[jmkb]

Just to be clear, I find conversion of viable multifamily buildings into mansions generally repugnant.

The opposite process also happens, though... not just a 3- and 4-story residential buildings demolished for large residential towers (plenty of that in NYC) but single-family brownstones carved up into smaller dwelling units.

The map caption "Conversions Have Erased Some Gains in NYC's Housing Stock" would make a less deceptive headline. The map shows data from a defined timespan ("between 2010 and 2021") and shows that there's not a single community district that hasn't added housing units. The headline, meanwhile, refers to a vague "70-plus years" timeframe. That's long enough that you could probably find hundreds of buildings that have bounced between single- and multi-family several times.

And in fact the underlying research characterizes any building that was ever recorded as multifamily and currently isn't as a "loss." I fear it risks romanticizing the 20th century's cramped tenements.

(And again, just to be clear, I find conversion of viable multifamily buildings into mansions generally repugnant.)

[pottertheotter]

Yeah, there's a lot of nuance here that is being lost. The second paragraph says:

"Take for example 34 E. 68th St. in Manhattan: The 1879 row house, located in the Upper East Side Historic District, once housed 17 separate apartments, according to property records. Now, it is a 9,600-square-foot single-family mansion after changing hands for $11.5 million in 2011 and a subsequent gut renovation."

1879 and an average of 565 sqft each. I don't think what those apartments were is what we want today.

[adriancr]

> 1879 and an average of 565 sqft each. I don't think what those apartments were is what we want today.

That's ~50 m^2, pretty decent for young people (can have separate living room/bedroom/bathroom/kitchen if split properly)

So, instead of housing 17-34 young people that could contribute a lot to the area it now houses a single family.

[Ekaros]

As a single person living in 55 m^2 bedroon + decent kitchen + small bathroom(including waching machine) + large living room. I don't see much issue with that floor space. Probably could be even enough for two people.

It is reasonable trade to live affordably in a city.

[HDThoreaun]

565 sqft is pretty normal for manhattan. If I had to guess I'd say at least 30% of manhattan apartments are smaller than that.