- On Monday, a tweet showing a Philadelphia rental listing criticized its “open-concept” bathroom layout.
- Thousands of people have reacted to the tweet, and several people responded, sharing confused thoughts about the bathroom that appears to lack any sort of privacy.
- The open-concept layout has been a popular design for living and kitchen spaces, but some designers are incorporating it into the bathroom – though many people are baffled by it.
- Insider spoke with the person who listed the master suite for rent, Kamara Abdur-Rahim. She says she is the homeowner and that she designed the controversial open-concept bathroom.
- Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Facebook groups that aggregate apartment rental listings can be a treasure trove of interesting posts, but one listing in particular is driving the internet up the wall (or lack thereof).
On Monday, thousands of Twitter users reacted to a tweet showing screenshots of a room listing posted to Facebook that shows a bathroom in the middle of a spacious room – but the bathroom appears to lack any doors that separate it from the rest of the master suite.
The rental listing, originally posted on Facebook, shows a master suite for $1,200 per month in Philadelphia and was posted on September 19.
The tweet, by user @amelendez1996, read: “philly is WILD this bathroom has NO DOORS and they’re calling it ‘open concept.'”
https://twitter.com/amelendez1996/status/1193716598345027585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The open-concept bathroom design might be alarming to some people, but this isn't the first of its kind
A slew of interior-design blogs have discussed the open-concept bathroom format, with some designers celebrating the out-in-the-open format, and others criticizing the floor plan.
In addition, open-concept designs were named one of the biggest bathroom trends of 2019 in an article from ELLE Decor.
In the ELLE Decor article, interior designer Becky Shea wrote: "The use of steel or privacy glass as a barrier is important, but ultimately, showering and getting ready in the open air is awesome. I see a lot of this happening in the residential interiors world."
The open-concept bathroom may not be the most mainstream format for a home, but some hotels have started to embrace the layout. A Quartz article by Rosie Spinks points out that some hotels find that eliminating doors or walls in bathrooms helps create more space - and, many times, single business travelers don't mind, as they're not sharing a room.
While bathrooms with less privacy may be a growing interior design trend, it's understandable for the average prospective tenant or homeowner to be less than thrilled to find a shower or toilet area surrounded by nothing but a tiny half-wall.
The master suite is still available to rent at the time of writing
Kamara Abdur-Rahim, who posted the photos that later were included in the viral tweet, told Insider that she is the owner of the home. She said she flips homes in and around Philadelphia under a company called Hewitt Realty LLC, registered in Pennsylvania.
She said she renovated this three-story, three-bedroom home in March and finished in September, which is when she posted the rental listing on Facebook.
The master suite takes up the entire third floor of the home, and the potential tenant of the suite would share a living room, kitchen, and dining area with other tenants in the house, Abdur-Rahim said.
"The bathroom is just one part of the space," Abdur-Rahim said. "I chose the open-concept format because I personally like it. The format makes it feel like one inclusive area, and that it's shared, not all separate. It gives the space a different look, and I like it a lot."
Abdur-Rahim added that the shower, which seemed to confuse some Twitter users who tweeted their worries about the water getting the entire space wet, will have a frosted-glass door installed, even though it's not pictured in the Facebook post.
Abdur-Rahim added that she respects that each person has their own design preferences.
"I have one friend who's said, 'I wouldn't want to be in the bathroom if someone can see me.' For me personally, I'd say that it's not for them, honestly. I don't think everything is for everyone," Abdur-Rahim said. "If the format is for you, then you'll really like this, and if it's not for you, you won't."