I could have easily done this in my twenties but I would need my own room now. It sounds like fun, like living at the Y in the old days.
It sounds like a nightmare of other people's noise and aromas. Imagine all those TVs going at once!
At least the classic pod hotel gives you the ability to shut the door on other people.
by Anonymous | reply 1 | October 22, 2018 1:33 AM |
They describe two very different scenarios.
The first, the one in the photo at OP, is like living in a youth hostel--you get a bed in a dorm-like room, with zero privacy and the sense that you're in a cross between an airplane and an army barracks.
All for $1400/month.
In the second, priced at $2200/month you get your own private bedroom, but share common areas with other residents.
I think I'd rather be homeless than deal with the first option (that, or share a studio apt with a single roommate) but if I was 23 and new to LA, the second option could be fun, provided the bathrooms were like showering in an upscale gym locker room (e.g. cleaned constantly) and there were lots of WeWork-ish group activities and group dinners.
It would get old after about 6 months or so, but I could see people doing it.
The first option is like a homeless shelter you're paying a lot of money for.
by Anonymous | reply 2 | October 22, 2018 1:42 AM |
I'd shoot myself in the head on the first night, I'm sure.
by Anonymous | reply 3 | October 22, 2018 1:45 AM |
I just cant believe that anyone,of any age,find these to be viable options. At least in a scumbag weekly motel you get your own room and bathroom. Talk about the hive mentality . Are people really this easily led ? To think living on a fancy shelf is acceptable ?
by Anonymous | reply 4 | October 22, 2018 1:48 AM |
Some people can just flop down anywhere and sleep. Probably the same people who can fall asleep on a plane. The pods would be too confining for me. But, if people are willing to stay in these places and someone is making good money from it, let the good times roll.
by Anonymous | reply 6 | October 22, 2018 1:55 AM |
[quote] But, if people are willing to
**economically forced to***
[quote] stay in these places and someone is making good money
***you bet your ass someone is, or it wouldn't be happening**
[quote] from it, let the good times roll.
by Anonymous | reply 7 | October 22, 2018 1:57 AM |
This will end in tears.
by Anonymous | reply 8 | October 22, 2018 2:06 AM |
The picture at OP doesn’t look too bad until you imagine those beds with people in them. It might be okay for a night or two, maybe even a week or two if you’re desperate, but I can’t imagine living there. Wonder if there is a lights out time and everybody calls out, “Night Ted, night Bob, night John.......” (Waltons style)? Wonder how they deal with rule breakers and people who have “issues”? I’d probably sleep with my wallet and a knife under my pillow.
by Anonymous | reply 9 | October 22, 2018 2:07 AM |
This must be for people who don’t have the credit to get a lease right? If a studio is around $2,000 then a 2 bedroom is probably near $3500. I live in nyc and even in manhattan you can get a 3 bedroom for $4500. So why not have your own bedroom and share with roommates?
by Anonymous | reply 10 | October 22, 2018 2:20 AM |
Unless someone is kept on hand 24/7 to clean up after the residents, I don't think much of this.
by Anonymous | reply 11 | October 22, 2018 2:23 AM |
They are upscale versions of SROs and turn of the century tenement houses, when people had to share bathrooms. Fuck transplants for making this a "thing" here in NYC; developers are tearing down townhouses and converting brownstones for this bullshit.
by Anonymous | reply 12 | October 22, 2018 2:25 AM |
R12 there are tenement housing structures in NYC that have been updated and still have shared bathrooms. They go for about 1600 a month on the LES and Chelsea. But still better than a hostel style bunk bed situation.
I just don’t see why anyone would pay that much for this
by Anonymous | reply 13 | October 22, 2018 2:31 AM |
They want us used to having less. Tiny houses are part of this scheme.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | October 22, 2018 2:32 AM |
I could do either for a few nights. They definitely have their place. I don't like canned spaghetti but lots of people think it's great ...
by Anonymous | reply 15 | October 22, 2018 2:34 AM |
R14, that was the big comment on Twitter about this and I don’t get it. I thought the whole point of the downsize movement was to consume less and don’t understand the viewpoint that this is part of a plan to inch the public into serfdom.
by Anonymous | reply 16 | October 22, 2018 3:06 AM |
So basically, most of these "co-living" spaces are like boarding houses where you do your own cooking? Or giant apartments you share with roommates you haven't picked yourself.
But the OP's space sounds like a real hellhole, it's basically like an upscale homeless shelter where you get a bed, no privacy, and a cabinet you can lock. And for $1400 a month, they don't even feed you!
by Anonymous | reply 17 | October 22, 2018 3:13 AM |
[quote]They want us used to having less. Tiny houses are part of this scheme.
Of course. Since the dawn of history, tiny spaces have gone hand in hand with impoverishment and cramped living conditions; spaces like this is how they live in favelas and shanytowns all over the globe. Neoliberal Ayn Randian scum are trying to gaslight the ever shrinking middle and working class into seeing this type of existence as "chic" and desirable so they can start selling other aspects of impoverishment as also "chic."
by Anonymous | reply 18 | October 22, 2018 3:27 AM |
Just imagine the fleas and bedbugs. Is there maid service in these places?
by Anonymous | reply 19 | October 22, 2018 3:35 AM |
[quote]But the OP's space sounds like a real hellhole, it's basically like an upscale homeless shelter where you get a bed, no privacy, and a cabinet you can lock. And for $1400 a month, they don't even feed you!
Exactamundo. I read someone complain in one Yelp review that owners will freely walk in and out of bedrooms showing potential clients around without warning, and that locks on doors aren't allowed.
And you nailed everything else, too. These co-living spaces sound like a cross between an SRO, boarding house, halfway house and dormitory where you--a grown adult in your twenties--move into a bedroom that's already been furnished and share the kitchen and living room with other strangers. As if you're not being infantilized enough, there are "community events" (movie nights, for example) and all the basics are fully replenished on a regular basis if you can't handle the rigors of buying your own toilet paper, shampoo and soap.
by Anonymous | reply 20 | October 22, 2018 3:40 AM |
R5, that place is an overpriced con job.
by Anonymous | reply 21 | October 22, 2018 3:45 AM |
Most prisons in Europe are nicer than what is pictured in the OP.
by Anonymous | reply 22 | October 22, 2018 3:46 AM |
Sounds perfect for the Aspie techies who just work/game/sleep.
by Anonymous | reply 23 | October 22, 2018 3:48 AM |
They have started building this kind of shit in Portland. 200 square feet with a shared kitchen/bathroom for 1200 sounds like a bargain now.
by Anonymous | reply 24 | October 22, 2018 3:54 AM |
R10- I don't understand the reasoning either. If they're quoting a studio at $2,000, then just get a roommate and split the cost- $1000 each. I'd rather pay $1000 and find a good roommate and have some semblance of privacy - and some room to put my stuff- than pay $1,400 for a pod with a bunch of other people.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | October 22, 2018 3:58 AM |
I cannot even imagine paying $1400 for that first pic. It really does look like a prison.
by Anonymous | reply 26 | October 22, 2018 4:01 AM |
What happened to the quaint boarding houses run by nice old ladies? They'd give you a decent room and you share the house with a maximum of 3 or 4 other people but the house would be large enough that you wouldn't mind it. You'd get a free breakfast thrown in.
I'd take that over a pod and a locker.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | October 22, 2018 4:02 AM |
I pay $1400 for a studio that I don't have to share. It's absurd to pay that kind of money for basically a bed that you lock up.
by Anonymous | reply 28 | October 22, 2018 4:03 AM |
It looks like an upscale hostel, like you'd see in Sweden. Swedish hostels were double or triple the price of hostels in other countries.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | October 22, 2018 4:04 AM |
How could you possibly fit all of those people in an iPod?
by Anonymous | reply 30 | October 22, 2018 4:07 AM |
My dream is someday to own a tiny house of my very own. And a kitten to love, and will love me back!
by Anonymous | reply 31 | October 22, 2018 4:11 AM |
Big deal, we do this now in much less fancy surroundings
by Anonymous | reply 32 | October 22, 2018 1:35 PM |
This is some fucked up, dystopian shit.
It should not be so goddamned expensive to have a place to sleep.
by Anonymous | reply 33 | October 22, 2018 1:53 PM |
Jesus...that original article made me so sad for humanity. There's the dumb chick who lives there because "Oh my Gosh!" studios are $2000 nearby. She'd never be able to afford living in this neighborhood. So she pays $1400 to live in a dorm. Then there's the smarmy asshole from San Francisco with his startup who talks about "housing affordability" while building $2400 shared bathroom suites and $3500 one bedrooms.
Ummm...OK. I guess living in a glorified hostel is appealing for some folks who don't want to grow up and need to believe they live in a neighborhood they can't afford. I'm sure it's these same assholes who are always talking about public transportation in LA and how you don't need a car. LOL. These people are so fucking stupid and tedious. Just get a used Honda or Toyota. Get a roommate. Get your broke ass to the Valley.
by Anonymous | reply 34 | October 22, 2018 1:54 PM |
I think this is what heaven must look like.
by Anonymous | reply 35 | October 22, 2018 2:18 PM |
Snoring or non-snoring?
by Anonymous | reply 36 | October 22, 2018 2:23 PM |
If you had your own room I don’t see how this is any different from assistanced-living communities that older people live in. I’d love some of the amenities in those communities and if it’s good enough for the elderly, why not younger people?
by Anonymous | reply 37 | October 22, 2018 6:02 PM |
@ R14 at least a tiny house is your own self-contained place, not a rack of people sleeping next to you...snoring. farting and sharing the breathing air. Ugh. Where the tiny house is placed will determine additional privacy, space between neighbors. My apartment is < 450 sq feet (been here 13 years) and I could happily live in this amount of space till I am dead. It would be perfect if I could have a house this size (reconfigured) on a bit of land near the sea. (I don't want a rolling trailer thing.) People in the US insist on more space than necessary.
by Anonymous | reply 38 | October 22, 2018 7:19 PM |
[quote]Without PodShare, Hewitt says she'd never be able to afford this area. "Oh my gosh," she said, "I've looked at studio apartments in this area, in Hollywood, downtown. I mean, we're looking at almost $2,000 a month."
What are the utilities on top of the $1400?
Of course she could find a studio for $1400, but she would have to live in (gasp) Culver City.
And of course she could afford a studio, but she would have to give up her $5 iced latte and picking something to eat at Gjusta every day.
by Anonymous | reply 39 | October 22, 2018 7:30 PM |
R39, $1400 is inclusive of all utilities and includes cleaning, basic toiletries, etc. You’ve got to guess all of that other stuff has a value of around $500 a month. I question if you can do laundry there or have to send it out.
by Anonymous | reply 40 | October 22, 2018 9:27 PM |
All u need is one dirty mf'er and their foul body odor, and the situation becomes unbearable.
by Anonymous | reply 41 | October 22, 2018 9:30 PM |
For $1400 a month, what they're actually paying for is keeping the riff-raff out.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | October 22, 2018 9:38 PM |
I couldn't even share a room like that on vacation. No fucking way would I want to come home to that every day.
by Anonymous | reply 43 | October 22, 2018 9:52 PM |
You really do need the old ymca 8’x10’ cells (fire traps) for this to work. One exhaust fan per cell and you wouldn’t notice how long a neighbor has been dead. That can be a good thing.
I still want all of you to eat cafeteria style; it’s unbelievably cheap and good for the environment.
I also want you to view international travel as a yearly innoculation against becoming an old cunt like me.
by Anonymous | reply 44 | October 22, 2018 10:04 PM |
I traveled across the US for a month once and stayed in dorm-like hostel rooms with bunk beds almost every night. I found it surprisingly okay - turns out I'm far more adaptable than I thought. But I knew it was only for a short amount of time, there's no way I could actually live like this as an adult - I need my privacy.
by Anonymous | reply 45 | October 22, 2018 10:08 PM |
There's another "Podshare" I came across, run by some crazy Russian-American troll bitch. I know "bitch" is a strong word but looking at the video below, you can see why I called her that. The "pods" are crudely slapped together pieces of wood that look exactly like concentration camp/POW bunk beds, complete with wire facing that even looks like barbed wire. So they don't even have aesthetics or a genuine attempt at creating a novel "space age" experience like in Japan. The beds are built to gulag/POW/concentration camp standards.
And the gaslighting is second to none. She actually sells the shocking lack of privacy as a "plus", in that it'll discourage people from having sex or doing drugs. She calls this "self-policing."
And we're letting these Russian peasants into our country...why again?
by Anonymous | reply 46 | October 22, 2018 11:30 PM |
Think of all the "crazy roomate" stories that you've either heard or lived through in your lifetime. And now throw in some "freaks that you work with" stories.
No. Fucking. Way.
by Anonymous | reply 47 | October 22, 2018 11:34 PM |
Is sex permitted? If so, wouldn't it be kind of awful for everyone else to have to hear/watch/smell fucking going on right next to them? If not, where and when do people fuck and masturbate? Are these bunks co-ed or same sex? Is rape a concern?
by Anonymous | reply 48 | October 23, 2018 12:19 AM |
I was thinking they need something like dorms for all those basement dwellers. Campuses of Dorms with a cafeteria - with no obligation to attend college. Just dorms you live in with internet for all the failure to launch types. Make it co-op style so you have to rotate through the cafeteria and other jobs around the facility to keep it livable.
by Anonymous | reply 49 | October 23, 2018 12:33 AM |
Separated by biological sex, or gender identity?
by Anonymous | reply 50 | October 23, 2018 12:46 AM |
[quote] If so, wouldn't it be kind of awful for everyone else to have to hear/watch/smell fucking going on right next to them?
Any poor soul inhabiting this kind of dwelling would be too demoralized to have a sex drive.
by Anonymous | reply 51 | October 23, 2018 12:52 AM |
Here is another one of these shitty co-living spaces for adult babies. The company, WeWork, has a dormitory for its workers. The guy in the video sounds like something out of a doomsday cult. Oh, and he's a fan of "Ayn Rand." (Shocker!)
by Anonymous | reply 52 | October 23, 2018 12:55 AM |
I'd rather buy myself a van and live in it.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | October 23, 2018 4:34 AM |
I'd rather live in a cardboard box.
Can you imagine the cesspool of germs this would create when one person comes in with a virulent flu? Do the pods come with an unlimited supply of Purell?
by Anonymous | reply 54 | October 23, 2018 4:58 AM |
Jesus Christ, I think I'd rather live in a private room at a fucking BATHHOUSE than live like OP's photo. At least at the bathhouse, the room has a door & I could have casual sex within minutes of getting in the mood.
Hell, if it were possible, even a 5x10x7-foot storage unit would be preferable (which is precisely why modern storage facilities go to so much trouble to make it nearly impossible to get away with for any length of time... if they didn't, they'd quickly become adhoc tenement apartment buildings).
by Anonymous | reply 55 | October 23, 2018 6:15 AM |
The dorm bunk bed thing, fine for when you're young and travelling. You 're constantly moving on.
For living/working, no. But a very tiny room would be doable for a while at least. I stayed in a hotel recently that had very narrow rooms, wide enough for a twin and a half (wider than a twin, narrower than a double) with space to walk past it to the tiny bathroom. But the whole room was incredibly well-designed, all white and chrome and mirrors and glass so it didnt seem cramped. For one person it was great. Built in storage, tv mounted on wall. The wall to the bathroom was all glass and beyond that was the window for the room. The only thing I would change is make the bed a pullman berth so it converts to a sofa during the day. Communal cafeteria, lounge area, laundry and you're all set. If you're just out of college, why not?
by Anonymous | reply 56 | October 23, 2018 1:16 PM |
R46 Alessandra in Pod 2 could EASILY be Christine Baranski's daughter bases on voice and poise.!.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | October 23, 2018 1:26 PM |
I love all this innovation and these solution-based ideas. I'm approaching elder gay status , but understand the need for new living paradigms , esp. in large cities. Very clever.
by Anonymous | reply 58 | October 23, 2018 1:55 PM |
[quote]I love all this innovation and these solution-based ideas. I'm approaching elder gay status , but understand the need for new living paradigms , esp. in large cities. Very clever.
You think there's something new about tenement housing, halfway houses, communes, flophouses and SROs? The same housing that cities spent decades trying to eliminate?
But wait, you might be right about one thing when you talk about "innovation." What's innovative about any of this is that somehow developers have been able to convince middle class adults to pay a premium to live like a Bowery Bum of the 1930s or a someone in a favela. So, yes, I suppose that's a new paradigm shift.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | October 23, 2018 3:04 PM |
I was especially intrigued with Podshares, a communal ,hostel-membership based arrangement, not necessarily for long term stay. Pretty sharp gal running things
by Anonymous | reply 60 | October 23, 2018 3:12 PM |
Just imagine the foot odor wafting through the corridors.
by Anonymous | reply 61 | October 23, 2018 4:05 PM |
The rooms with bare plywood bunks and dividers look like death traps if a fire were to break out.
by Anonymous | reply 62 | October 23, 2018 4:07 PM |
I can't imagine any sane person paying $1400 a month to actually live there, but I suppose a place like that could earn bucks as a crash pad for techies.
"Too tired to face your two-hour commute back to the place you can afford? Crash here! You'll get a bed, wifi, and a shower, for a reasonable sum! Cheaper than a hotel, and we screen out the undesirables who don't have steady tech jobs! No, the only body odor you'll inhale here is from highly paid programmers who think that personal grooming is illogical!".
There's got to be a market for that, in places like LA and SF.
by Anonymous | reply 63 | October 23, 2018 4:09 PM |
[quote]The rooms with bare plywood bunks and dividers look like death traps if a fire were to break out.
That's because they are. All that wood that is one of the reasons why the Oakland warehouse fire was so devastating. There was wood everywhere you turned.
by Anonymous | reply 64 | October 23, 2018 4:16 PM |
And doesn’t plywood offgas toxic shit like formaldehyde? Does the $1400 rent include coverage for chemical induced migraines and a life insurance policy for your family if you are cremated inside your bunk when the co-living space burns to the ground because your neighbor’s incense burner toppled over during her yoga session?
by Anonymous | reply 65 | October 23, 2018 4:44 PM |
Presumably the plywood bunk place is built to code and has sprinkler systems in case of fire.
by Anonymous | reply 66 | October 23, 2018 5:13 PM |
At least one of the “pod” hotels in Manhattan has tiny rooms with shared hallway bathrooms. I was a bit surprised when I saw that online. But at least you can close the door to your room.
Bet there’s not a lot of “au natural” sleepers in that place in the OP.
by Anonymous | reply 67 | October 23, 2018 8:35 PM |
Do you get a locker for your stuff, like in Japanese pod hotels?
by Anonymous | reply 68 | October 23, 2018 10:30 PM |
If this catches on, maybe some of the big tech companies like Apple and Google will make a crash pad dorm like this for employees who don't want to face the commute home. If you've got billions to play with, why not make beds, showers, and maybe clean scrub-style clothing available to those who just want to rest for a while before getting back to work?
You can get that many more hours out of your employees that way! Feed them AND house them, and some of these nerds will literally never leave work!
by Anonymous | reply 69 | October 24, 2018 3:22 AM |
[quote]If this catches on, maybe some of the big tech companies like Apple and Google will make a crash pad dorm like this for employees who don't want to face the commute home.
I agree! This is a great idea!
by Anonymous | reply 70 | October 24, 2018 8:08 PM |