Common Living Goes Belly Up, Files for Bankruptcy

Venture-backed co-living company Common Living filed for bankruptcy Friday — and it won’t try to make a fresh start.

The New York-based company is seeking to liquidate up to $10 million in assets and distribute the proceeds to its creditors, according to a Chapter 7 petition filed May 31 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. The company reported between $10 million and $50 million in liabilities.

Common Living started in 2015 and pioneered a residential property management model where members “know their neighbors, meet new people, and save money,” according to its website. 

The concept got the attention of a few bigwig investors, including venture capital firm Maveron, which agreed to kick off the first of three funding rounds that raised more than $63 million in Common Living’s first two years.

That funding had grown to $110 million by 2023, making Common Living the largest co-living operator in North America when its European competitor Habyt acquired the company last year for an undisclosed amount.

But its members complained of poor communication. Members also became distraught at some Common Living properties where problems arose with residents who behaved erratically and made other members uncomfortable, The Daily Beast reported.

And Common Living isn’t the only co-living operator whose star burned too bright. The sector blossomed in the 2010s with co-living startups Quarters, Ollie, Bungalow and The Collective all vying for a piece of the action. 

But Quarters filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2021, California startup HubHaus ended its brief misadventure in co-living around the same time, and The Collective lost its flagship Williamsburg, Brooklyn, property in 2022.

Common Living seemed to be on the winning side of the consolidation of the co-living sector. It took over competitor Starcity’s assets in 2021 while stepping in to manage Quarters’ properties in Chicago and Washington, D.C.

The company currently operates in 12 cities across the United States and Canada and manages 79 co-living communities in total, according to its website. There are currently 18 listings on the company’s website for available space in Common Living properties in New York City.

Spokespeople for Common Living and Habyt did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Judge Laurie Selber Silverstein, who is overseeing the Chapter 7 proceedings, has set a first meeting date for July 18, according to the court calendar.

Abigail Nehring can be reached at anehring@commercialobserver.com.