[nelsonic]

Having lived in London for 10 years and shared most of that time I can see the appeal of Co-living for the community aspect. The reason many people (but clearly not all, judging from the comments in this thread!) find "The Collective" to be "value for money" is because it "includes" so many amenities such as "Cinema", Gym & Co-working space. When these are factored in, £1000/month is "not bad" for London. It's obviously a grossly over-priced outside of London in the same way that £7 for "Avocado & Eggs on Toast" seems "reasonable" in Shoreditch (London) but "absurd" anywhere outside of the Capital!

Having (personally) visited "The Collective" recently I felt they were trying to "force" the community aspect and were more interested in "ticking boxes" with their facilities than actually making them great. For example the "Library" had very few decent books (lost of empty shelves) and was more of an "interior design" magazine picture than an actual useable space.

The author of the (BBC) Article (Winnie Agbonlahor) is clearly not the "target market" for the co-living value proposition, however she finishes her article noting that: "In a different phase of my life - definitely."

And I have to agree 100%; if I were "young and single" it would be a great way to meet and socialise with like-minded people.