Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Living in the Future
By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Jan 30, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jacob Dobkin
Published Jan 30, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
With apartment prices in New York quickly sailing north of $1500/sqft, if you're looking to buy a place, it might be time to start getting creative. For more than a year we've been thinking about the pre-fab housing revolution that's taking place around the United States. No longer are pre-fabs the ugly, cheaply built units you might remember from your youth. These houses are something else entirely: modern, airy, and modular, so they're easy to configure. In New York, of course, the challenge is to find a spot to put your pre-fab house-- short of dropping one in Central Park, there isn't much open land around here. Unless you consider the roof!
Think about it: most roofs are underutilized in the city, with nothing but a watertower and yards and yards of open space. That's where the LoftCube comes in-- you just order one of these babies and have it dropped in by crane or helicopter-- then after a couple of days of assembly, it's ready for move in. Presumably, you are responsible for securing the rights to the roof and appropriate utilities and access. We like the look and feel of the LoftCube-- it's got an Austin Powers sort of 1960s vibe-- with rounded corners and floor-to-ceiling windows, which is perfect for taking in your new 360-degree view.
Think about it: why spend $750k on a shitty junior one bedroom when you could use that money to buy one of these and live like a king in the sky? [Related: check out Inhabitat for news on all sorts of architecture stuff like this, and read TreeHugger's piece on the Loftcube from last year.]
UPDATE: Curbed had an article about the LoftCube over the summer-- and they reported it's selling for about $100k (70k Euros, to be precise.) So you could spend $400k on the shipping, assembly, and roof-rights and still come off about $250k less than your average Brooklyn 1-bedroom. And you'd have the views!
Tagged
architecture
austin
austin powers
babies
brooklyn
central park
housing
In New York
money
new york
the city
united states
Jacob Dobkin
Jake Dobkin co-founded Gothamist with Jen Chung. In 2019, Jake released Ask a Native New Yorker, a book based on his Gothamist advice column.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
The hottest way to show you're an authentic New Yorker is… riding a Citi Bike?
Thanks to Dua Lipa, Kim Kardashian, Timothée Chalamet and more, the rideshare program is having a moment.
By
Lindsay Lee Wallace
Published Oct 8, 2026
Is NYC’s hottest attraction the free observation deck at 1 Centre Street?
If you're playing tourist in your own town, this is an in-demand option.
By
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Is NYC’s hottest attraction the free observation deck at 1 Centre Street?
If you're playing tourist in your own town, this is an in-demand option.
By
James Ramsay
What happens when NYC kids take lessons in rock music? Really good bands.
By
Jayson Greene
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
By
Sonia Rao
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
By
Alec Hamilton
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .