Why would you ever leave? Millennials are snapping up ‘all-in-one’ apartments that come with gyms, shops and roof gardens – after pandemic leaves them ‘craving community living’
- Millenials are moving away from traditional renting towards ‘all in one’ buildings with an array on amenities
- UNCLE, who own seven buildings with five more being build, have seen a surge in rentals for their buildings
- Vertus have two buildings in east London complete with yoga studios while the Collective also build its first 21-storey ‘all-in-one’ building last year
Millenials are moving away from traditional landlords to a move into all-in-one collective living buildings that have a ‘kinder approach to renting’.
A year on since the start of the pandemic, with working, exercising and socialising from home still part of people’s everyday lives, many are searching for buildings that have all they need in one place, often for the same price or less than a flat-share.
Leading the way is UNCLE – who have six apartment buildings in London, one in Manchester and five more in development across the UK – who offer gyms, wellness rooms, roof gardens in their buildings.
Some of their apartment blocks even have basketball courts, spin studios and cafes – while the rent is less than market rate, with prices starting at £845 a month for a central London studio.
There’s also Vertus, part of the Canary Wharf group, who have two buildings in east London complete with yoga studios and roof terrace and TV room.
Also popping up in the capital in The Collective, which spawned one of the country’s biggest 21-storey ‘all-in-one’ co-living spaces last year.
The philosophy behind their 705-room east London building is ‘co-living’ – focusing on shared cooking, social and recreational spaces to encourage a sense of community among its young residents, and has communal kitchens, bar, spa with sauna, gym, aerial silks studio and ‘mindfulness zone’.
Millenials are moving away from traditional landlords to a move into all-in-one collective living buildings that have a ‘kinder approach to renting’. Leading the way is UNCLE – who have six apartment building in London, one in Manchester and five more in development across the UK – who offer gyms, wellness rooms, roof gardens. Some even have basketball courts, spin studios and cafes – while the rent is less than market rate. Pictured is their wellness room in Wembley
Also popping up in the capital in The Collective, which spawned it’s first 21-storey ‘all-in-one’ building last year. The philosophy behind the 705-room building is ‘co-living’ – focusing on shared cooking, social and recreational spaces to encourage a sense of community among its young residents, and has communal kitchens, bar, spa with sauna, gym, aerial silks studio and ‘mindfulness zone’.
The building’s 20th-floor swimming pool is claimed to be the highest in east London and is located on the same floor as a bar, spa with sauna, gym, aerial silks studio and ‘mindfulness zone’.
Elsewhere, Vertus’ buildings in Canary Wharf have a lounge has a wine dispenser with bottles chosen by the residents from nearby wine bar the Humble Grape. After yoga on the terrace, residents are known to spontaneously congregate to catch up over a glass, meaning there’s the added appeal of a social element for many young people who might be new to a city.
Similarly, Essential Living have opened three buildings in London and one in Maidenhead, which have social spaces, resident’s events, a roof terrace and a gym.
The buildings are often have cleaning, laundry services and bills included in the rent
UNCLE’s latest opening, in Wembley, north London takes its design inspiration from the famed architecture Art Deco of the Roaring Twenties and contains 239 rental apartments with a mix of open market and discounted price points available in order to attract residents from all walks of life.
The flats come furnished and unfurnished apartments, with the furnished element provided by contemporary Danish brand Bo Concept to ensure the latest trendy Scandi style.
All UNCLE buildings also have resident managers, often married couples, with the buildings designed to be focused around enhancing the physical and mental well-being of its residents.
This means they come complete with a fitness studio, Technogym equipment and a TRX wall; a Zen Zone which incorporates a state-of-the art InHere Meditation Studio.
Meanwhile, UNCLE’s latest opening, in Wembley, north London takes its design inspiration from the famed architecture of the Roaring Twenties and contains 239 rental apartments with a mix of open market and discounted price points available in order to attract residents from all walks of life. Pictured is their communal work space
UNCLE flats come furnished and unfurnished apartments, with the furnished element provided by contemporary Danish brand Bo Concept to ensure the latest trendy Scandi style.
Wembley’s branch also has a a rooftop terrace and BBQ area, and even a basketball court, popular with residents as gyms closed during lockdown.
Meanwhile, the Collective, also in Canary Wharf – which was dubbed the ‘ultimate luxury living for millenials’ when it was announced in 2019 – comes with a gym, swimming pool, and cinema room.
Many are seeing the appeal of the this collective living with 18-30 year-olds seeing a decline in home ownership every year for the last decade.
Others have also been spurned by the ‘stay at home’ message of the Covid-19 pandemic, searching for a place they can get all they need under the same roof.
All UNCLE buildings also have resident managers, often married couples, with the buildings designed to be focused around enhancing the physical and mental wellbeing of its residents. Pictured is their reception area
Ryan Prince, the Canadian-born founder and CEO of UNCLE told FEMAIL he is seeing more interest than ever in the last year due to people wanting to stay close to home and their ‘kinder approach’ to renting.
‘Since the pandemic people are looking more for places that are all in one so you don’t actually have to leave the building to go to the gym, or have to,’ he said.
‘Our customers probably an average age of about 30. So it ranges from 20 to 50, but most are in their late 20s or early 30s’.
While they’re currently only in the UK, Ryan says he hopes to expand it across the world, with the apartments being ‘instantly recognisable’ wherever you are, with a standard you can reach if you move to a different city or country.
Wembley’s branch also has a a rooftop terrace and BBQ area, and even a basketball court, popular with millennial residents.
He also wants to address the issue of ‘dodgy landlords’ across London, adding that he wants people to have an expectation of UNCLE are wherever they are in the world – in a similar vein to how different hotels from the same chains reach the same standards anywhere on the planet.
‘The name UNCLE is tongue in cheek,’ he added.
‘Your uncle is somebody who solves problems, and tells it to you straight.
Pictured: The basketball court at UNCLE Wembley which is popular with residents. All the buildings have work out and relaxation facilities
‘They’re not your Lord. And they’re not your mother or there to mother you, you’re all grown ups, but they’re there to help out’.
‘But also there’s this idea of kind of reciprocity, which is like, you look out for us and we’ll look at what was out for you and you look out for us, like, you can’t’.
Ryan added that all the buildings have a sense of community, and that residents have built up friendships in lockdown.
‘There’s this kind of neighbourhood idea where you’re people who are actually live in this building, so they’ve got skin in the game.
Leases at The Collective’s new 21-storey project in Canary Wharf, central London, range from £1,300pcm for a 12-month stay in a ‘cosy’ suite, up to £2,080 per month for a three-month stay in a ‘big’ living space. Bedroom is pictured
While they’re currently only in the UK, CEO and founder of UNCLE Ryan says he hopes to expand it across the world, with the apartments being ‘instantly recognisable’ wherever you are, with a standard you can reach if you move across the world. Pictured: an UNCLE bedrom
An UNCLE bathroom is pictured. Ryan added that all the buildings have a sense of community, and that residents have built up friendships in lockdown.
‘You want your neighbours to act a certain way, good and bad. Our staff are there to kind of help make the neighbourhood work’.
With ‘kinder’ renting as UNCLE’s ethos, the contract people sign allows them to pull out within the first two weeks, as well as move between buildings at any time, adding to the idea the buildings are a so-called ‘family’.
‘It surprises me so we need to find out how many of our residents, give back to the team, they write notes or bring presents or do things for the people who look after them,’ Ryan added.
Like other co-living collectives, UNCLE is focusing on a neighbourhood and community feel, which has been encouraged in the pandemic.
Pictured: A gym in UNCLE’s Wembley building, that has exercise bikes and a spin studio inside. UNCLE is focusing on a neighbourhood and community feel, which has been encouraged in the pandemic
Vertus is mostly full of young professionals, but a new school nearby is also encouraging young families to move in. Cornering the market in Canary Wharf, the development also features a large roof terrace with exceptional views across the docks. Pictured: A bedroom in their 8 Walter Street building
‘If you look at our FAQS, we say “if it’s three in the morning and keeping your neighbours awake by partying, drinking and smoking don’t call me when you want something”.
‘There’s this idea of a neighbourhood thing where you have a part to play our part is harder to do. But also our customer have a part to play and they’re smiling,’ he went on.
‘We did a programme last year around random acts of kindness called “Humans of UNCLE”.
‘We asked residents to tell us somebody you know in the building has just done something really nice, and we’re going to give that person the three months rent free.
Top dog! 8 Water Street, is also pet friendly. Pictured is a resident with their adorable Dachshund
Pictured: A kitchen inside UNCLE Wembley with sleek modern designs and high-end equipment
‘We have that lovely lady at one of our buildings who quit her job to look after her mother, and she helps residents around in the building. She was this incredible venture capitalist who quit her job with her mother to train volunteers at the NHS.
‘We’re saw her and thought you’re a good person you should have free rent.
‘I feel that kind of part of the idea of a brand is ultimately worth it. This is not a charity. You know we have to do, but, but where we can find pockets where we can recognise the good thing in people we want to try and do that’.
UNCLE also have an initiative called ‘make a resident cry’ where their staff cry and make those living there cry with laughter or joy.
Pictured: The inside of a building in 8 Walter Street, which is also pet friendly
He notes one example where staff volunteered to look after a new parents sick baby and bought them dinner.
‘I always joke, that the world today is all about artificial intelligence and data and our business is about actual data,’ he added.
Like UNCLE, Vertus’s buildings – 8 Water Street and 10 George Street – is mostly full of young professionals, but a new school nearby is also encouraging young families to move in.
Cornering the market in Canary Wharf, the development also features a large roof terrace with exceptional views across the docks.
Like UNCLE, Vertus is mostly full of young professionals, but a new school nearby is also encouraging young families to move in.
In another similarity to UNCLE, Vertus doesn’t have the same deposit options traditional renting and has a distinctive design from the outside.
Created by award-winning architecture firm Stanton Williams, Vertus’s 8 Water Street building has a low-rise character, meaning that residents have direct access to the surrounding verdant private gardens, boardwalks, and soothing water of the dock, there’s also a bookable dining room, 24-hour gym studio operated by wellness experts Antidote and a plethora of classes and events.
One resident, Katherine Meadows, told FEMAIL: ‘I really liked the communal aspects of the development – the Humble Grape wine machine, pool table, gym, terrace and spaces to sit and enjoy a glass of wine after work or to set up and work from home.
Created by award-winning architecture firm Stanton Williams, Vertus 8 Water Street building has a low-rise character, meaning that residents have direct access to the surrounding verdant private gardens, boardwalks, and soothing water of the dock, there’s also a bookable dining room, 24-hour gym studio operated by wellness experts Antidote and a plethora of classes and events. Pictured: the inside
‘I also really like the dining area and the ability to rent the space to residents is fantastic.
‘I can’t wait to host friends and show off my cooking skills when this is all over.’
Due to the Government’s social distancing measures, these areas have been temporarily closed and face-to-face events have been postponed, but the community aspects of life at 10 George Street have remained.
The Vertus team told FEMAIL they are constantly reviewing the Government’s guidelines on isolation and when safe to do so, they’ll re-open these spaces ensuring the possible required social distancing measures are in place.
Alastair Mullens, Head of Vertus added to FEMAIL: ‘The idea of community has always been an important one for us at Vertus and with the current lockdown measures in place, this has never been more prominent.
‘Even though apartment front doors are shut, it doesn’t mean that people should feel lonely or isolated. We’re very happy to be able to work with our suppliers to provide our residents with an excellent online virtual community, offering online events and fitness classes. We hope that this feeling of community brings a little bit of light-hearted fun to their days.’
Pictured: The inside of the Vertus building, 8 Water Street in Canary Wharf, with trendy design
The bedrooms at the Canary Wharf towers owned by Vertus all have a good view of the nearby wharf
Great views: The building also has a roof terrace with views across east London and the famous Canary Wharf skyline
Humble Grape, a local wine stockist who provide hand-crafted wines for Club Vertus’ automatic wine dispensers, hosted an online wine tasting event for residents recently.
Around thirteen apartments took part and residents welcomed the thought that had gone into the event.
Ahead of the virtual wine tasting evening, each apartment taking part was sent a contact free bottle of Quinta de Saes Cloheita Tinto, from Portugal’s Dão region, free of charge.
One of Humble Grape’s leading sommeliers talked residents through how to taste the wine from the region known as the Burgundy of Portugal, where red wine gets its colouring from, the specific tasting notes of the wine and the history of the vineyard it’s produced by.
Fitness consultant Errol Richardson, from Antidote, who run the wellness centre at Vertus added to FEMAIL: ‘There has never been a more important time to help our residents look after their physical and mental health. Inactivity, stress and social isolation are key factors in the development of chronic disease and acceleration of the ageing process.
‘To help combat this, the team at Vertus’ Antidote studio continue to provide a varied and exciting wellness programme to all residents via video link. Residents have been enjoying one-to-one personal training, yoga, pilates and meditation sessions, as well as a timetable of group classes including HIIT, Metcon and Boxfit’.
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