The ability to overcome and adapt face of adverse situations is part of human nature.. World War I and World War II, for example, triggered drastic transformations in society, with impacts on global geography, economy and politics.

These conflicts eventually drove revolutionary creations in the area of technology, such as radio and computer, and in health, case of penicillin. More recently, during the covid-19 pandemic, society experienced a devastating new situation that, due to intensity and lethality, has changed (and has been changed) the habits and claims of the general population.

In recent years, the world lives in the era of the shared economy, based on the appreciation of collaborative consumption and the sharing of services and goods. In the real estate field, even before the pandemic, it was already possible to notice changes in the profile of consumers, both the younger ones, who no longer wish to invest large amounts to achieve the (perhaps old) dream of home ownership, as the older ones, who break old social barriers to live alone and share new experiences in an advanced stage of life.

In fact, the gradual decrease in the square footage of the apartments launched is no accident and is an increasingly common situation in large cities. The reduction is due both to the scarcity of land in large urban centers and to the high cost of the square meter in better-located regions, as well as the good acceptance of the public, who are already used to living in small apartments and using more common spaces in condominiums.

In São Paulo, for example, it is possible to find offers of smaller and smaller apartments, aimed at a type of public interested in properties with more shared spaces of leisure and services, near urban centers, than by large apartments.

The Sao Paulo Zoning Law (Municipal Law No. 16.402/16), among other objectives, aimed to bring residential and commercial centers closer together, by increasing the supply of apartments closer to the public transport hubs, in areas further away from the urban center, precisely so that residents had more access to these services.

This urban movement seems to be in tune with the coliving, most recently practiced in Brazil, but already common and widespread in other parts of the world. The main objective is to share experiences and facilitate the concentration of housing, leisure and commerce in a single pole.

Born in the 1970s in Denmark, the then cohousing (characterized by individualized units around collective spaces) covered a neighborhood that sought to experience a certain sense of community, with spaces of coexistence and shared activities.

The idea was applied and adapted in the United States in the following decade and remained a viable option and in constant adaptation nowadays. In the concept of coliving, some spaces, usually living rooms, kitchen and laundry, of a single property are shared and there is a room for each resident.

Very confused with the university republics, the idea of coliving is to aggregate and give access to shared experiences, with conditions that probably would not be possible if the facilities were arranged in individual units. It is the concept of dividing to multiply.

Cities such as New York, London and São Paulo increasingly have residents interested in enjoying this sense of community in relation to housing, to be able to reside in trendy central regions (in New York, Staten Island; in London, Old Oak; and in São Paulo, Jardins, Higienópolis and Pinheiros) and have access to leisure and trade services concentrated in these areas,  with significant cost reduction.

In Brazil, the acceptance of coliving by the public also seems to grow. In May 2019, only 30% of Brazilians accepted the coliving as an option. By March 2020, this percentage was already 55% among Paulistanos.

With the pandemic, the use of offices, urban spaces and residential spaces has been significantly changed. The way the city is occupied has changed and, consequently, the habits of its citizens has changed as well. The model of the coliving was put in check, since it encourages the use of shared spaces, which makes it more difficult to maintain social distancing. Still, the proposal has been adapting and seeking consolidation and acceptance in the market.

In the legal field, the Federal Constitution guarantees housing as a social right, alongside rights such as leisure, transportation and security, concepts close to the characteristics of the coliving. However, similarly, the right to property is also guaranteed by the Constitution as an inviolable right.

The legal instrumentalisation of the coliving usually occurs through a standard lease agreement, governed by the Lease Law (Federal Law 8,245/91), with severe predictions regarding the obligation to respect the condominium convention and general rules of coexistence.

However, the model has no specific safeguard in law that deals with issues such as minimum length of stay, characteristics of residents, responsibility of each one before the condominium, limitation of activities, among others.

The lack of forecasting makes it difficult to apply the coliving in strictly residential buildings, which generally adopt a more conservative stance, especially depending on the profile of the residents of the coliving. In general, people who adopt this model of housing do not intend to establish residence on the site for very long periods, which generates wear and conflicts of interest among residents.

The discussion increases when trying to establish the limit of exercise to the right of ownership of the person who wishes to install a unit of coliving in a residential building, in which there are no other apartments that take the model. The difficulty can be due both to the disinterest of the owners and to the express prohibition (whose validity is questioned by those who seek the application of the model) in the condominium convention.

From the misstep of the law in the face of the rapid advance of technology and new business, the first debates about the validity of the coliving in the Brazilian legal system. The model faces resistance from the traditional rental system to the lease short stay (airbnb). It is also faced with the difficulty of acceptance by occupied condominiums – and concerned – with issues such as security, movement of people, turnover, profiles of residents and increased use of the common area.

While the pandemic seems to have been controlled and society begins to incorporate the cultural and social changes it brought, discussions about the coliving take shape in the judiciary.

On the one hand, Startups, investors and companies looking to develop and apply the shared economy into new (or perhaps not so new) business models. On the other, residents, liquidators and owners apprehensive about the major changes in the use of apartments and the common spaces of their properties in such a short time and, still, without clarity or well-defined rules of use, which can impact on the original design of the development as typical residential.

Thus, it is necessary to wait for the outcome of the first discussions in the Brazilian courts on the subject, including considering the apparent conflict between constitutional principles.

Only with the passage of time and the conduct of these judicial decisions will it be possible to assess whether the colivig it is a reality that came to stay in Brazil, which will possibly still require some flexibility and adjustments of norms, or if it will be necessary another leap of development to another legal model that meets the longings of a society that is experiencing a process of constant change and adaptation.