Co-Living: The Eco-Friendly Alternative to Traditional Renting
In this article, we are talking about why co-living is a more sustainable, eco-friendly alternative to traditional renting. We delve into how shared amenities and refurbished, high-quality studios reduce your carbon footprint.
Sustainability has been one of the leading topics for years now, and for a good reason. It’s no secret that the consumerist culture negatively impacts our planet. However, with the conversation mostly focused on clothing, the food industry and technology, other areas, such as housing, are being overlooked. Hence, we want to touch upon it. And introduce co-living as an eco-friendly alternative to traditional renting.
Consumerism is tightly knit with individualism and independence. However, since co-living is all about fostering a community, it naturally prioritises lesser resources with a longer shelf life. Not to mention, living in a co-living building not only saves you money on utilities; it also saves the earth from overusing them.
Is Co-Living More Eco-Friendly Than Traditional Renting?
Yes,co-living is significantly more eco-friendly than traditional renting. First of all, the shared resource model minimises the use of electricity, gas and water per head. Secondly, most co-living buildings are either newly built or recently renovated, which means they adhere to modern building standards that are set with sustainability in mind.
Finally, co-living establishments come furnished with premium quality furniture, equipment and facilities. That said, they are built to last as opposed to being replaced every so often. High-end electric appliances, specifically, are known to consume less power than their cheaper counterparts.
The Built-In Eco-Credentials of Modern Developments
Most of the newbuilds in the UK adhere to green building standards. Given that co-living spaces are purpose-built student and professional accommodations, they fall directly into that category. Novelty of co-living as a concept and its constant addressing of today’s housing issues is practically a guarantee of its eco-friendly approach.
Purpose-Built Energy Efficiency vs. Legacy Housing Stock
The most common building converted into a houseshare in the UK is a Victorian terrace house. The key issue with those is that they’re notoriously bad at retaining heat in winter and turn into saunas in summer. The reason you don’t want to address these shortcomings with either heaters or ACs (aside from installation costs) is a separate issue: poor EPC ratings. Spending more electricity is bad no matter what way you look at it: on top of making a dent in your wallet, it hurts the planet. With most of these buildings having been built long before we had today’s technology and insights, energy expenditure was not accounted for. Additionally, there was no understanding of how it impacts the environment and what the long-term consequences are.
Finally, both the size of the population and its reliance on utilities were nowhere near what it is today. To summarise, old buildings are not suitable for today’s demands without causing harm. New builds, however, address these issues. They utilise cutting-edge insulation, double/triple glazing, and smart centralised heating systems to keep energy waste to an absolute minimum in any season.
Smart Tech and High-Specification, Low-Impact Appliances
A common misunderstanding of sustainable living is that it comes with an expectation of downgrading your lifestyle. In fact, it’s the opposite! While in the older building, this may mean holding back on using technology or bringing in new gadgets, it’s absolutely not the case in the modern co-living spaces. If anything, they’re purpose-built rentals already housing energy-efficient appliances for you to use. Meaning you won’t have to splurge for the quality, nor will you affect the planet by choosing cheaper alternatives.
Lowering energy consumption shouldn’t come at the price of your comfort. Sustainable apartment amenities you can find at the co-living establishments are built for this mission. Motion-sensor LED lighting in communal areas, smart thermostats, and premium-grade appliances found in co-living buildings are certainly a more luxurious and eco-friendly alternative to outdated solutions found in traditional rentals.
Maximising Lifestyle, Minimising Resource Duplication
Co-living lifestyle benefits, such as having access to premium equipment, are also contributing towards the betterment of sustainability. Think of it: is it more eco-friendly for every resident to own a game console, or to have 5 of them readily available for all to use? We think the answer is clear.
The Power of Shared Assets
Going back to our discussion about eco-friendly living being an antonym to lower living standards, let’s address the elephant in the room. Both, literally and figuratively. In big cities like London, every square metre of a property is costly, and thus even the smallest of rentals are hiked up in price. This begs the question: do you really want to crowd the little space you have with bulky essentials like a washing machine, a hoover, and so on? In co-living accommodations, you don’t have to share your space with appliances.
For a small fee, you get to use the washing room equipped with all you need, from dryers to ironing boards. Smaller tools, like a hoover, can be rented out for as long as you need them for a mere few pounds. Finally, if the kitchen appliances supplied to your en suite kitchen don’t make the cut, you don’t have to splurge on buying your own. Bigger stovetops, microwaves, dishwashers and so on are usually accessible at the communal kitchens. And, did we mention all this equipment is premium quality?
Eradicating the “Fast Furniture” Landfill Cycle
When renting, people are more prone to buying ‘flat-pack’ furniture that they can easily dispose of when their lease is up. While it’s a cheap way to furnish a temporary home, it’s also disastrous for the environment. But it’s also understandable why you wouldn’t want to invest in high-end furniture for an accommodation that isn’t your forever home. So, what is the solution here?
Fully furnished apartments are not rare in the UK, but often, the furniture is both old and mismatched. Co-living spaces, on the other hand, come with an eco-friendly interior design that is functional, aesthetic and modern. It takes away the need to rely on short-lived furniture or having to cope with your nan’s cupboard instead of a chest of drawers. Once again, everyone wins.
One Fixed Cost: The Financial Rewards of Efficient Living
Co-living rewards you for living in an eco-friendly environment, namely by bringing on cost savings. Predictable monthly bills that come with all-inclusive renting mean that while living a premium life without harming the planet, you can also allocate your budget better, without unpleasant financial surprises.
Shielding Renters from Volatile Energy Markets
Since co-living offers rent with utilities included, residents are free from the worry that plagues many these days – the growing costs of electricity, specifically. With prices being very dynamic the past few years, most renters struggle to predict their next month’s expenses. But not those whose electricity bill is included in their monthly rent.
Co-living puts all fixed-rate utility bills under one umbrella: electricity, water, WiFi, and so on. Energy usage is managed at scale across the development, meaning every resident is contributing towards its communal use. It’s both sustainable and stable, as well as the approach that allows co-living establishments to keep their prices competitive while delivering luxury-class apartments and amenities. Even if the utility prices hike up, renters of the co-living spaces will remain unaffected and continue paying their contracted monthly fee. Their traditional counterparts, however, will have to juggle ever-changing bills and adjust accordingly every time a statement comes out. The latter are then susceptible to changing providers that offer a better price but are less eco-friendly in their practices. Ultimately, in the modern age of uncertainty and market instability, co-living is a safe haven where things don’t shift around. With today’s people having enough on their plates, at least utility bills will be taken care of for you, without additional harm to the planet.
Summary
Traditional renting isn’t sustainable. Old buildings turned into houseshares don’t meet today’s standards of energy usage. That makes co-living establishments an eco-friendly alternative/ Not only are the buildings new and therefore adhering to today’s requirements, but also equipped with high-end equipment that’s designed to preserve energy. All in all, co-living proves that living sustainably doesn’t mean downgrading your living quality. If anything, it’s an even more luxurious lifestyle.
It’s not just the buildings that help you reduce your carbon footprint, but the lifestyle itself. Co-living is an eco-friendly alternative to traditional renting from the perspective that, instead of having to buy several appliances per household, the majority of them are communally used. Plus, with studio flats coming furnished with high-end and aesthetically pleasing furniture, it ends the harmful cycle of buying and throwing out cheaply made pieces by the end of the lease. And finally, co-living rewards residents for their contribution to sustainable living – by eradicating their inconsistent energy expenditure costs.Want to rent more sustainably? Learn what we do at The Rex.