Broadcaster Yoon Young-mi sleeps in son's closet in New York studio at W5m rent

Yoon Young-mi, a broadcaster and former announcer, has shared an update showing her sleeping in a closet in her son's small studio apartment in New York.

Yoon posted a photo on Instagram on Monday with the caption: "In my son's 5 million won ($3,730) New York studio — about 16 square meters — my bedroom is the closet."

The photo showed Yoon lying on a blanket spread across a narrow space lined with hanging clothes.

Cramped as the makeshift bedroom was, Yoon found a silver lining. "Lucky I'm short," she wrote, adding, "No train noise, pitch dark and warm." She also struck an upbeat note, saying, "If we're careful with money, we'll manage somehow, and even a tiny studio means I get to see my son's face every day — that's enough."

Yoon also recalled that earlier this year, as she was preparing to move to New York and worrying about expenses and accommodation, her husband had told her, "Things will ease up by fall, and God will surely have a good place ready for us." She added with a laugh: "He said, 'Surely God wouldn't make the whole family live in a place the size of a booger?' — looks like God might just be a little busy."

Yoon had previously made headlines in May when she appeared on MBN's talk show "Sokpuriso Dongchimi" and revealed she had spent about 2.6 billion won over roughly 13 years supporting her two sons' education in the United States.

Both sons went on to attend Columbia University in New York, and Yoon said the cost came to more than 100 million won per person per year, even after factoring in scholarships and part-time income.

Yoon has said that because her husband focuses his ministry on volunteer work, she has in effect shouldered the sons' overseas education costs largely on her own.