The 44-floor Alta building is one of many high rises that have popped up in Long Island City in recent years, many of which are still under construction.
Hannah Towey/Insider
Floors two through 16 of the building are managed by “Common,” a company that runs co-living apartments in nine cities across the US.
Hannah Towey/Insider
I took a tour of the facilities to check out the appeal of the co-living trend and see why these unique apartments have a 95% occupancy rate, according to the company.
Hannah Towey/Insider
The unit I toured had 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a shared kitchen, a layout it shares with 80 of the 165 units. This floor plan is currently listed between $2,156 and $2,200 per room.
Alta by Common floor plan
Common
Residents can apply to single rooms or as a group to the whole apartment. The kitchen is the only shared apartment space beyond the bathroom.
Hannah Towey/Insider
An $80 monthly fee covers household essentials including paper towels, toilet paper, and sponges.
Hannah Towey/Insider
Two of the three bedrooms were roughly the same size, but the first had space for a small desk.
Hannah Towey/Insider
The focal point of the micro-suites is modular Murphy beds that fold out of the wall.
Hannah Towey/Insider
In the second room, I removed the couch pillows and tried setting up the bed. With some difficulty, I was able to manually pull out the bed so it rested on top of the futon and then locked it into place.
Hannah Towey/Insider
A small headboard pops up at the end of the bed, closest to the window.
Hannah Towey/Insider
Closet space in the smallest of the three bedrooms was minimal.
Hannah Towey/Insider
But the largest — and most expensive — bedroom had two spacious closets and multiple shelves.
Hannah Towey/Insider
Comparatively, the estimated rent for one room in a 3-bed apartment in the neighborhood was $2,484 in November according to Zillow.
Hannah Towey/Insider
Source: Zillow
One of the major differences between these apartments and a traditional lease is that residents are only responsible for their own room’s rent — not the apartment as a whole. So if your roommate can’t make a payment or decides to up and leave, it’s not your problem.
Hannah Towey/Insider
But their main selling point is definitely the amenities. My personal favorite was this sunlit rooftop lounge located on the forty-third floor.
Hannah Towey/Insider