When Sampson Dahl, 28, found a former laundromat in Maspeth, Queens on an online forum back in 2019, he had no idea how much the space would become his life.
Early last year, CNBC Make It met Dahl after his former laundromat-turned-apartment went viral on TikTok. At the time, he was paying $1,850 a month â his rent has since increased to $1,900.
At the start of 2023, Dahl was working in TV and film set design â which allowed him access to a lot of the furniture and décor you see throughout his apartment â but the Writers Guild of America strike put a pause on any new work and forced Dahl to rethink the unlikely home he had created.
“I’ve gotten to focus on the space a lot, so I’ve been throwing shows, events, and intimate gatherings almost weekly at this point,” Dahl tells CNBC Make It. “It’s been a great opportunity to kind of dive into the space more.”
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Dahl doesn’t make a lot of money from the events, but he says what he earns from the door charge is enough to help make his monthly rent payments and continue living alone.
Dahl moved into the former laundromat in 2019. He pays $1900 a month in rent.
Mickey Todiwala. Photo by CNBC Make It
Last year, Dahl told CNBC Make It that he only lives in the former laundromat because it’s what he can afford. Now, Dahl says he is looking more seriously into moving. “I don’t want to be there forever. In my best case scenario, I leave, and I don’t think about it for a while, and then come to visit in 10 years, and it’s something surprising to me,” he says.
While he has enjoyed living in an alternative space, Dahl thinks he might be ready for a more traditional apartment.
Dahl tells CNBC Make It he has been hosting shows and intimate gatherings almost weekly since last year.
Mickey Todiwala. Photo by CNBC Make It
But he doesn’t intend to leave the old laundromat behind completely.
In an ideal world, Dahl says he would renovate the laundromat and have a core group of people continuing to operate it as an event space.
“My goal with this space is just to keep it existing, and I think that my friends have no ulterior mission to make a functioning business out of it,” Dahl says. “I’m not against utilizing it as a storefront but I think the neighbors appreciate having a space that adds a different mood. The block I live on informs me and a certain pace of life. Most of my neighbors are retirees and the laundromat is the same.”
When Dahl does move, he says he’ll miss his neighbors and hosting old and new friends in his home at all hours of the day. “I love them so much,” he says.
“I’d love to live across the street. I’ve been looking for years and always keep my eye on the block.”
Living in such an unconventional space has helped Dahl learn to enjoy his home for what it is now instead of trying to turn it into something bigger. “In a place that values commercial success and economic growth, it’s rare to be able to enjoy stasis in a place like this,” Dahl says.
“I think the greatest thing I’ve found living in the laundromat is providing a room where someone can exist without direct purpose.”
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