Researchers think adult dorms could help solve America’s housing shortage

Adults looking to relive at least some of their college experience may soon be in luck. A recent proposal from the Pew Charitable Trusts and architecture-design firm Gensler posits that converting empty office buildings into a series of micro-apartment units could help solve America’s housing shortage and affordability problem.

• Bridging the gap: ~20% of US office buildings are still vacant following Covid (a figure even higher in certain areas), while at the same time the country is facing a residential housing shortage in the ballpark of 4 million–7 million homes.

The idea comes with a catch

In order to make the units cheap ($500–$1,250/month), they’d have to be small – 120 sq. ft–208 sq. ft, depending on the location. Amenities such as living rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry facilities would be shared with others on the same floor to save money on office-to-residential conversions, while the small apartment sizes would enable builders to squeeze in ~3x as many units as typical apartment buildings.

But… Not every office building is an economically viable candidate for conversion. And while the idea for small private apartments within communal spaces isn’t new, it’s hard to pull it off successfully (remember WeLive from WeWork?).

🏘️ Zoom out: Nationwide, the median rent reached $1,411 in July 2024, a 22% increase over January 2020. This rise has led to a record 50% of renters being cost-burdened, meaning they spend 30+% of their income on rent, according to a report by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies.

+Dive deeper: Pew and Gensler published in-depth feasibility studies focused on three cities: Seattle, Denver, and Minnesota. Explore them here (pages 6–73).