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Hong Kong is so expensive that architects are building 100-square-foot 'tube homes' made from concrete water pipes

Jan 20, 2018, 21:36 IST

Called the OPod, the "tube homes" measure 100 square feet. For perspective, a standard one-car garage spans about 200 square feet.

Law's firm, James Law Cybertecture, manufactured the "tube home" pictured below from a 8.2-foot-diameter water pipe.

It includes a sofa that folds out into a bed, shelves, a mini fridge, a microwave, and a bathroom with a shower.

Each tube home will cost $15,000. That's not cheap, but it's much less than the average price of a new home in Hong Kong: $1.8 million for a 600-square-foot unit, according to some estimates.

Law sees his "tube homes" as one temporary solution to Hong Kong's housing shortage. The pods could stack in unused urban space, like shipyards ...

... between buildings ...

... or even under highways.

Since the pipes weigh nearly 22 tons, they don't need bolts to stay together when stacked. According to Law, that would keep installation costs low.

"In Hong Kong, many people live in squalid conditions or in partition dwellings as there are extremely high rents, housing costs, and inadequate public housing," he said. "The OPod is an inexpensive alternative."

"In Hong Kong, many people live in squalid conditions or in partition dwellings as there are extremely high rents, housing costs, and inadequate public housing," he said. "The OPod is an inexpensive alternative."

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