The size of a typical studio apartment is 500 to 600 square feet. The studios that Riaz Capital is building around the Bay Area measure on average 300 square feet — which is on the small side, even for a standard hotel room.
But the Oakland-based developer sees micro-studios as a way to provide “affordability by design” in a state where the cost of housing is a major financial burden for many residents.
Units come with only the essentials. Many don’t have ovens — just two electric burners. The first few units the company built came with mini fridges rather than full-size ones. (Upon residents’ frustration with the lack of freezer space, they upgraded to bigger ones at their next project.) The small unit size means they can squeeze more apartments into a single building, achieving greater economies of scale when it comes to their maintenance and operating budget…