a start up entrepreneur and philadelphia native, jacob ross had enough of the silicon valley despite his filled portfolio with start ups and his crowl jewel called bookd, a ride share and delivery app that rivals uber. in early 2019, the thirty-two year old rocked the tech world by announcing he was selling his bookd shares. he set his sights on something more personal and would be taking on a new venture - affordable housing for millennials.
in 2018, an eight story building was purchased in philadelphia's thriving washington square west. preserving its charm, his vision came life converting three main floors into common areas along with state of the art amenities. the remaining five floors were transformed into residental units.
the announcement of this type of housing garnered mass media attention. when the application was released and the mention of "all credits scores welcomed", a quarter of a million were submitted. only 75 were accepted. with the signing of a lease, young professionals will be paying a reduced rent and a commitment of eight volunteer hours a month. if this community experiment succeeds, this will be the first phase in a nationwide expansion.
| costs |
∙ lease types: 3, 6, 12 month
∙ 1b/1ba: $1000/a mo ∙ floor plan
∙ 2b/2ba: $750/a mo (pp) ∙ floor plan
∙ security deposit: $500
∙ pet rent: $25/a mo
∙ curb vehicle use fee: $25/a mo (optional)
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| floor directory |
∙ floor one: concierge desk, leasing office and executive meeting room
∙ floor two-six: residential
∙ floor eight: gym and theater / balcony with dog run
∙ roof: bar, patio and pool
a note on residential unit numbers: odd numbers are 1 bedroom and even numbers are 2 bedrooms
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| apartment amenities |
∙ 1bd / 1ba: 650 sq ft
∙ 2bd / 2bd: 750 sq ft
∙ stainless steel appliances
∙ LED lights
∙ upgraded bathroom fixtures
∙ two bedroom apartments common area are furnished
∙ laundry facilities on each floor
∙ communal hangout space on each floor
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| community amenities |
∙ a state of the art gym
∙ a theater
∙ executive meeting room
∙ a business center
∙ a rooftop bar and pool
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| curb bar |
hours of operation: tu-fri 4p-7p (happy hour) sun 11a-5p (brunch/sunday funday)
∙ fully stocked bar and friendly bartender
∙ a portion of sales go toward curb's charity/foundation of the month
∙ featured drinks curated by resident(s) who have positively impacted their monthly volunteer commitment
∙ free delivery for happy hour snacks and brunch at selected restaurants via bookd
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| curb cars |
to reduce the carbon footprint of the building’s occupants, private vehicles are discourage. there are ten different types of curb branded vehicles available to rent.
∙ rental timeframe: 2, 4, 6, 8 hours
∙ gas fee: $10 / $14 / $16 / $18
∙ monthly fee will cover insurance and maintenance on car
∙ sign-ups: availabe on curb.com/residents/cars
available vehicles:
∙ 2020 / toyota corolla / white
∙ 2020 / toyota corolla / red
∙ 2020 / honda civic / blue
∙ 2020 / honda civic / red
∙ 2020 / ford focus / white
∙ 2020 / kia soul / greene
∙ 2020 / hyundai elantra / silver
∙ 2020 / toyota tacoma / black
∙ 2020 / honda cr-v / black
∙ 2020 / honda odyssey / silver
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