Its not the square footage, it's the being able to afford life. If someone without government assistance makes twice federal minimum wage, about 14 an hour, about 2200 monthly gross assuming full time, and at a super optimistic taxed net of 2000, they need to have a one bedroom rent of $600 or less to have less than 30% of all income going to rent. Now give that person a kid, or a disability, or fuck it, an addiction they use to cope with their shitty life, and you have a huge number of people barely hanging on to a crappy life in a crappy little square of drywall. It's not size, it's a lack of quality offered by a global economy that could support better .