When Ryookyung Kim jokingly suggested moving into their parents’ basement in Richmond Hill, Ontario, they didn’t expect anyone to take it seriously. But as financial pressures mounted in the downtown Toronto condo they shared with their partner, Phil Chan—with three pets taking turns getting sick, unstable income, and mounting isolation—the joke became a lifeline.

“It started off like, wouldn’t it be so funny if we just moved into my parents’ place?” Ryookyung says. “And then over time, as different stressors built, it became more like, maybe this could happen if we just explored it.”

Before: Living Room

After: Living Room

For Ryookyung, an artist and illustrator, and Phil, a risk management manager, the traditional path—buy a house, get a mortgage, spend 30 years paying it off—felt increasingly unsustainable. A conversation with friends who’d chosen unconventional living arrangements planted a different seed: What if there was another way?

By early 2024, they’d sold their condo and approached One:1 Designs with a challenge: transform an unfinished 1,100-square-foot walk-out basement into a home that felt generous, light-filled, and distinctly theirs. Architect Suhaib Arnaoot and associate Dakota Wares-Tani took one look at the cluttered space filled with tiny, builder-grade windows and said what everyone was thinking: “Are you sure?”

Before: Kitchen

After: Kitchen

Richmond Hill’s progressive zoning allowed them to legally split the house into two units—a crucial advantage for multigenerational living. But the real work was turning a basic basement into something extraordinary.

“Typically, if you take a photo of a basement, the massive bulkheads are the first giveaway,” Arnaoot says. “That was the challenge—how do we make this not feel like a basement?”

The solution was radical simplicity. They extended south-facing windows to the floor, filling the space with sunshine. They added a new bedroom window to pull daylight deep into the plan. Then they designed a continuous spine of birch plywood millwork that became the apartment’s organizing principle: it conceals steel columns, beams, and ductwork while creating spaces for storage, display, and work.

“It’s really an engine in the apartment,” Arnaoot says. The millwork shifts from kitchen storage to coffee nook to bedroom entrance to bookshelf, all in one fluid gesture.

Before: Hallway

After: Hallway

Overhead, sculptural arched ceilings hide rerouted mechanical systems, turning technical necessity into architectural poetry. (Unsurprisingly, structural expenses and millwork were the couple’s biggest expense, with $36,000 USD going to cabinetry alone.) The curved hallway ceiling leads the eye through the space, establishing a visual language that makes the modest square footage feel expansive. “We wanted to stray away from the typical approach where someone would just keep all the windows the same, put up a few walls, and call it a day,” Wares-Tani says.

For Ryookyung and Phil, the design process became a crash course in self-discovery. Leaning into color, they spent more than $10,000 installing a selection of vibrant tiles. The kitchen’s scalloped red island—made of lacquered MDF with custom millwork—adds sculptural presence.

Their grand total for the renovation was just shy of $290,000—and to the couple, it was worth every penny. “We wanted it to feel different than the rest of the house,” Ryookyung says. “The rest looks very much like a 2000s suburban house. We wanted this to really reflect us.”

Before: Bathroom

After: Bathrooms

They furnished the space with vintage finds—a Ligne Roset Togo sofa, a Herman Miller Nelson Saucer pendant—and pieces from Canadian makers like Norka Living. Phil got the oversize shower he dreamed of; Ryookyung got their separate bathtub. Both got in-floor heating, a small luxury that they enjoy every day.

Now seven people live in the house: Ryookyung and Phil are downstairs with their dog, Silvi, and cats Aggie and Artie. Upstairs, there’s Ryookyung’s parents, sister, her boyfriend, and Ryookyung’s part-time-resident brother. The arrangement isn’t all about constant togetherness—it’s also about distributed labor and aging in place.

“Instead of two willing hands to shovel the driveway, you have seven now,” Phil says. “They’re definitely going to be able to stay here for much, much longer.”

Before: Bedroom

After: Bedroom

In the end, the couple traded a 30-year mortgage for a five-year payoff timeline—and their biggest expense right now is utilities. “Being able to have my dream home before turning forty is amazing,” says Phil.

And while the space is legally separate from Ryookyung’s family upstairs—with a fire-rated ceiling, independent entrance, and sound insulation—it’s emotionally connected, even on the days they don’t really spend quality time together. “It feels more intimate, but not because we’re talking to each other all the time or having family dinner every night,” Ryookyung says. “It’s because we’re practicing taking care of each other.”

Before: Stairway

After: Stairwell

$26,134 Structural	$37,194 Wall Finishes	$15,413 Flooring
$3,289 Hardware	$19,875 Electrical	$12,045 Plumbing
$8,686 HVAC Equipment	$4,745 Landscaping	$12,568 Kitchen and Bath Fixtures
$3,597 Lighting	$36,017 Cabinetry	$9,561 Countertops
$7,300 Appliances	$5,964 Windows and Glazing	$3,899 Doors
$15,526 Millwork	$10,229 Tilework	$14,600 Furnishings and Decor
$7,154 Bathroom Shower Glass	$730 Permitting	$35,242 General Contractor
Grand Total:$289,767

More Budget Breakdown stories:

A Designer Builds Her First House for $659K—on a Fully Forested Portland Hillside

They Splurged $29K on Metalwork, But Their Copper Kitchen Is Worth Every Penny

How an Architect Built a Family Home in Tasmania for $72K

Project Credits:

Architecture and Interior Design: One:1 Designs / @1to1_designs

Builder/General Contractor: Derek Nicholson / @dereknicholsoninc

Cabinetry Design/Installation: Langmaid Cabinets / @langmaidcabinets

Mechanical/Electrical/Plumbing Consultant: Ara Engineering / @a_r_a_design

Update on 1/30/26: Article revised to state homeowner’s full first name.

Correction on 1/20/26: Article updated to correct the homeowner’s pronouns.