The Resurgence of Co-Living: a Neoliberal Response to Atlanta's Housing Affordability Crisis

Atlanta is among the fastest-growing regions in the US. Amid population growth, stagnant wages, gentrification, and declining government assistance, the metropole faces an escalating affordable housing crisis. As the market fails to supply sufficient dwellings, Atlanta’s neoliberal housing landscape has opened for entrepreneurial ventures. One such venture, ‘co-living,’ represents the resurgence of shared housing models, in which residents occupy private bedrooms while sharing kitchens and bathrooms. With low rents, flexible leases, and furnished accommodations, co-living provides an economically viable alternative to conventional leases that may offer stability for low-income renters. Concurrently, it is regularly criticized for exploitative landlord practices which disproportionately impact vulnerable populations; increasing housing precarity. Using data from an Atlanta-based co-living company, this research employs OLS analyses to explore how demographic, geographic, and administrative factors shape housing tenure. Patterns of tenure length reveal to what extent this housing mechanism contributes to stabilization or precarity among Atlanta’s low-income renters.