Renting for roughly $400-$650 a month, the first 10 pods were snatched up in just 15 days

We all know that tiny homes and micro-apartments are on the rise, but these 25-square-foot “space capsule pods” take the trend to a whole new level. Built in the notoriously space-starved Hong Kong—where census estimates from 2015 recorded more than 57,000 households living in homes under 140 square feet—these wee dwellings are like a luxury update on Japan’s famous capsule hotels.

“So many people in Hong Kong are living in cubicle homes or partitioned flats, but the conditions are really bad,” Sandy Wong, the landlord and creator of the pods, told the South China Morning Post back in November, when he first began renting out some 50 pods spread across six apartments. “There’s no proper ventilation, the places are infested with bugs and they smell. I thought to myself: ‘Is there a way to provide a more comfortable space for these people?’”

Each pod contains a bed, electrical outlets, television, computer, fire extinguisher, and ventilation. With 10 units fitting into a single 700-square-foot apartment, a standard space capsule pod arrangement is essentially a permanent pod hotel with a shared kitchen and bathroom. The rent is roughly $400-$650 a month and units have been in high demand, so much so that Wong has plans to build 1,000 more.

Via: Quartz, South China Morning Post