If you think sharing an apartment means simply finding a place you can afford and talking a few friends into joining you (and splitting the dish-washing duties), now might be a good time to elevate your expectations. X Denver, a new apartment complex and membership club in the Union Station neighborhood, opens starting next month with relatively affordable co-living options and a list of swanky amenities for renters.

“We really attract the late-20s, early-30s young professional, regardless of unit type,” says Noah Gottlieb, CEO of the X Company. Those unit options include a traditional studio, one-bedroom or two-bedroom place, or a bed-bath suite in a fully furnished co-ownership apartment. “[Our client] wants their life to be easy and at their fingertips and…wants to feel like they’re part of a community,” Gottlieb adds.

“I’m the oldest person at 38 [years old] in the organization, so…the people building the buildings are the demographic of our customer,” says Gottlieb, adding that this makes his team uniquely qualified to know what appeals to renters—like the pieces in this furnished living room. Image courtesy of the X Company
Some of X Denver’s apartments come fully furnished, like this four-bedroom co-living unit. “Our tagline is ‘Just bring your shirts and sheets,’” Gottlieb says. “We know people are looking to make housing decisions quickly and declutter their lives.” Image courtesy of the X Company
A light-filled bedroom. Image courtesy of the X Company

X Denver’s developers plan to foster that community through an extensive menu of offerings: a rooftop bar and restaurant with unobstructed views of the mountains, a 30-person hot tub, two pools (one for swimming, one for dipping), a sunbathing deck that accommodates several hundred people, a gym, and group fitness classes all included in the monthly rental fee. While tenants might have to wait to fully enjoy some of these perks until after the COVID-19 pandemic passes, the building also includes a 600-station co-working space with 14 private offices that can be reserved easily through the community’s app, for tenants tired of working on their couches. “[The co-working space] is 11,000 square feet at the top of the building,” Gottlieb says, noting that a lot of his competitors offer “a 200-square-foot business center in a room with no windows.” Non-residents can access the club’s amenities for a monthly fee of $275.

The building’s 11th-floor lounge space has a full-service bar and restaurant with expansive mountain views and patio seating. Rendering created by Brick Visual
Residents and staff of X Denver will use the lobby/main floor for group meetings, presentations, and networking events (post-COVID-19, of course). Rendering created by Brick Visual
“The idea of X Denver is that it’s an opportunity for where you live to be part of your social network and your community, part of your solution for health and wellness, your remote working space,” Gottlieb says. This vision means residents and their guests will congregate on the rooftop deck for post-pandemic parties and casual hang-outs. Rendering created by Brick Visual

But perhaps the most distinguishing aspect of X Denver is its co-living model, which starts at $985 a month. A tenant can rent a private bedroom suite (with bathroom) in a fully furnished two-, three- or four-bedroom apartment. “We’ve addressed the two things people hate about living with strangers,” Gottlieb says. “First: cleaning. You get biweekly professional cleaning of all the [co-living unit’s] common spaces included in your rent.” (For an additional fee, you can opt for the cleaning crew to scrub down your bedroom and bathroom, too.) “The other worry is: ‘What if he’s a deadbeat and doesn’t pay his share of the electric bill?’ We take that off the table; your financial arrangement is with us.” And if you really can’t stand one of your co-living roomies, the building will accommodate your move to a new suite.

The X Company has plans for at least one more project in Denver (at 21st and Arapahoe Street). And while Gottlieb is pretty sure his firm is setting a new standard in the city—and other places he has his sights on, including Tampa, Arizona (where a Phoenix project will open later this year), and Northern California—Realtor Kerron Stokes, co-founder of the Resource Group at Re/Max, points out that co-living has existed for a long time in ad-hoc arrangements. “Co-living has been an ownership strategy for millennials for the last 5 to 10 years,” he says. “As a passive way to deal with affordability for working professionals in the metro area, [co-living] provides some really cool solutions.” He predicts that the Mile High City will see more co-living options—both for renters and buyers—popping up in the very near future. “It provides some hope for people in a very constrained market,” he says.

In the 11th-floor co-working space, high ceilings and natural light create an appealing ambiance for residents, who can reserve spaces—work stations, private pods, and conference rooms—through the development’s app. Rendering created by Brick Visual
All residents get access to the X Club, a suite of amenities that includes group fitness classes such as HIIT, yoga, barre, and guided meditation in the on-site studio. Rendering created by Brick Visual
X Denver, located just blocks away from Rockies Stadium, offers 813 beds in residences that range from studios to four-bedroom co-living apartments. Rendering created by Brick Visual

No surprise that Gottlieb seems to agree: “Denver needs more developers and owners to listen to what the customers want, what they can pay for, and where they want to be,” he says. “[Developers should be] fitting the buildings and products to what the customers want and not to what they built last time.”

Studio pricing starts at $1,495 unfurnished, $1,650 furnished. One-bedroom units start at $1,835 unfurnished, $2,045 furnished. Co-living suites start at $985. X Denver is targeting an April 1 move-in date for residents, and a June 1 grand opening for the membership club.

Hilary Masell Oswald
Hilary Masell Oswald
As the former editor for two of 5280’s ancillary publications, Hilary Masell Oswald split her time between the vibrant design-and-architecture scene in the metro area for 5280 Home and the always-changing field of health for the annual 5280 Health.