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| Whether for space constraints or aesthetics, skinny homes are built for a variety of reasons. Photo: Michela Simoncini (left), realtor.com (center, right) |
Skinny homes are built for any number of reasons. It could be space constrictions, tax or code restrictions, the creative muse, or even for the vengeful-minded to grind an axe with a family member.
What does it mean to say a house is skinny? You know you’re in one if you can stand in the center of the room and touch opposing walls. Alas, many New Yorkers can identify, and the following homes are all in cities where space is at a premium.
The Dutch may be more familiar with the phenomenon. Take the example of the tall and slender traditional Dutch homes of Amsterdam pictured here. Amsterdam is rife with them because at one time there was a tax on the width of residences. The staircases of such structures are so narrow and steep they’re practically ladders, which made furniture installation and removal an issue. Hence, the narrow homes of Amsterdam also come with hooks at the top, so homeowners could hoist furniture up and down and through the windows.
Read ahead to view some slim pickings from across the world, with suggestions from Realtor.com as well as Trulia.
Various Locations
Price: $N/A
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| With impossibly narrow fixtures inside, the house is more of an artistic statement. Photo: Michela Simoncini |
Narrow Mist, a traveling art project by Austrian artist Erwin Wurm (pictured here in Venice) is modeled after the house he grew up in, only it has lost most of its width on a diet. The interior has narrow furniture, narrow bookshelves, a narrow landline telephone, narrow toilet and bathtub, and narrow rooms papered in 1970s patterns. Interior images can be found on the Design Boom website .
Warsaw, Poland
Price: N/A
Bedrooms: 1
Bathrooms: 1
Square Footage: N/A
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| Nestled between two buildings, the structure only has windows on opposite ends. Photo: Jeremy Edwards/istockphoto |
The oblong structure plugging up an alley resembles a giant version of several different personal items, but it’s a building called Ermitaz, or Ermitage — designed by Jakub Szczesny to be a hermitage for Israeli writer Etgar Karet. At a maximum width of four feet wide and 28 inches at its narrowest, it’s the skinniest house in Poland and maybe even the world. However, because the structure doesn’t conform to Polish building code the Centrala website calls it an “art installation in crack between the buildings” (or as we like to call a building crack, an “alley”).
1514 Alki Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116
Price: $1,850,000
Bedrooms: 4
Bathrooms: 3
Square Footage: 3,530
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| In addition to an elevator, the home has a hanging staircase leading to the roof. Photo: realtor.com |
This architecturally modern home overlooks the Puget Sound. While not much wider than the single-car garage it’s built over, the wall of windows facing the view help it feel spacious. It has flooring of cork, slate, concrete, ceramic tile and bamboo; an elevator in which to ascend to the roof deck, which has a stainless steel gas fireplace; custom lighting, and is wired for TV and Internet.
1409 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60610
Price: $4,395,000
Bedrooms: 6
Bathrooms: 5.5
Square Footage: N/A
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| This svelte house even has a two-car garage. Photo: realtor.com |
This renovated 1877 home on Chicago’s Gold Coast has a slender appearance but is actually rather sizable, with a 22 x 16 master bedroom and a 14 x 27 kitchen with butler’s pantry. Other features include mahogany panels in the (325 square foot) living room, built-ins in the family room, five fireplaces, and a finished basement.
1017 N 3rd St, Philadelphia, PA 19123
Price: $399,000
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 3
Square Footage: 1,550
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| The first floor's loft-like layout imparts a sense of spaciousness. Photo: Terry Wilson/istockphoto |
This brand new skinny house in Philly’s Northern Liberties Promenade has recessed lighting, dark hardwood flooring, baths with vessel sinks mounted on hardwood vanities and a finished basement. The house may be skinny in the square footage department but it has numerous outdoor spaces such as a deck on the main floor, two Juliet balconies, a full balcony off the master bedroom and a roof deck with views of the Center City skyline and the Piazza.
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