Related Links
- What is cohousing?
- If I live in cohousing, will I have my own kitchen?
- How are people selected to be members of a particular cohousing group?
- How is home ownership legally structured in cohousing communities?
- What if I want to or have to move out of the community and sell my unit?
- I can't afford to (or don't want to) buy into cohousing. Are rental units available?
What is Cohousing?
Cohousing is a form of collaborative housing that offers residents an old-fashioned sense of neighborhood. In cohousing, residents know their neighbors very well and there is a strong sense of community that is absent in contemporary cities and suburbs.
Cohousing communities consist of private, fully-equipped dwellings and extensive common amenities including a common house and recreation areas. They are designed and managed by the residents who have chosen to live in a close-knit neighborhood that seeks a healthy blend of privacy and community. Back to top.If I live in cohousing, will I have my own kitchen?
You may well wonder why we have put this seemingly insignificant question so close to the top of our list. Frankly, because it is the single question most frequently asked of cohousing enthusiasts. Yes, every cohousing community does have a common kitchen, but community meals are usually prepared and served in the common house only two or three times each week. Can you imagine 25 or more households each trying to separately prepare 18 or 19 meals a week in one kitchen? That would be well nigh impossible. So yes, each residence has a fully equipped--and usually spanking new--private kitchen. Really. Back to top.How are people selected to be members of a particular cohousing group?
For the most part, groups require attendance at an orientation, several regular meetings, and perhaps some involvement with a committee before a household can apply for membership. Some groups have associate memberships that require little in the way of a financial contribution, but do give potential full members the chance to participate fully in the planning process, and to get to know others in the group. A full membership usually requires an equity investment, part or all of which is eventually credited toward the final price of your house. This investment can range from a few thousand dollars up to 15% of the final cost of your home.
Occasionally, a group will "hold" spaces in their community for a limited time period while they market to a particular segment of the population (such as parents with young children). This is done very infrequently, and most cohousing professionals advise against it, opting instead for pure self-selection on a first-come, first-serve basis. The disadvantage of joining a group early is that your cohome may take a long time, not to mention energy and money, to materialize. The advantages are that the earlier you come into the group, the more opportunity you have to be a part of the design and planning. And you get an earlier place in the order in which units will be selected. Also, in many groups there is a financial incentive for joining the group early in the way of a discount applied to your final house price. Back to top.How is home ownership legally structured in cohousing communities?
Although one or two cohousing communities in the U.S. are organized as limited equity cooperatives, most are structured as condominiums or planned unit developments. In what is called the "lot development model," members jointly own the common property and facilities, and are the sole owners of the lot on which they build their own single family house. Sometimes they own just the land directly under their homes (the footprint), or that plus a small back or front "private" yard. In "retrofit" cohousing, existing buildings are used or renovated so that certain spaces can be used by the whole community for its common activities. The ownership structure varies considerably in retrofit cohousing. Back to top.What if I want to or have to move out of the community and sell my unit?
Except in a cooperative, any household leaving the community can legally sell their property to anyone they choose, but some communities maintain a "right of first refusal" which means that the seller must offer his or her unit for purchase by the community or to an individual or individuals within the community before putting it on the open market. In other communities, residents sign a voluntary agreement that they will not lease or sell their unit to a person or persons who do not wish to participate fully in the community. Some communities maintain a waiting list of persons interested in being informed if a unit becomes available and it is to the benefit of the seller and to the rest of the community if everyone lends a hand in finding new owners. When it comes to resales, experience has shown that homes in cohousing have held their value or have appreciated faster than the market as a whole. Back to top.I can't afford to (or don't want to) buy into cohousing. Are rental units available?
We are considering making a few of the units at Troy Gardens Cohousing available for rent, but no decision has been made at this time. Back to top.
Troy Cohousing site, looking southeast