Millennial Commune-ism

Think you have too many roommates? People with 16 are paying extra for the privilege
Here is an article from the L.A. Times highlighting the new living arrangements of Millennials. Sounds like a rehash of the communal living of the HIppie days only cleaner and less self-sustaining. What it highlights to me is how inept Millennials really are. Bunch of adults in name only. Too scared to face the real world, with real responsibilities. These suckers never want their college years to end.

Standish, 31, lives here with 10 other people. The house, called Euclid Manor, isn't a college dorm. It's not a hostel-style "hacker house" either. According to Standish, this isn't a tech thing, or a hippie thing, or a rent-is-too-expensive-and-I'm-desperate thing. It's called co-living, and it's a lifestyle choice emerging among young people who favor Airbnb over hotels and Lyft rides over car ownership. Rather than seeking out housemates on Craigslist, city-dwellers in high-cost markets such as the Bay Area and New York City are now paying companies — some small and others, like WeWork, backed by millions in venture capital — a premium to live in a building with a curated roster of housemates, stocked kitchens and planned get-togethers.

This 31 year old gentlebaby lives with 10 other adult babies. They strike me as so pathetic, needing an outside party to plan their activities and stock their kitchens. Are these people really in their 20s-30s or are they really in their 80s?

"Humans are very social beings and pre-Industrial Revolution we lived in large groups," Standish said while showing off Euclid Manor's dining room, which has a long, banquet-length table used for house meetings and dinner parties. "I mean, this house is an interesting example of that. It was built in 1910, and back then you'd have these huge estates where there were 20 people living in a house together," though many were live-in servants. (A "totally different dynamic," he said). But Standish thinks that many people, particularly millennials, are eschewing the American dream of owning a house in favor of finding a second family of like-minded people.

Ah, I think we are getting somewhere. It seems these are the "progressives" that would like to drag us to Pre-Industrial Revolutions days in homage to Agenda 21. Never mind the Industrial Revolution was the best thing that has ever happened to the well being of mankind. Social planners are actively working to get us all out of the American dream of having having a family, owning a home, and a couple of cars. These fools are drinking it up. Replacing family with roommates and bedmates. Favoring mass transit and uber over car ownership. Living with 10 or more is a house, in order to shrug off adult responsibility.

"The best way to describe the mentality that encapsulates where we're at is the 'modern nomad,'" said Benja Juster, 28, an interactive experience designer who lives in the Canopy, whose residents are all in their mid-20s to mid-30s. "It's a desire to not be locked down to one physical location … to go with the wind and find where life may take you."

The mindset of the "modern nomad" reeks of justification to never grow up. The word bum comes to my mind

OpenDoor is testing a different ownership structure for each of its houses to see what works best. It rents the Farmhouse, its first business venture, and subleases it to tenants. It bought its second house, the Canopy, outright. OpenDoor operates the investor-owned Euclid Manor. The company's revenue comes from the rent it collects from tenants, usually $1,000 to $1,200 a month, depending on the room and house. Standish and Provan declined to reveal OpenDoor's margins, but said the properties are profitable, and co-living provides better returns than traditional housing. For tenants, the rent is more expensive than sharing a home with 10 or so roommates, but comparable to living with fewer housemates in the same neighborhood.

This Millennial style communal living is a freaking scam. No wonder it is attracting venture capital. Millenials get their degrees then end up getting ripped of in the real world because they were taught nothing of it. No wonder they never want to leave college. If I'm paying over $1,000 a month to live in a home with a dozen roommates, I better not feel like I'm getting ripped off. What does that rent cover?

Aside from the food program, which lowers the cost of groceries, Standish and Provan said residents also get access to appliances and facilities uncommon in shared apartments — at Euclid Manor those include West Elm furnishings, a grand piano, a Vitamix and a cafe-grade coffee machine. The Canopy has a soundstage, a woodworking studio, and large living rooms with projectors and musical instruments. But what tenants are really paying for is the "community," Standish said. "Living as family, basically."

Oh its cool, I get cheaper food someone else buys and I make out with a coffee maker too!

I probably quoted too much already, so read the article if you want to see Millennial Adult baby syndrome. It's no wonder the Sandernistas feel like they get they shaft from the wealthy. When you know nothing of the real world, you get ripped off in it. My opinion is it is their choice, and they are free to be miserable if they want to. But please keep that as your choice. Please do not get on city councils and city planning agenices to force this commune-ism on the rest of us. This just reeks of Agenda 21 sustainable living propaganda to me. The Millennial Sandernistas look like willing dupes in that global endeavor.

This post is dripping with venom.

You clearly have issues with anyone who doesn't fit the nice neat mold that you were taught was normal.

American dream of having a family, house and cars? Hah yeah you're not a big responsible adult unless you do all that crap.

You can almost hear the desperation with which you want these people to join you in the vapid misery that you describe as adulthood.

a reply to: harvestdog

You ignorance is astounding.

They are forced to live in these conditions are they saddled with debt and have no economic opportunities because their future was shipped overseas.

a reply to: corvuscorrax
Not dripping venom, rather, spewing it.

a reply to: harvestdog

I am a bit of a lefty (and a fan of understatement), to the point where I have often been living in housing fit for two or three, with six or seven people in it at any one time. It gets a little crazy. But that is normally because my family are kind folk, and although we have little, when our friends are in need, we share what we have, whether it be space, food, heat, or light.

But we live in relatively Spartan conditions, compared with the conditions that the individuals living in those mansions come apartment buildings are accustomed to. We live in relatively Spartan conditions, because we have not got a whole lot of money to be spending on better digs, or fancy drinks machines and what not. We live within our means as much as possible, and every day is struggle, so there would be no time for us to get involved in using the woodworking shop, or messing around with a soundstage.

I wish I had a job where I could finish that, go home, track some badass bass lines, and then call it a night, but those of us who do real work, need real rest. Paper juggling slackers might be able to take advantage, but it's not as if they ever get any real physical work done, so they would have the spare energy for that, would they not?

This seems like the sort of thing that only a rich kid would try to get in on. A lad or lass who does not actually have to earn money in order to pay for things, just waits for the next loan from the bank of Mum and Dad, and carries a credit card with a minimum limit of the GDP of Botswana. The hell with that. Real communes these days should be exclusively solar powered, made entirely from natural hemp fibres, and be exempt from all zoning laws, or regulations, or made with no knowledge or permission on the part of local government. No grid, no cell service, no soundstage, no coffee machine, no damned coffee for that matter!

a reply to: corvuscorrax

So it's straight to the ad hom, eh?

This is childish behavior. These are sheltered people paying to preserve their sheltered lives because they know they probably can't handle the world otherwise.

They're not doing it out of necessity. It's a "lifestyle choice". They don't know how to take care of themselves on their own, thanks to an inculcated total dependence on technology and the state.

I say let them be dependent if they want. Let them be sheltered (and waste their money doing it). They won't survive when all of their safety nets collapse, and there will be more left for those who still have brains in their heads and their wits about them.

a reply to: harvestdog

What it highlights to me is how inept Millennials really are. Bunch of adults in name only. Too scared to face the real world, with real responsibilities. These suckers never want their college years to end.

I love how these anti Millennials crowd like to blame millennials for their laziness, entitlement and being worthless as if the Millennials were born and raised by thin air.

Where is the blame for the parents and grandparents that raised them and allowed the current dysfunctional corrupted system that we have today? Was it the millennial that purchased 40K kias and mccmansions that they couldn't afford?


IMO A key difference between the millennials and the older generation is that they are seeing the BS at a much earlier age due to economic issues and technology.

By the time the older generation figured it out they had plenty battle wounds and out on the curb, where millennials observed that experience from watching their parents .

a reply to: corvuscorrax

That was exactly what I was thinking.

Note: I have a house, a car, a dog and a white picket fence. I like it fine thanks. I don't imagine for a second that makes me better than anyone else.

a reply to: 0zzymand0s

And that's just great. I have nothing but respect for those who know what they want and go and get it.

It's when someone like the OP comes along to belittle and bemoan the choices others make. Demanding they conform to their ideal of 'growing up' that makes me cringe and wonder how someone could be so adamant in their desire to see everyone take the exact same paths.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

No, I was agreeing with your post completely. Self righteous, my-way-or-the-highway nonsense like the OP makes my skin crawl as well.

I happen to enjoy -- and NEED, frankly -- a tremendous amount of solitude. But these kids don't bother me at all. In fact, I think they should do whatever makes them feel empowered and at peace with themselves (and others). It's the know-it-alls and their idiot rules that make the world a darker place for everyone. Young people living together communally aren't the issue. Control freaks are.

a reply to: corvuscorrax

That was epic!

Could not agree more. I guess different people have different lifestyle choices. So what?

Btw i am from this generation mentioned with a family so i can see a tiny tiny bit of where the OPs anger is coming from.

a reply to: harvestdog

Wooooah there old timer! Just because you refuse to follow the changing trends in society, does not allow for the demeaning and damning that you have more than generously provided. I don't mind the changing tides. Who wants to waste their lives just so they can "own" a pile of toothpicks craftily constructed? Communal living, as long as you can roll, is beneficial not only to the individuals involved, but to the environment as well...less building materials because less structures are needed, less vehicles (can't easily park 10 or more vehicles at a single residence) and a support system for each other are just a few benefits of this type of situation. Get over your pre programmed high horse of what is acceptable. I had this thought recently...maybe it's the old farts or, perhaps just those throughout all generations, who are unwilling to change, that need to succumb to some sort of new alien virus that targets ignorance, and die, in order for those of us committed to enlightenment and connecting the filaments of our collective consciousness to thrive and actually change our world. This idea stems from my hypothesis that the reason nothing is and/or will change in this contrived world, is because no one is willing to accept that they need to first change themselves in order for their environment, their world or anything for that matter to change. Are you willing to change?

a reply to: harvestdog

Seriously, why do you care what living arrangements other people choose to have?

Aren't there far more pressing issues to concern oneself with than how consenting adults choose to live?

Perhaps you could choose housing arrangements that suit yourself, and give the same courtesy to others.

a reply to: harvestdog

Not sure why someone else's living arrangements have got you in such a tizzy. I'm no fan of generation snowflake but this wouldn't qualify as one of the reasons.

a reply to: harvestdog

My default setting for things like this is always... If people want to live like that, and they don't bother anyone else, they should go right ahead. I would point out though, that if a group wanted to turn a residence on my block into one of these, I would be quite vocal at the next town hall meeting in opposition (but to be candid, it sounds like these businesses are popping up in areas with larger homes and not in typical suburban neighborhoods).


I'll also toss out my standard disclaimer that prior to bashing Millenials, we have to remember that not all of them are the whiners we hear about and even the whiners had parents and schools that have failed them drastically.


All that being said, there are two things that I see going on over the past several years. Like everyone, I'm busy working and taking care of my family so I don't have any specific theories but more of a feeling in my gut about what is going on. I again want to point out that I'm only talking about a proportion of people in the age bracket(s).


1) People are fighting tooth and nail to either NOT grow up or to regress back into childhood.

I live in a suburb of one of the larger U.S. cities and I sometimes read stories that I cannot believe (almost). Several months ago I read about a few businesses that had opened in the city that advertise themselves (I'm not kidding here) as "Adult Day Care" centers. They explain how although their clientele is adult in age, they follow day care and nursery school models. There is finger painting and story time, show and tell and snack time. When I have a chance I'll see if I can dig up some of the articles. I will say that although I'm not a psychologist, there is something that just "feels" very wrong about this. It's as if fully grown people need to run away from life and get a pat on the head and rather than deal with whatever problems they have, they get positive reinforcement for hiding from the world.

To an extent, I also think that some of this can be shown by what Hollywierd is producing. Now, it is true that television/movies both create trends and also respond to them. I will say that I'm not a prude and I like a good superhero flick as much as the next guy, but the shear volume of them over the past few years and the almost cult following of adults for superheroes gives me reason to pause and look around. Kids like superheroes, at least in part, because they are young and inexperienced and the world can seem like a big and scary place so the thought of superheroes is comforting. Why so many adults seem to NEED these fictional characters I find odd and a bit unsettling. I suppose people are allowed to have any kind of collections they would like but I can't help but wonder when I see so many grown men holding up action figures as their prize possessions.

2) The so-called "Sharing Economy" (and also... "Tiny Houses")

Again, like many people I'm busy so I haven't had a chance to really ponder and/or research this but I sincerely think something is up with this entire "Sharing Economy" jobs market. I'm not sure if it's business taking the lead with a nod from the government or the other way around. What I am sure of is that years ago, when my wife and I were first building our life together I had to take various side jobs like delivering pizza on the weekends, for example. To be candid, it sucked. I did it because I wanted to better provide for us (and, at times just to keep the lights on). However, nowadays there is of course Uber and so many other services like that. There is one site that I can never remember the name of (it's either Rapid or Rabbit or something like that) that basically puts people that need cash in touch with people that need all sorts of errands run (like picking up dry-cleaning or delivering cat litter, etc). While I don't want to disparage people that are hustling to do anything they can to make ends meet, these are tasks that in the past were essentially looked down upon. (I can tell you that in my early days I've had bosses beep me with a 911... yes, there were these things called beepers once... only for me to call the office and find out the boss wanted me to pick up kosher pickels). It's a thin line I'm trying to walk on because again, I don't blame people for doing what they have to do but I do have my suspicions about how "they" are basically selling "jobs" that nobody would ever want to do (with good reason in many cases) and trying to repackage it as being cool.

To put it another way, "they" are selling the "Sharing Economy" as a cool-hip thing when the focus SHOULD be on molding an economy where people (especially fully grown, fully trained adults) don't NEED side jobs just to make ends meet.

I added the "Tiny Houses" thing because I sincerely believe that this movement or trend is simply another repackaging. I absolutely concede that MANY people have desires to have enormous houses. Houses so big that they would have rooms that they would never even use. I guess, if they can afford it, good for them.

However, most people need a little bit of space. I'll present my life as an example. My wife, son and I share a small two bedroom apartment. Although we have a relatively happy, peaceful existence, we are all only human and sometimes (particularly when we are trapped inside due to inclement weather) that we could use a little more space just for mental health. People need a little space. My point here.... While I am a firm believer in managing expectations in life, I feel as if there is a concerted effort to take what would normally be considered unacceptable living conditions and selling the idea as something "hip" and "cool." I mentioned the city that I live near. This city has already changed some regulations to allow for Micro-Apartments which, even just a few years ago, would NEVER have been allowed. I think this is less about any proposed positives (which I have yet to hear about) and more about getting people prepared for an economy that in the long run, "they" have already destroyed. If people in the not too distant future will never be able to afford a reasonable, sensible sized living space... then get them excited to live in a large walk-in closet.

Sorry if I rambled a bit there.

I don't understand your anger and frustration.

I am 26-27..

And I love this idea. However I don't love this for the reasons you're saying I would.

I actually agree with the article completely. My friends and I have talked about poling our money together to buy a massive house/mansion that can hold our families. Some of us are married.. some single.. some with kids.. some without..

But the intention of doing this is because we like people. It's boring to have your house with just a wife and kids inside. Why not have your friends and family around at all times so you always have someone to talk to?

Your children have live in friends...

Groups can go to the grocery store together...

Yard work and DIY projects always have plenty of helping hands.

It's more economical as there would be a ton of income streams.

You could throw large parties, if you have a large enough property.. maybe a great bats by style ball.

The only disadvantage is if you are an introvert who doesn't like the company of others as much, and requires more personal space.

Strange return of McCarthyism on ATS recently and a hatred of young people or millennials as you now call them. No wonder these youngsters don't won't to engage in your puritanical society. Get a life and leave the kids alone. Maybe they seen how you older wiser people live and think it's stupid. All chasing after an endless goal till you die. What a waste of life, not one to be emulated. Angry middle age men complaining about the kids is a story as old as time. Lots of moaners on ATS moaning about the kids and how they should be living life like their parents, because they obviously did it right and are happy with their choices in life.

a reply to: woodwardjnr

Your such a communist.

Communism is around every corner just look at that new thread I made.

What do you think happens to a society when 400 people own everything and everyone else just works for them.

a reply to: onequestion

Your such a communist

Anyone to the left of Mussolini Is considered a commie on ATS these days

a reply to: woodwardjnr

Some form of welfare for everyone is inevitable if all the countries wealth continues to concentrate into fewer hands.

Eventually something will have to change. Those people will be in total control as they are paying for everything and own everything.