# If you were single, which would you live in? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 29, 2020, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683 "2020-05-29T16:52:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/21 "2020-05-29T21:26:48Z")
I’ve never had enough room. I’ve never lived alone. I always thought I’d like a studio apartment. Went from my Daddy’s house to a dorm room with a roomie, to being married. I live in a huge house. I was lamenting its size and spreading my wings a little when the lockdown came. Now we’ve filled it up again. People and pets are everywhere. Not nearly enough room. I actively hide from these people on a daily basis. :D. It’s gonna break my heart when I’m all alone again. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/22 "2020-05-29T21:36:22Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > That’s not what he said, though: “some may think it’s worth the extra cost because it gives a bit more space than a typical studio”. So it’s not just about divided vs. not, it’s also that 1BR apts typically are larger and more expensive. > > A typical studio would be pretty uncomfortable if divided further. You could have a bedroom exactly the size of your bed and a main room that’s unpleasantly cramped. A large studio could be interesting, maybe–would feel more open, the way open-plan kitchens are also popular for that reason. But it might be kinda weird for a bedroom. Maybe some room dividers would help while retaining the open feeling, especially with high ceilings. Okay fair enough. Both sounded tiny to me, so I mentally shoved the perceived-negligible different to the back. Not that designating the studio apartments as being smaller makes them sound any more appealing to me, mind you. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/23 "2020-05-29T21:46:00Z")
I am single, but I have had roommates of one sort or another most of my life. Have a house now. When I was looking for apartments for a friend, I found that studio apartments were only very nominally cheaper than 1 bedroom. Around here, it was usually like $750 for a studio, $800 for a 1 bed. For that small difference, I’d rather go the one bed, as that give you more options. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/24 "2020-05-29T22:06:51Z")
When I was single and apartment-hunting, I looked at one- and two-bedroom apartments (thinking that I could always use the extra room/space, whether as a guest room, a study, or just for storage). But I ended up renting a one-bedroom apartment, since, at the place I ended up living, the two-bedroom apartments didn’t have enough extra space (or other advantages) to justify the extra cost. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/25 "2020-05-29T22:13:46Z")
Almost always a 1-bedroom over a studio and almost always a 2-bedroom over 1. Often, but not always, a 3-bedroom over 2. Basically more space is usually preferred until it becomes a hassle to keep passably clean to my minimal standards, which for me probably starts at around the \>2,000 sq. ft. range. I’m in a 2-bedroom right now and I’m not likely to ever downgrade barring sudden poverty. I like having at least a 2nd bedroom to function as a discrete study. But if it were a roommate situation, less space + no roommates is almost always preferable to more space and a roommate(s). ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/26 "2020-05-29T22:19:59Z")
I lived in a studio, and wouldn’t want to again. There’s a lot to be said for having more than one room. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/27 "2020-05-29T22:20:35Z")
My single days were back in the 1980s and late 1970s, when apartments were considerably cheaper. It was about 13 years from moving out from under a parent’s roof for the last time, and when I got married. I never had a studio apartment, and the breakdown of my living situations is roughly this: 1 BR apartment - 1 year 2 BR apartment, shared - 3 years 2 BR apartment, by myself - 6 years House, shared - 3 years For instance, I rented a 2-bedroom apartment in Newport News from August 1985 to August 1988, for $310/month. Even after adjusting for inflation, that starts off at $736/month and decreases from there. I bet you can’t rent that apartment that cheaply now. IIRC, the 1-bedrooms were only $20 cheaper, so it hardly made sense to me to do without the second bedroom. Like I said, rents were _cheap_ back then; I’m glad I don’t have to deal with that now. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/28 "2020-05-29T22:20:46Z")
An open studio loft type would work for me, if it were large enough to create separate areas for sleeping, working, eating, living room furniture. Otherwise, a one bedroom. I could not do a strict studio, too much like a cell. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/29 "2020-05-29T22:24:00Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > But if it were a roommate situation, less space + no roommates is almost always preferable to more space and a roommate(s). Heh - well, on the other hand, I’m with **Ulfreida** - roommates are a necessity, not a negative. Either “lodger in someone’s house” or “I own the house, some poverty-stricken student is my lodger” would probably work for me at this point. I don’t think I have an opinion between “studio” and “one-bedroom” - they both sound terrible and isolating. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/30 "2020-05-29T22:41:38Z")
Any studio I’ve been in had me thinking, “Cool place, but why is the bed in the living room?” Plus, I like to cook. I don’t want my bed smelling like dinner. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2020, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/31 "2020-05-29T23:34:58Z")
**you with the face** and I lived in a studio back in college. It wasn’t really one room. There was a wall separating the kitchen from the living space. There just wasn’t a door separating the two. We hung up a curtain in the doorway to help block off the spaces. So it wasn’t like sleeping in the kitchen. At least, that’s how I felt about it. I loved that studio. It wouldn’t work for me now that I’ve got a lot of stuff (too much stuff). But I look back on that place with a lot of fondness because it was perfect for my sister and me during that particular stage of our lives. If I lost most of my possessions and I only had apartments to choose from, I wouldn’t automatically write off a studio apartment. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/32 "2020-05-30T00:11:19Z")
Living with a sibling is sooooooo much easier than with a roommate…even if you thought the roommate was a good friend. My younger sister and I bought a townhouse together, and it’s worked out great. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/33 "2020-05-30T00:11:29Z")
Here’s where live. A 520 sq ft studio with the bedroom separated off. [https://www.halstedflats.com/floorplans/0.1](https://www.halstedflats.com/floorplans/0.1) I answered the question assuming that the one bedroom costs a substantial amount more. Now, in a large high rise like this you’re getting amenities as well as a bustling city atmosphere. That’s what has made lockdown so hard. I can’t just leave and grab a beer at one of the 5 bars on my block. I can’t go down to the 3rd floor lounge and read. ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/34 "2020-05-30T00:37:20Z")
> [@carrps](#): > > Living with a sibling is sooooooo much easier… I dunno about that. I’d say we fought about 60% of the time while we were living together in that little studio. And not just screaming and yelling. The place was cramped but we somehow had enough room to body slam one another. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/35 "2020-05-30T00:56:07Z")
I would rather be in a studio-- everything in one space-- I like it that way. But the space has to be pretty damn big at this point, to accommodate 53 years of my crap, plus all the crap I just inherited from my mother. And DH’s accumulated crap, and my sons crap. If I can find a studio like that, I’ll rent it in a heartbeat. Right now I have to deal with what DH and the boychik want. Getting DH to concede to building a sleeping platform in half the second bedroom, and using the space under it for storage was a hard sell at first, but we did a tiny amount of remodeling the landlord doesn’t know about, and put a door into the back of the walk-in closet so we can access it, and it stores all our junk and holiday stuff. We put wardrobes in the bedrooms. We let the boychik paint his any way he wanted (It looks cool-- he enlisted the help of friends who were eager the get their hands on it, and he loves it.) There’s a “den” which is to say, a room with lots of outlets and no closet except a small utility one, for storing whathaveyou. All the pins are there. It’s a good compromise. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/36 "2020-05-30T02:00:07Z")
I am single. I wish I were the type of person who fit a studio (or one of those “apodment” things). Minimal stuff. Everything is very functional. And, in tv and movies, they’re always cool. In reality, I chose a 1 bedroom. I have too much stuff and I really like the separation of sleeping & living space. It was the “right size” for me - until 3 months ago. These days, I really wish I had a 2-bedroom just to have a separate office/gym space. I really don’t have a good space to work or workout in my place right now without getting rid of some of the furniture that I love. But when I was shopping for a place, I didn’t consider “there will be a global pandemic and as a result, you’ll will work 100% from home.” (as opposed to the “you’ll work at home from time to time.” that I have space and furnishings for) The very worst however, is the “open plan one bedroom” which is really a studio with a half wall somewhere that you can shove a bed behind. At least with the open space of a studio, you can find a creative arrangement- if that’s what you want. Those divide the space in a completely unuseful way and still don’t provide true separation. Hate those. They’re awful. ---
**Author:** ![a6ka97](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c2a13f/32.png) [@a6ka97](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a6ka97)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/37 "2020-05-30T02:29:17Z")
I have lived in both when I was much younger. Studio was fine as a SINGLE person, somebody moves in (i.e. girlfriend) sometimes you need a seperate room for a little time for some personal space. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/38 "2020-05-30T18:16:08Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > An open studio loft type would work for me, if it were large enough to create separate areas for sleeping, working, eating, living room furniture. Otherwise, a one bedroom. I could not do a strict studio, too much like a cell. My daughter and her husband lived in a loft in downtown LA, and build a wall separating the bed from the living area. Which worked okay until she had a baby. But that was only for a few months, then she moved to Indianapolis where they rented a 4,000 sq. ft house for the same price. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/39 "2020-05-30T18:28:00Z")
> [@amarinth](#): > > I am single. > > I wish I were the type of person who fit a studio (or one of those “apodment” things). Minimal stuff. Everything is very functional. And, in tv and movies, they’re always cool. > > In reality, I chose a 1 bedroom. I have too much stuff and I really like the separation of sleeping & living space. It was the “right size” for me - until 3 months ago. These days, I really wish I had a 2-bedroom just to have a separate office/gym space. I really don’t have a good space to work or workout in my place right now without getting rid of some of the furniture that I love. But when I was shopping for a place, I didn’t consider “there will be a global pandemic and as a result, you’ll will work 100% from home.” (as opposed to the “you’ll work at home from time to time.” that I have space and furnishings for) > > The very worst however, is the “open plan one bedroom” which is really a studio with a half wall somewhere that you can shove a bed behind. At least with the open space of a studio, you can find a creative arrangement- if that’s what you want. Those divide the space in a completely unuseful way and still don’t provide true separation. Hate those. They’re awful. Really? That’s my layout and it’s great. I can have people over in the sitting area and they don’t have to look at the bed. It’s nice with dates so it doesn’t give the automatic assumption that it’s going there. I lived in a great big studio that was all one room (except for the bathroom and a walk in closet. It still looked like a hotel room and it probably was in the past since it was almost on Lake Michigan ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2020, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683/40 "2020-05-30T18:29:03Z")
I assume you meant single and living alone - not all single people live alone. And obvs I’m assuming that for some reason single people can’t have more than a one bedroom home. The one-bedroom place would definitely be far better. A studio apartment is the worst of all worlds. Harder to heat, you can hear the dishwasher and washing machine running, you either have to be really tidy and clear away everything every night even if you’re tired, or you have to sleep with dishes in the same room, and that can lead you to thinking screw it, it’s messy anyway… Overnight guests have to share a room with you, pets have to be the kind you allow to sleep on your bed… Struggling to think of any reasons in favour of the studio apartment, TBH. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-were-single-which-would-you-live-in/854683.md?page=3)