Housing.com enters co-living space

Real estate portal Housing.com has launched an exclusive co-living section on its platform, with half-a-million beds listed across 12 major markets.

This is aimed at digitising the otherwise unorganised market of paying guest (PG) accommodation and to boost the reach of organised co-living players, said the firm. It plans to scale this up to a million beds by the end of 2020.

The Elara Technologies-owned portal has tied up with Oyo Life and Zolo to promote their co-living spaces on its platform.

The 12 cities contributing to the listings are Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram, Bengalauru, Kolkata, Pune, Noida, Chennai, Ghaziabad, Hyderabad, Chandigarh and Ahmedabad.

“The way in which the concept of co-working is changing how traditional commercial work spaces operate in India, co-living is transforming traditional renting. The change is driven by a highly mobile millennial workforce and a growing student population with a new mindset,” said Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO, Housing.com, Makaan.com and Proptiger.com.

“The country’s young population wants flexibility in housing options that allows them to move quickly in a highly dynamic work environment. Co-living provides ultra-modern living spaces with a plethora of amenities and a like-minded community, all at pocket-friendly rates and with the flexibility of moving in and out quickly with minimum hassle,” he added.

Co-living listings on Housing.com are all verified with genuine photos, said the firm.

Founded in 2012, Housing.com is a real estate advertising platform for home owners, landlords, developers and real estate brokers.

A report by group company PropTiger.com estimates that co-living is set to become a ₹2-trillion market by 2023 in the top nine cities of India as the demand for such spaces continues to grow among the country’s student and single working population.

Currently, nearly 40 per cent of India’s millennial workforce comprise migrants looking for affordable yet modern living spaces that provide them with an optimal mix of privacy with an opportunity to engage in social exchange. As the number of millennials in the workforce is expected to hit 75 per cent of the total workforce by 2025, multiple organised players are jumping into this space to grab the opportunity. Similarly, of the 37.4 million students pursuing higher education courses in 2018-19, approximately 15 million were migrants.