Feeling the squeeze in the Big Apple

THE average size of the American home is shrinking — it dropped in both 2008 and 2009 after 15 straight years of growth — but most Americans are still living larger than people in the Big Apple.

Home size in Manhattan is about half the national average. However, one New Yorker has taken her love of frugal living to the extreme.

Felice Cohen’s apartment measures just 90 square feet, but she doesn’t see it as a sacrifice. With such a small space, she pays just $700 (€490) to live in a part of town where rents average $3,600 (€2,500) a month.