What do colocation, coworking, carpooling and coliving have in common? The Latin prefix “co”, meaning “with”. We’re increasingly looking to do things “with” others, for financial reasons, but also for the pleasure of sharing and human relationships. Coliving consists in living together, sharing common spaces (living room, kitchen, dining room) in a dwelling while retaining the use of private spaces (bedroom and bathroom at least) and sometimes benefiting from additional services (laundry, gym, work space…). This concept, although fairly recent, is developing rapidly around the world and is already available in a variety of forms, depending on the reason why people choose this type of living arrangement.
Financial reasons
Historically, coliving originated in San Francisco in the early 2000s. Engineers who couldn’t find decent accommodation started sharing homes, sometimes a bit like youth hostels. Everyone had a room or a bed, and shared the common areas. A community spirit quickly developed, and coliving was born.
Nowadays, finding a pleasant place to live in a major metropolis is often difficult, even for someone earning a decent living. Coliving makes it possible to find accommodation in a neighborhood that you might not otherwise have considered, and to gain in comfort.
A lifestyle choice
The choice is not a financial one, but more a desire to improve one’s standing. The aim is to create a modern, upscale living environment, with luxurious communal spaces and a multitude of services at your fingertips: gym, concierge service, SPA, movie room… The goal is to simplify life by not having to worry about the material problems of everyday life, and to enjoy a sumptuous living environment.
A desire to live in community
The choice of coliving is based on the desire to live in community, to share passions or a common way of looking at life. The community will be of moderate size to be able to function, between ten and twenty people. New members are chosen collectively, based on their personalities. There’s plenty of scope for mutual help and interaction.
Sometimes such communities are mobile, moving as a group from one part of the planet to another, each time for a few months, moving from one coliving space to another.
A desire to live with people from one’s professional circle
The aim here is to bring together a community working in the same field. Coliving is therefore necessarily linked to coworking. In addition to classic common spaces, there are also areas dedicated to work. Hacker Houses, for example, bring together engineers, developers and designers who want to work in a stimulating space and meet people with whom they can learn both personally and professionally.
A temporary choice linked to a need for mobility
This type of coliving is ideal for people who are in professional or personal transition: people who have just found a job, people who have been transferred, recently single people… They can quickly and easily find accommodation for a few weeks or months, and escape a certain amount of loneliness. These coliving spaces are a bit like apartment-hotels, but with more common spaces.
Coliving is growing fast, in all its forms. Its great strength is that it is constantly evolving and adapting to the changing needs of society. The coliving of tomorrow has yet to be created.
Discover our coliving residences in Luxembourg, Arlon, Namur and Brussels.