Coliving Insights: 5 Ways to Add Value for Tenants

Coliving is on the rise. Around 180,000 people move to Berlin each year (src), and this is likely to increase thanks to the ever-expanding career and study opportunities on offer in the city. With so much competition for apartments, coliving is an increasingly popular option.

We know coliving is on the rise, even in smaller cities, but we don’t know a lot about coliving tenants. Why do they choose coliving? Why do they leave? And importantly, how could we make them want to stay?

Let’s run through coliving residents’ 5 most common likes and dislikes, then conclude with 5 tips on how to add some value and diffrentiate in this competitive market space.

Perceived advantages of coliving

Meet new people

This one seems like a no-brainer. Almost all participants cited meeting new people and developing friendships in a new city as the main advantage of coliving. Especially for newcomers, the opportunity to join an inbuilt community is a key value-adder.

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Intercultural experiences

Several participants mentioned interesting cultural exchanges, learning new perspectives, and practicing foreign languages as a positive aspect of coliving. Events which encourage socialising and exchange are a huge benefit. Some participants found a new favorite dish, or became interested in a new sport or hobby thanks to exchange with other tenants.

Borrowing & sharing items

For young professionals who own few assets, moving to a new city or country with limited suitcase space means dwindling one’s possessions down to the bare essentials. Living with others creates a family-like atmosphere, where residents can borrow, share, or buy items together, dividing the cost and accessing things they otherwise could not afford. Large kitchens, gyms and coworking spaces were cited as benefits of coliving.

Help and services

Participants recalled times they faed problems with the administration in a new country, became sick in an unfamiliar health system, or needed help finding the service they needed. Having so many others in a similar situation nearby is a form of support network. Residents also noted friendly staff and guides to local services as extremely helpful in their early days.

Less energy intensive

More eco conscious residents appreciated the less energy intensive nature of coliving. Studies have found that coliving residents produce 20% fewer emissions than those living alone.src Sharing facilities and utilities with a larger number of people means the individual impact of each person is reduced. Lastly, minimalists appreciate the shared facilities which make use of idle capacity (no appliances lying around unused) and remove their need to purchase new, resource-intensive products.

Clearly, there are many positives to coliving’s value proposition. However, there are no shortage of pain points, or potential areas for improvement.

Noise

Noise was the number one complaint made by coliving residents. Several suggested that insulation between rooms needs to be improved. Parties were a problem, but the everyday coming and going of other residents often disrupted their work. Many would prefer to live on quieter floors or with fewer people.

Hygiene

Unsanitary kitchens and badly kept communal spaces was the second most common complaint. It seems maintaining a cleaning schedule is complicated when a large number of people are involved. Feeling unable to relax in a messy space, or irritation with neighbours responsible, were one of the main reasons coliving residents considered moving to a new place.

Slow internet

Slow internet and poor connection was a commonly cited complaint of coliving residents. Those working from home found the situation particularly frustrating, as there is high pressure on the limited bandwidth during working hours.

Different lifestyles

With students and young professionals often mixed together, some lifestyle differences are guaranteed. Residents described how different schedules and lifestyles can harm interpersonal relationships. Some residents host parties midweek or stay awake far later than others, disrupting their roommates’ sleep and causing tensions. Disagreements and tensions were one of the main motives for moving out of a coliving space.

Different values

Similarly, some participants described frustration at roommates who don’t recycle, overuse energy, or otherwise impede on their roommates’ efforts to live in a more environmentally friendly or organised way. Miscommunication and ignoring agreed upon rules were common issues.

It seems there are both advantages and disadvantages to living in coliving – but as a provider, what could you do to improve your offering?

Quiet apartments: Give tenants the option to choose “quiet apartments”. By grouping all quieter-living tenants together, you avoid noise complaints or conflicts, which often result in tenants moving out as soon as possible. Grouping more social tenants together also adds value, and reluctance to leave their new friends could result in longer stays.

Cleaning plans: Providers could create some kind of cleaning plan, or include an optional maid service. Given that almost all tenants complained about dirty shared spaces, it seems keeping the communal areas tidier would drastically improve overall tenant satisfaction.

Insulation: Investing in insulation between rooms will not only reduce energy bills, it will reduce noise and reduce conflicts between tenants.

Rental services: There is significant demand to borrow or rent more items from the coliving provider. For tenants located in Berlin for a short time, it does not make sense to buy items like ironing boards, bicycles, or baking supplies – however, they would be willing to pay a small fee to rent these once-off.

Connect with the community: Tenants described feeling overwhelmed after arriving in a new city. Helpful staff were appreciated, but coliving providers could take this one step further by partnering with local restaurants or businesses to offer discounts for tenants. A handbook featuring “everything you need to know” to settle in to life in Berlin would help any frazzled new arrival feel at home in no time.

These insights are based on the findings of a focus group involving 11 coliving tenants in the Berlin area. Of course, there are always more ways to innovate and improve the coliving space. We would love to hear your experiences and suggestions!

Retrac is a SaaS solution for inventory management. We understand that for coliving spaces with a high volume of tenants, keeping track of assets can prove time-consuming. Visit our website Retrac.de to learn more about how we can help you reduce waste, prolong your investment, and gain insights to manage more efficiently in the future.

We are always glad to hear from providers and learn more about their experiences. Feel welcome to book a call with us any time.