control radiators (I think this is the wrong term, apologies, I am very tired) as well as in-ceiling lighting fixtures instead of switched outlets - none of the apartments around [where I live in the US] have lighting fixtures outside of the kitchenette and bathroom), and just space (They were, despite being tiny, quite a bit bigger than the rooms I live in now)