Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

An Architect’s Slim Home Squeezes Into a Tiny Lot in Seoul

An Architect’s Slim Home Squeezes Into a Tiny Lot in Seoul

Smaller Architects' slim Seroro House squeezes into a 355-square-foot lot in Seoul.

The 355-square-foot lot that Minwook Choi of Smaller Architects chose for his family home in Seoul, South Korea, presented a daunting challenge-as well as an opportunity. "The site had been abandoned for a long time," says Minwook. "People thought the land was too small to construct anything, and so the price had become reasonable."



Architect Minwook Choi’s 710-square-foot Seroro House rises from a tiny urban lot in Seoul that had long been neglected because of its challenging size.

"Aside from being too small, the plot has many benefits," continues Minwook, who lives with his wife, Ahyoung, and their two cats, Conti and Margaux. "It’s conveniently situated near several lines of public transportation and faces a park and the Fortress Wall of Seoul, a UNESCO World Heritage Site."

The property is also thankfully close to Minwook’s architecture office. "I wanted to live near where I work, but the cost of housing in Seoul is super high," he says. "I couldn’t afford a nice apartment-an apartment in Seoul is more expensive than a house-so I decided to build for myself."



The compact home, clad in white acrylic stucco, features windows on the southern and western facades, opening the home to the lush hillside.

The couple nabbed the affordable property and began to imagine a tall, narrow home that would take advantage of the site’s positive attributes. The resulting Seroro House, which means "vertical" in Korean, is a tower of sunlit rooms stacked over five stories.

The home’s location also offers a welcome respite from the urban context. "Looking out from each floor at trees in the park gives us a sense of seasons and time," says Minwook. "And with COVID-19, we’re very grateful for our house with a view." The home’s windows on the southern facade capture light while the west-facing windows frames views of the park; the other facades feature fewer openings, since they face the road.



The kitchen and dining space sit on the second level, where expansive windows frame the treetops that populate the adjacent hillside.



White plasterboard walls and white kitchen cabinetry maintain a simple palette for the home, letting the views take center stage.

Clad with bright white acrylic stucco, the skinny home curves at the intersection of the eastern and northern walls, following the shape of the land, which is "like an asymmetrical pentagon," says Minwook. "I thought the curved design looked like a lighthouse from afar and would interest people. I wanted to spark curiosity."



The narrow, steel and-wood staircase maximizes space for the rooms.

On the interior, white plasterboard walls create a feeling of spaciousness, allowing the park views to be the main focus: As the couple move from room to room, the clean walls serve as a gallery-like background to the greenery-filled windows. Parking on the ground level cedes to the first-level living room and bathroom. The kitchen and dining space sit on the second level, while the third level holds a bedroom and bathroom. A laundry room, bathroom, and closet are arranged on the top level.



A laundry room, bathroom, and closet occupy the topmost floor.

The steel-framed wood staircase, painted white to blend in with the crisp interiors, is smaller than what you’d typically expect. "As the house is vertical, I wanted the movement between the floors to be minimal for the sake of convenience," Minwook explains.



The third-level bedroom is also spare, drawing attention to the picturesque greenery outside.



In the breezy bathroom, three walls are finished with white marble.

Though some may assume that living in a vertical layout is restrictive, Minwook finds it to be wonderfully efficient. "It gives us more privacy," he says. "I can’t hear what my wife is doing when we’re on different floors. We’re very pleased, as we can enjoy our house together or alone." The cats like it, too-perhaps even more than their owners: "It’s like an amusement park for them. We say that it’s the largest cat tower in the world."



The architect placed only a few windows on the eastern and northern facades, which intersect in a pronounced curve, to maintain privacy.

"In Seoul, time spent commuting is about two hours on average—and sometimes, it’s as much as four hours per day," says Minwook. "The tiny house is much cheaper than traditional housing, and in saving precious time, the quality of life is much higher."

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
×