Robert Galbraith/Reuters
San Francisco.
On Airbnb, I found a real steal in the heart of the Mission District: For a top bunk in a room with four beds, I paid a cool $50 a night.
But it wasn't long before I found out that renting out space in their apartment meant real business for my hosts. The night I reached my temporary digs, I opened the first door to my left and stumbled into a space resembling the Cupboard beneath the stairs. My friend and I joked that Harry Potter fans would go nuts for this kind of space, and the next morning one of my hosts agreed. Perhaps it could go for $20 daily?
Opposite the room beneath the stairs, there was a room available for a couple to rent. In the living room, they made space for a loft. This space was not listed on Airbnb, but reserved for returnees or people they had met in person.
As per San Francisco laws, bedrooms must be 170 square feet to accommodate four people, CBS reported. However, inspectors cannot go into the rooms to measure that space unless there is a tenant complaint coming from within. And, as far as I could tell, my roommates had none, and neither did I. The place was clean, we had a stocked kitchen, fresh towels, free WiFi, and the hosts were friendly, willing to take us on a local's tour of the city.
Foregoing privacy, space, or both, does not appear to be uncommon in San Francisco, but the prices that some tenants pay for a coveted 100 square feet or less in the Bay Area are truly mind-boggling.
Here are some of craziest listings that prove just how valuable living space in San Francisco is today.