4 ms·

My guess would be that the American washing machine market matured during the era when apartment living was seen as low-class, and thus the market concentrates

My guess would be that the American washing machine market matured during the era when apartment living was seen as low-class, and thus the market concentrates on big machines for the big suburban houses that everyone who could afford a laundry machine lived in. Likewise, the big American laundry machine risked overflow and drew a lot of water and power that a lot of old buildings couldn't handle, so landlords banned them. Nowadays, even though laundry machines have evolved so that there are models that use less water and power and overflow less, the housing situation in cities like NYC and SF is so competitive that landlords don't really need to adjust their policies to get the tenants they want. And our minimum wage is very low, so labor-intensive services like laundry are relatively cheap for middle class urbanites to outsource.

deleted 12y ago
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wil421 12y ago
>My guess would be that the American washing machine market matured during the era when apartment living was seen as low-class, and thus the market concentrates on big machines for the big suburban houses that everyone who could afford a laundry machine lived in. You can buy a washing machine in just about any size that you would need [1]. They offer stackable units to fit in small closets. I visited friends in Europe before and they had to buy a dryer that you would empty the water manually because they didnt have a access to a dryer vent. [1]http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Dryer5-5-6-6lbs-Compact-Apartment-Pan725sf/dp/B00EAY540S http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Dryer5-5-6-6lbs-Compact-Apar...
henrikschroder 12y ago
> the housing situation in cities like NYC and SF is so competitive that landlords don't really need to adjust their policies to get the tenants they want This bothers me to no end, I'm continually amazed that the standard of apartments in SF is so very, very crappy. You're charging several thousand dollars per month, yet the stove and the fridge and the in-apt washing machine is either 20 years old or the cheapest shit you can buy. And since the market is the way it is where most people don't care about these things, this is what you get. :-/
- kleer001 12y ago
  Blame zoning laws that don't allow people to build up and add more space to the limited ground area. Ironically this makes people live further away from their work places in the city, increased traffic and pollution, the opposite of what the regulations are for.
- otterley 12y ago
  Rent control bears much of the blame for this. Landlords subject to rent control are discouraged from keeping their tenants happy with updated appliances, frequent maintenance, etc., because the only way they can re-price their units at market rent is if the current tenant vacates the unit. Poor upkeep, on the other hand, will encourage tenants to vacate.

deleted 12y ago

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wil421 12y ago

>My guess would be that the American washing machine market matured during the era when apartment living was seen as low-class, and thus the market concentrates on big machines for the big suburban houses that everyone who could afford a laundry machine lived in. You can buy a washing machine in just about any size that you would need [1]. They offer stackable units to fit in small closets. I visited friends in Europe before and they had to buy a dryer that you would empty the water manually because they didnt have a access to a dryer vent. [1]http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Dryer5-5-6-6lbs-Compact-Apartment-Pan725sf/dp/B00EAY540S http://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Dryer5-5-6-6lbs-Compact-Apar...

henrikschroder 12y ago

> the housing situation in cities like NYC and SF is so competitive that landlords don't really need to adjust their policies to get the tenants they want This bothers me to no end, I'm continually amazed that the standard of apartments in SF is so very, very crappy. You're charging several thousand dollars per month, yet the stove and the fridge and the in-apt washing machine is either 20 years old or the cheapest shit you can buy. And since the market is the way it is where most people don't care about these things, this is what you get. :-/

kleer001 12y ago
Blame zoning laws that don't allow people to build up and add more space to the limited ground area. Ironically this makes people live further away from their work places in the city, increased traffic and pollution, the opposite of what the regulations are for.
otterley 12y ago
Rent control bears much of the blame for this. Landlords subject to rent control are discouraged from keeping their tenants happy with updated appliances, frequent maintenance, etc., because the only way they can re-price their units at market rent is if the current tenant vacates the unit. Poor upkeep, on the other hand, will encourage tenants to vacate.