Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Original poster

How long can you survive in a small flat?

132 replies

erkeline · 01/08/2023 07:27

I was brought up in the countryside. Big house and lots of open space. Dogs & market towns vibe.

Now I live in London for work. DP and I are saving hard for a deposit. We rent a one bedroom flat together, 40 sqm close to work so to save on commuting costs. It's a glorified bedsit.

We have done one year here already. Despite earning a good income, for London it doesn't go far. (We make about 120k combined). Appreciate some people have no choice, but by late 20s we thought we would be able to afford a slightly better lifestyle than this.

How long can you survive in a tiny flat?

OP posts:
PragmaticWench · 01/08/2023 08:16

Adding children or pets makes it intolerable. Until then I'd say it depends on how important the deposit feels to you. Now is a good time to save with rising interest rates.

Mars27 · 01/08/2023 08:23

"Appreciate some people have no choice"

Do you though? 🙄

Some people live in flats, get over yourself and don't be so patronising. If you want your very big house in country (thanks Blur) then London is not for you.

SushiSuave · 01/08/2023 08:24

We've finally bought a house after 5 years in a tiny one bedroom flat designed for a single person. We lived here with our son, dog and cat. We made the best of it as we didn't have any other option but now I really don't know how we did it! But we have been very close and I feel that if we can survive that then we can survive most things!

CatsOnTheChair · 01/08/2023 08:25

Survive? Indefinitely.
However, if you want to increase the rent and/or commute to get more space, go for it.

BarbaraofSeville · 01/08/2023 08:25

You live close to work, presumably fairly centrally, in a great city, which is expensive because lots of people can't afford to live there like you can, with lots going on, a lot of it free or very cheap (museums, parks etc). That sounds like a good lifestyle to me. It also sounds like you will be able to buy within a reasonable timescale, unlike many.

elastamum · 01/08/2023 08:27

My DS and his GF are in their 3rd year of living in a one room studio. It's a nice central London location but tiny. They are saving hard as they want to buy and feel lucky that they have somewhere to live. They thought about moving somewhere bigger, but would rather keep saving.

TheChosenTwo · 01/08/2023 08:27

We lived in our tiny one bedroom flat with 2 dc for 3 years! We bought the flat before we had kids, a real doer upper. And it was absolutely tiny. Didn’t live in it for a year as it was uninhabitable and then fell pg with dc1. Was living at MILs at the time so no problem, she had a massive house and was so happy to have us all. Then fell pg with dc2 and we decided we needed to get out of MILs hair (she still would have been delighted to have us but we did want our own space with our own front door!) so dh pushed to get the flat done up and we moved in. Saved like max to get a deposit together to buy a house and keep the flat too. Was so worth it but we had a really clear goal in mind and a very strict savings plan/budget for those three years. It was hard. Like, mad hard. No personal space, dh and I slept on a sofa bed in the front room. No outside space so I was out every day with the dc as the flat was so small and it wasn’t fair to be in much with them.

Jacobsladder · 01/08/2023 08:28

I think it depends on what has been your norm prior to this. You’ve grown up with more space in the countryside so I think you’d find it harder than someone whose norm growing up was a cramped city flat. I’d honestly hate it but I’m used to space too. If you’re struggling might be easier though if you set yourselves a target that by x year you’ll be out or making job/lifestyle changes.

stealthninjamum · 01/08/2023 08:29

**

gogomoto · 01/08/2023 08:29

You are choosing to live centrally and choosing to work in London, you'll "survive" as long as you choose that lifestyle. Others choose the suburbs or countryside and commute or choose jobs not in London

NuffSaidSam · 01/08/2023 08:29

A lifetime.

Fear not, you're unlikely to perish from small flat syndrome!

stealthninjamum · 01/08/2023 08:29

I have no idea why I posted two asterisks! Sorry

BinFace · 01/08/2023 08:30

Depends what you want- some people would be far happier in a shoebox in a great, central location, others prioritise space.

Based on your post, it sounds like you’re the latter. So I’d be making plans to buy much further out and commute, and researching the travel options.

are you and your partner on the same page?

SleepingStandingUp · 01/08/2023 08:35

You understand that some people live there their whole lives, in less exciting areas than London where you have ready access to nice outside spaces?

And you CAN afford al arger home, but you choose to be close to work to reduce commuter costs, you choose to pay a comparatively lower rent to save for a deposit. Sensible choices but choices not the less, and over many can't make.

How much are you actually saving a month combined and how much is a reasonable deposit? How long with it take to save up?

User1706 · 01/08/2023 08:38

All depends on your mindset and lifestyle at the time. I lived in a tiny run down studio apartment in a 'posh' city in my early twenties. It was my first real opportunity to live alone away from the horrible bordering on abusive boyfriend I'd had all through my teens and university life. It was wonderful. I felt so free, everything was mine, and I got to do what I wanted without judgement. I still have such brilliant memories of it whatever it lacked in sq ft it made up for in quality of life.

Now, however I have a tantruming screaming toddler and a husband, so we all need our space. Realistically though it comes down to what you can afford, your expectations and how you wish to live.

ActDottie · 01/08/2023 08:39

We did two years in london before moving to Bristol to buy. We had a small flat in some ways I miss it because it’s a lot less cleaning and we had to be strict on ourselves about what furniture and how much stuff we had which made me a lot more clutter free. Now we have a three bed house and there is so much junk I need to sort through but never motivated to do! Sometimes I wish we had a nice tiny flat again where everything was very orderly!

Peony654 · 01/08/2023 08:44

“Survive” honestly get some perspective. DH and I spent years living in 1 bed flats, it’s fine. If you’re out at work anyway. Much easier to clean and cheap to run.

Motnight · 01/08/2023 08:52

Either move further out from central London and save on housing costs or put up with it.

It's not rocket science!

My DD is on less than £28 000 working in the NHS and in a flat share in zone 3. She manages it financially and has a life she enjoys. I am sure you can too.

Magnoliainbloom · 01/08/2023 08:54

With 120k combined, you have many options. Quit moaning about your lifestyle that YOU chose. Utterly pointless thread. Try reading posts about people given notice on their flats who are struggling to find another a place.

Original poster
erkeline · 01/08/2023 08:56

We all make different choices in life of course. I understand that. I make a decent salary because I work very long hours and I have good qualifications, so it isn't 'luck' or handed to me.

OP posts:
Hellocatshome · 01/08/2023 08:56

People around the world are surviving famine and war im sure you can survive your small flat. Ultimately if you dont like it you could do something about it, If you would rather stick it out for a few more years to save some more money then do that. Its down to you really.

Twiglets1 · 01/08/2023 09:00

You pay your money and make your choice.

I would rather live somewhere a bit further out but still near a tube and rent somewhere bigger for the same price 🤷🏼‍♀️

PuttingDownRoots · 01/08/2023 09:00

City life is always going to be claustrophobic after rural life. But its swings and roundabouts as you get stuff in cities you can't get rurally..

Most of us need to compromise somewhere with housing on location vs size vs affordability. So is it worth it for you?

AsterixAndPersimmon · 01/08/2023 09:06

40sqm isn’t that small. 25~30sqm is.

In my 20, early 30s, I lived in flats. I’d have been happy with a 40sqm.
You get used to it I think 🤷‍♀️

However, I had much more problem adjusting to being in a town like London (or Paris in my case). Ot seeing the countryside, the open space, now THAT is something I never got used to. And living a bit further to have ‘space’ in my home wouodnt have changed anything there.

VeridicalVagabond · 01/08/2023 09:09

I've a friend who lives in Tokyo in a flat so tiny it'd make your hair curl by the sounds of it. She could afford much bigger if she wanted to but she prefers to use her money to travel four times a year. For me it sounds like hell on earth as I also grew up in the countryside and continue to live there now because I like space and quiet. However, she's very happy and loves her teeny minimalist life.

Many people thrive in small flats because they're suited to it. Some people aren't. It's really not complicated.

Swipe left for the next trending thread