The Real Deal: Finding Room For The Family

The Real Deal asks Maeve to weigh in on top trouble spots for NYC families.

Finding room for the family

As originally written by Tom Acitelli for The Real Deal.

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Tolstoy once wrote that “happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” If he had been writing 150 years later and in a different setting—namely, modern-day Manhattan rather than 19th-century rural Russia—he would have had to note that a lot of that unhappiness comes from living in a cramped apartment with little ones running around.

The number of children under age five living in Manhattan ballooned more than 32 percent during part of the last decade, according to the most recent census figures. Other boroughs, especially Brooklyn, saw increases, too, suggesting that there are now a lot more New York City families with kids then there have been in a long while.

Where to put them all, then, in a city where $1 million might get you but a one-bedroom with a breakfast alcove? It’s a challenge, but there are ways:

Create a 'drop zone'

Create a drop zone

“Families ask most about how to fix three top trouble spots: the zone by the front door, overworked closets and the cluttered common room,” Maeve Richmond, founder of home-organizing firm Maeve’s Method, told Luxury Listings. “[These are] areas that quickly fall apart once little ones arrive with clothes, toys and bulky strollers.”

Kick the clutter

As for the clutter spots, particularly an apartment or a townhouse’s entryway, organizers recommend ruthlessly compartmentalizing. Have a bowl or a drawer solely for things like keys or loose change, another for old receipts, a place for smartphones, somewhere to store the mail before it’s sorted, etc. #dropzone

Kick the clutter

“Get in the habit of putting them ‘in their home,’” Richmond said, “and cut down on time searching for them in pockets or tables or countertops or other household surfaces.” #everythinghasahome