Exploring the world of coliving? Here’s your complete guide of everything you need to know about coliving, how to pick a coliving program, and what you need to do to get out living your best remote work and digital nomad lifestyle.
What is Coliving?
The coliving trend is growing around shared residential housing that has short-term or flexible stays. These coliving spaces are often fully furnished, and offer residents a mix of private and shared spaces.
A coliving resident can choose their room type. Room choices can vary from shared dorm type rooms, to suites or studios depending on the program or location. Some coliving location offer multi-bedroom private spaces.
Outside of the private spaces, the living areas are all shared spaces for all residents to use. Share amenities include the kitchen, living room, patio/ outdoor space and other offerings not often included in a hotel room or small studio apartment.
Unlike a rental where utilities are split between residents, coliving is a flat rate that include all utilities and cleaning services and sometimes additional perks like social coordinators, coworking space, or a gym/wellness area.
Coliving offers residents more flexibility than renting or leasing, too. Some coliving programs have a minimum 2-night stay or 1-month stay.
Why is Coliving Popular?
Coliving is growing in popularity two two large reasons.
First, Coliving also growing in popularity because it offers the best balance of private space with the safety and sociability of roommates, without any of the roommate hassle.
Secondly, coliving is flexible and easy. Residents have the ability to change locations at their own pace without having to worry about contracts, roommates, or moving companies.
With the rise of remote working, coliving gives working professionals more options to explore and try new locations with minimal commitment. Some remote workers use coliving to become digital nomads with their existing jobs.
Types of Coliving Buildings
Coliving buildings can vary by location and coliving company.
Coliving locations may be a home with bedrooms converted into private spaces, they can also be condo buildings or converted apartments buildings. Other Coliving programs convert hotels or former resorts into coliving spaces.
What is a Coliving Apartment?
A coliving apartment, home or space is one where all the shared items are managed by a management company instead of the individuals. Individuals only need to set the timeframe for their stay and pay the set rate for their stay.
Your coliving apartment will be your private space, and other amenities will be shared between you and the other coliving residents.
Coliving vs Roommates
Coliving is different than having roommates in a few ways.
First, when you have a roommate, it’s your responsibility to find and select a roommate. Then you and the roommate will often split rent, utilities, and household items like cleaning and possible groceries.
If something happens with your roommate, it affects the amount of rent and utilities you will be responsible.
Roommates are also a longer term commitment and you are tied to similar timeframes. If you sign a year lease, you’d likely want to have the roommate agree to a year term as well.
Coliving residents are not concerned with any of these items.
As a coliving resident, you can set the dates you want to be somewhere without coordinating anything with the other guests. You do not have a lease or rental term to worry about nor do you have coordinate with a roommate if you want to leave or change locations.
When you colive, you have a flat rate for your stay. Your cost does not fluctuate if there are 3 roomates or 6 roommates in the house. You won’t have to worry about paying a higher electric bill because your roommate leaves the air conditioner on either.
Even items like housecleaning are included in your coliving stay. No worrying about having to pick up after a sloppy roommate!
Coliving gives you the benefits of having a shared home without the hassle, cost or worry of doing it all yourself and with greater flexibility of term and location. It’s a win-win!
Is Coliving Worth It?
Coliving is a lifestyle as opposed to just a home. Depending on how you value the lifestyle of sharing your amenities and spaces in exchange for a flat rate and flexibility you may find the convenience of coliving worth it or you may not.
When you are a coliving resident, you get the benefits of living with other professionals without having to worry about finding a roommate, coordinating bills or cleaning activities, and the certainty that most amenities like wifi are taken care of for your flat rate price.
Coliving is often not the lowest cost way to stay somewhere because coliving residents pay a premium to not have to worry about long term commitments, splitting bills, or managing the household.
They can just arrive and know things will be taken care of by the coliving program. They also do not have to be concerned with purchasing or moving furniture.
Coliving programs enable coliving residents to focus on work, traveling the world, or the reason for their stay instead of living expenses and managing the home and all with the benefits of not living alone.
How Does Coliving work?
There are many coliving programs and each works a little differently.
Generally, a coliving resident will set what dates they want to stay at a place, and will play a flat rate that covers their stay. Much like you would a hotel reservation.
Like a hotel reservation, you will have the room level and type selected with reserving for the duration of your stay.
However, unlike a hotel reservation, you will have a home to share with others when you arrive. Coliving means you share your living room, kitchen, coworking space and other community areas in the home with other coliving residents.
You’ll have access to a kitchen to make meals in and a living room to watch TV – just like if you were in a private home.
Checking in at your Coliving Location
How you gain access to the coliving location varies based on the program you travel with. Some may send you message with a gate code for electronic locks, others you’ll check in at a reception desk nada get a key for your room and home.
Staying with a Coliving Program
Once you check into your coliving location, you have the ability to use all the amenities included in your stay, participate in any social activities, and other inclusion in your coliving program.
During your stay you’ll have any overhead items, like cleaning, utilities, and possibly more managed for you. The core of your stay will be managed by the community resident or property management to make your stay as worry free as possible.
Some coliving programs offer tours and excursions as add-ons, or some may be included in your stay. Often coliving retreats include more activities than coliving locations, though almost every coliving program includes a social activities schedule in your stay.
At the conclusion of your stay, you’ll depart much like you would a hotel.
Popular coliving programs include Outsite Coliving, Selina Colive, and Common Coliving.
Minimum and Maximum Coliving Stays
Many coliving programs require guests have a minimum stay. The minimum stay requirement varies program to program based on the program’s focus:
Outsite Coliving has a 2 night minimum stay with no cap.
Selina Colive requires 30 consecutive days (unless you have Colive Flex) at up to three locations with a three night minimum per location.
Noma Collective has a three week minimum to ensure coliving residents can settle in and connect with other coliving residents.
Check the minimum stay when exploring a coliving program.
Coliving Membership
Some coliving programs require active membership to reserve a location or attend retreats.
Outsite coliving has a flat rate membership fee that includes additional benefits like discounts, credits, and more before you stay with them.
WiFi Tribe has a curation process to ensure those staying at the coliving locations are a good personality fit ensuring WiFi Tribe residents will connect with the other coliving residents around the.
Coliving Examples
Leading global coliving programs include Outsite Coliving, Selina Colive, Noma Collective and WiFi Tribe.
There are also localized coliving programs that focus on locations in a particular area or country like Common Coliving in the United States.
Why Coliving?
There are many benefits to coliving!
From the ability to have a nicer home without having to foot the bill for one, to make friends in a new city, to the flexibility to travel the world without having to pay for rent and hotel rooms, there are many reasons coliving is growing in popularity.
The predictability, reliability, and low barrier to entry, makes coliving a great way to get of your parents home without having to find a roommate or pay for a place yourself too.
Coliving an a living alternative to the transition ways of housing. There is no single reason why coliving works and if it’s the right answer for you, its a reliable option on many places around the globe.
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