Walk down the block of a wealthy neighborhood at night, plus you might be surprised by how much you can see. One uncovered window might reveal the glow of a flatscreen TV across from a curved couch; through another, you might glimpse a marble kitchen island plus a chandelier. Of course, some of the curtains are closed—but many are flung open, the home’s interiors exposed, like you’re peering into a showroom.
Uncovered windows have quietly become a fixture of high-end homes across America. The New York Times recently referred to the “obligatory uncurtained windows” of Brooklyn Heights, a rich enclave in New York City, plus The Root pointed out that this seemed common among wealthy young white people living in gentrified urban areas. On TikTok, onlookers have been baffled by the trend—and, sometimes, tempted to pry. Although this phenomenon is most visible in cities, the link between wealth plus exposed windows extends across the United States. Most people do still close their shades, but Americans who earn more than $150,000 are almost twice as likely to leave windows uncovered as those making $20,000 to $29,000, according to a large 2013 study for the U.S. Department of Energy—nearly 20 percent of the first kelompok compared with just over 10 percent of the second. The line isn’t smooth as you slide up plus down the income scale, but the overall trend is clear: The choice to draw or not draw the curtains is in part driven by class.
Ditching shades has a lot of upsides regardless of who you are. Uncovered windows bring in natural light, boost well-being, plus offer a view of the global outside. The trade-off, of course, is that they also put those inside on display to passersby, plus in the summer, they channel heat. For many, the concerns about privacy plus finances outweigh the aesthetic plus mental health benefits. But for those in the highest income brackets, the calculus is different: People with a big home can more easily get natural light plus privacy, plus they don’t need to worry so much about heating plus cooling costs. Slowly, uncovered windows have become a status symbol.