Paris man wins compensation over $500 a month tiny micro-apartment
A Paris tenant has won 12,000 Euros compensation after living in an illegal micro-apartment for 15 years. The apartment was only 1.56 m2, or 17 sq ft, in size. To put that in perspective, that is smaller than a walk-in closet.
There was no toilet, just a mattress, sink, and a hotplate. On top of that the ceiling was sloped. It looks as though it was impossible to stand up to full height almost anywhere in the place. However, by the end of his time there, the tenant, only known as "Dominique", was paying 330 Euros a month for the privilege.
"I asked myself, 'how is this possible?' Until then, the smallest flat I'd ever seen was three square metres, but Dominique broke that sad record."
On the landlord's part, it wasn't just unscrupulous, it was illegal. According to Paris law, an apartment has to have at least 9 m2, or 97 sq ft, of liveable space, which is why, yesterday, a judge ordered the landlord and the property manager to pay Dominique compensation.
And, according to French charity, Fondation Abbé Pierre, this micro-apartment is just a microcosm. The charity is hoping Dominique's case will expose the enormous problem of tiny properties in Paris. Fondation Abbé Pierre says this is the most egregious example any of the charity workers have seen. As one Fondation representative told a French newspaper, "I asked myself, 'how is this possible?' Until then, the smallest flat I'd ever seen was three square metres, but Dominique broke that sad record."