Where Did the Idea of Coliving Come from?
It is possible to have a single private room for less than your common rent. Different from the generation before us, Millennials are already used to living in the same house with three or four friends of their friends. We are also used to living in student dorms where conditions are less than optimal but we manage to make it through it. This is all due to the very high rents in areas that are close to universities and city centers. However, since we have been conditioned to live in such conditions, we don’t mind sharing a living space with strangers either. As long as we have common interests and we keep it peaceful, we will gladly pay a cheap price for our own bed in a room for three. That is why it is possible to have a single private room for less than your common rent. In fact, students are not the only ones who are choosing to live this kind of lifestyle. There is a new concept that has been spurring around for some years, and that concept is “coliving”.
This is the newest and the most attractive trend for people who are looking for a cheap place to live.
What gave birth to coliving?
This might not come as a surprise to many of you, (except for the landlords), but it was the high prices of real estate and rent that gave birth to coliving.
Baby Boomers, (the generation before Millennials) didn’t mind throwing a couple… or quadruple of thousands in the trash every month just so they could get a place of their own.
However, we came along and said to hell with that and decided to settle for a room shared with another person in a house shared by three more people for which we pay $900 per month. Pretty convenient isn’t it.
Instead of being in solitude, we enjoy being with people that think like us. This kind of lifestyle allows us to explore new ways of living and coliving is one of them.
What is coliving
Coliving sounds more like a student way of living but that is not the case, You see, coliving combines together a sense of community with collaboration and skill development to create spaces that people can use.
Coliving originated as a concept for the first time in Denmark, back in the 1970s, (that’s 50 years ago). The original term that was used for coliving was cohousing. The first attempt for coliving included around 35 families that had their private homes but they did share spaces suitable for social activities such as dining, partying, or housekeeping.
Now, coliving offers way more than mere living spaces. The possibilities are endless and evolving all the more. There are people who simply live together. And there are people who share a coliving space with the purpose of sharing common values, interests, skills, and life philosophies.
How does coliving work
People that are just graduating who have a hard time earning enough income to pay for their own house, usually choose a coliving space. But these struggling post students are not the only ones who decide to share one roof with others.
You see, co-living spaces are structured better than student housing. They are also maintained way better and offer solutions to different kinds of people. Coliving spaces are designed to be work and living-friendly.
Digital nomads love coliving spaces, along with freelancers, travelers, tourists, un and coming entrepreneurs, and startup founders.
Instead of looking for an apartment that they can share with a couple of friends, these people live in a shared space that inspires them and gives them all the tools they need to fulfill their necessities.
The concept is fairly simple.
Most of the rooms are fully furnished and decorated according to different types of people. The common areas like kitchens, working spaces, and social areas are also furnished and maintained by professional cleaning service companies.
Freelancers and citizens of the world seem to adapt very simply in these shared environments. And the beauty of it… a lot of these co-living spaces are located near the centers of some of the biggest cities in the world.
Another advantage is that these spaces have fixed prices for short-term timelines starting with a minimum of 30 days. So you won’t have to worry about changing your room every now and then unless you want to.
Different coliving trends
Coliving as a concept is not something that is being adopted only by young people. There are market niches in this new industry that are being taken over by older people from their 30s to their 40s who might be single or married.
These people don’t use coliving to save money because their income already allows them to get their own place. They rather use coliving to socialize with others and are looking to pursue the sense of being in a community.
There are co-living spaces especially for these kinds of people. These spaces usually include living rooms, kitchens, and spaces curated especially for organized activities such as dining, wine tasting, or film festivals.
Another coliving concept allows guests to decorate the space to their own liking. Managers and owners of the space encourage guests to invite their friends so they can create customized spaces that would suit their way of thinking and living.
This is still a new concept and it will take a while for other spaces to include the same philosophy in their list.
Final thoughts
Coliving is the new way of living for many people of the young generation. Whether you are a student, a freelancer, a young professional, a digital nomad, an entrepreneur or startup founder, or just a traveler, coliving can be a fantastic way to save money and create connections with people of similar mentalities to you.
Imagine being able to live in Manhattan, New York, and paying only $1,000 a month for your rent while having no other bills to pay and access to working and studying spaces. This is what co-living offers you.
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