Prefer renting cars, dresses? Now, share your living space; professionals, students drive new trend

In the sharing economy, when everything from cars to dresses are rented out, how about sharing your living spaces? Co-living, an emerging concept that has already taken millennials in Japan, Europe and North America by storm, is making some fast manoeuvres in India.

People in the 18-35 yeas age bracket ranging from students, professionals, entrepreneurs, interns, freelancers and backpackers are gradually letting go of hotels, hostels, and paying guest accommodations to queue up before co-living spaces.

Co-living, unlike living in a hotel/hostel/PG accommodation, offers certain distinct advantages, say experts. The chief benefit is the extensive bonding that is facilitated in a co-living space, an essential ingredient in millennial lives, considering the digital lifestyles and accompanying boredom.

“Every single object and floor plan has been designed to facilitate interactions and connections. From custom built community kitchens to shared laundry rooms and cosy hang-out nooks, there are ample opportunities to connect with energetic millennials from all over,” says Azaan Feroz, founder and chief happiness officer at The Hub Bengaluru, a co-living and co-working space.

Another advantage co-living holds over other kinds of accommodation is the series of events that are held from time to time, both fun, leisure events and skill development programmes. “We offer community engagement programmes for the social wellbeing like game nights, festival celebrations, movies etc. and a range of programmes built for enhancing skills such as online courses, personality development initiatives, corporate internship opportunities, etc.,” says Anindya Dutta, co-founder, Stanza Living, a co-living start-up for the student community.

Adds Feroz, “From yoga and meditation to digital marketing workshops, the events are wide-ranging and enhance the level of interaction, besides giving residents with added learning benefits.” Moreover, co-living, as opposed to renting private spaces, is cost-efficient.

According to Hiren Gandhi, co-founder, Urbanpod, co-living is a culture that promotes space sharing and cost optimisation in a large way. “As the real estate prices are touching sky high in major cities globally, the culture of co-living is fast catching-up among today’s generation/millennials. An ideal co-living space allows an individual to network and at the same time it gives an individual the privacy that he/she needs.”

In a co-living zone, since amenities such as the kitchen, dining room, living room, store room, laundry, etc., are shared by the residents, the cost of living is substantially reduced by as much as 15-18%. The monthly rent could thus be anywhere from Rs 10,000 - 25,000 per head, inclusive of services such as maintenance, water, electricity, wi-fi, food, in-house entertainment/events, laundry services and housekeeping.

Co-living brands are thus seeking to increase their capacities to cater to a larger chunk of millennials on the move. Gandhi says Urbanpod through its pod concept has served over 20,000 people in the last 18 months and will increase their “pods’’ or individual resting spaces, from 140 to 800.

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Stanza Living caters to over 2, 000 people across the national capital region (NCR), and has plans of foraying into markets such as Pune, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

Source: DNA Money