Would you pay $1200 a month for a bunk bed in a shared space? Renters in Los Angeles and San Francisco are opting for pods in communal home with a desk, locker and personal TV

With the cost of rent continuing to rise, some Americans are taking unusual measures to find a place to sleep.
In Los Angeles and San Francisco, where prices are particularly exorbitant, people have taken to renting bunk beds in communal homes. 
PodShare, which provides 10 to 15 co-ed bunkbeds in six locations across California, is hoping to help solve the affordable housing crisis.  
The beds can be rented from $35 to $50 a night, which amounts to between $1,050 and $1500 for one month. 
PodShare, which has six locations across Los Angeles and San Francisco, provides 10 to 15 bunkbeds per space. Pictured: Bunkbeds at a PodShare location
PodShare, which has six locations across Los Angeles and San Francisco, provides 10 to 15 bunkbeds per space. Pictured: Bunkbeds at a PodShare location
The beds can be rented from $35 to $50 a night, which amounts to between $1,050 and $1500 for one month. Pictured: Bunkbeds at a PodShare location
The beds can be rented from $35 to $50 a night, which amounts to between $1,050 and $1500 for one month. Pictured: Bunkbeds at a PodShare location
Every 'pod' comes with a bed that turns into a desk, individual power outlets, a locker, a shelf and a personal TV. Pictured: A resident at one of the PodShare locations
Every 'pod' comes with a bed that turns into a desk, individual power outlets, a locker, a shelf and a personal TV. Pictured: A resident at one of the PodShare locations 
It's no secret that housing prices have rapidly spiked over the last decade and incomes have not kept up
One 2018 study published found that only about one-third of millennials currently own homes.
This is fewer than the number of Generation Xers and baby boomers who owned homes when they were the same age.
And a study conducted by Harvard University this year found that one-in-three Americans can't afford to pay rent.  
It's unsurprising considering that, in cities such as San Francisco, the average rent for an apartment is about $3,900. 
But for $1,200, if you rent with PodShare everyone gets a bed that turns into a desk, individual power outlets, a locker, a shelf and a personal TV.
Each location also provides a communal living room, food such as cereal, toiletries such as toilet paper, laundry machines and WiFi access, reported CNN
Tenants are known as 'pod-estrians'.
Additionally, each location has a communal living room, a kitchen (pictured), laundry machines and WiFi access. Pictured: One of the kitchens
Additionally, each location has a communal living room, a kitchen (pictured), laundry machines and WiFi access. Pictured: One of the kitchens 
The company was founded in 2012 by 34-year-old Elvina Beck. Pictured: One of the communal  workspaces
The company was founded in 2012 by 34-year-old Elvina Beck. Pictured: One of the communal  workspaces
Although the set-up may seem like an adult dormitory or a hostel, the company uses the term 'co-living'.
'PodShare makes life more affordable because there is no security deposit or cost of furnishings and we provide flexible living,' co-founder Elvina Beck told Vice in 2016.
'Pod life is the future for singles which are not looking to settle down, but focus on their startups and experience something new.'
There are no curtains to close off the beds, and the only doors are to the bathroom, reported Time Out Los Angeles.
Although there's no privacy, pod-residents are willing to exchange that for affordability or a reduced travel time to work. 
Beck, 34, told CNN that she founded the company in 2012 because she wanted to meet new people and provide housing security to others. 
'Maybe they don't have two months' rent to put down or they don't have proof of income,' she said. 
'Whether it's from a divorce or their family kicked them out for being gay or because they're in a different country or a different city.'
Beck says that most of the early residents were between ages 24 and 30, and that now they are in their late 20s or early 30s. Pictured: Lockers at one PodShare location
Beck says that most of the early residents were between ages 24 and 30, and that now they are in their late 20s or early 30s. Pictured: Lockers at one PodShare location 
Hard rules that each tenant must follow include: lights have to be off by 10pm, no guests are allowed and tenants can't have sex. Pictured: Bunkbeds at one PodShare location
Hard rules that each tenant must follow include: lights have to be off by 10pm, no guests are allowed and tenants can't have sex. Pictured: Bunkbeds at one PodShare location
She told CNN that, when she began PodShare, most residents were between ages 24 and 30. Today, however, most 'tenants' are in their late 20s or early 30s.  
Additionally, many of the early residents were young adults who had just moved to a new city. But many new residents are older adults and even those traveling on business. 
However, there some rules that people are required to follow. Lights have to be off by 10pm, no guests are allowed and tenants can't have sex.  
'You can't invite any friends over,' Beck told CNN. 'Sorry. Just make new ones here.'
Would you pay $1200 a month for a bunk bed in a shared space? Renters in Los Angeles and San Francisco are opting for pods in communal home with a desk, locker and personal TV Would you pay $1200 a month for a bunk bed in a shared space? Renters in Los Angeles and San Francisco are opting for pods in communal home with a desk, locker and personal TV Reviewed by Your Destination on July 06, 2019 Rating: 5

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