Not so long ago, it was simply called flat-sharing. Two or three students would move into an apartment – each with their own bedroom, a shared living room and kitchen – to reduce rent and avoid living alone in a 10 square meter attic room. With the landlord reassured by the application and the parents' deposit paid, they would divide up the shelves in the fridge and the cleaning duties. It lasted as long as it lasted, depending on everyone's agreements and circumstances.

Twenty years later, flat-sharing has turned into "coliving," turning what used to be a makeshift living arrangement into a highly lucrative real estate investment. Amid a housing crisis, the conversion of family apartments is progressing rapidly in major cities.

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