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the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired
propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."
On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.
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Notes -
Bedrooms: The IPMC (International Property Maintenance Code) requires 50 ft2 per occupant, but not less than 70 ft2 for one occupant. IMO, this is a bit small but not totally unreasonable. A 10′ × 10′ bedroom (even when the two doorways are taken into account) has room for a twin XL bunk bed (80″ × 40″, which we can round up to 7′ × 3′6″ for simplicity), a 4′ × 2′ desk, a 3′ × 2′ desk, and two 3′ × 2′ wardrobes or shelving units.
Living room and dining room: The IPMC's requirements are complicated, but can be approximated as 37 ft2 per occupant for seven or more occupants (15 in the dining room and 22 in the living room). Under the IBC, 37 ft2 is enough to accommodate one person sitting at a table in the dining room, plus one person sitting at a table and one person sitting without a table in the living room.
Kitchen: NKBA (the National Kitchen and Bath Association) has guidelines that essentially boiled down to a minimum of around 8′3″ × 10′ the last time that I looked at them (many months ago). I use 10′ × 10′ for simplicity.
Utility room: Width of 5 feet accommodates a washer and a dryer (though I hear they make stacking residential washers and dryers). Length of 10 feet leaves ample room for water heater and circuit-breaker box.
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