Getting a state flat in the communist years was the main activity of everyone living in Hungary: flat swaps, 15-year council waiting lists, contracts with old people which offered care in exchange for inheriting their property, loans from the OTP according to the number of children couples would undertake to have....the words lakás probléma (flat problem) were on everyone's lips.
The majority of young - and not so young - couples lived in a room in their parents' flat, often for many years and even when they had children of their own. It was not unusual to find three generations living in a three-room flat.
Many people lived in the old city flats, built around courtyards with outside walkways. Meanwhile, increasing numbers were housed in 'panel' flats - prefabricated concrete housing. Here are some photographs of homes in 80s Hungary:
The majority of young - and not so young - couples lived in a room in their parents' flat, often for many years and even when they had children of their own. It was not unusual to find three generations living in a three-room flat.
Many people lived in the old city flats, built around courtyards with outside walkways. Meanwhile, increasing numbers were housed in 'panel' flats - prefabricated concrete housing. Here are some photographs of homes in 80s Hungary:
Most buildings in the city were built around a central courtyard - in the majority of cases they boasted only a stand on which you could beat your carpets (as here); occasionally, they had flower beds or small gardens and trees.
Every building had a caretaker - they were often the people who would report anything they found suspicious, to the police. In some of the older buildings there were no bathrooms in the flats. Communal bathrooms were located on the outside walkways - each flat allocated to that bathroom had its own key to the door. InteriorsClick here to see reviews of my book on Amazon
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Though soulless, the shortage of flats after the war necessitated massive building projects like this, in Békásmegyer.
These panel flats all had bathrooms and many people who had grown up in buildings like the one opposite, preferred the cleanliness of these new flats, even if they lacked character. People sought to individualise them in any way they could - there were even special magazines with tips and photographs of the most ingenious interior design of these flats. Such buildings can still be found all over the former eastern bloc countries.
This is a smaller version of the panel flat - only four floors with small green areas between the buildings.
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