You know I don't think I've ever seen a depiction of someone living on the first floor of one of those Japanese 2-story cheap apartment buildings, you know, perpendicular to the street with an exterior walkway for a hall?
The place I lived in Echo Park, 1026 N. Bonnie Brae St., was kinda like this, but it was 2brs ziggurating down the hillside with a dingbat parking area at the bottom