Tag: Finance


Bridport Cohousing – Our journey towards getting the common facilities for our project built and paid for

With no available grant funding for non-residential buildings like the Common House and guest bedrooms, members have had to come up with a creative solution to this problem. We in the Cohousing Network all know just how important a Common House is for social cohesion, yet the vast majority of planners, designers and funders fail... Read More

Unique Meal Program Approach called “Brilliant”!

There are many right answers to how to design a cohousing meal program and some will depend on the size of the community as well as the demographics. We are a 9 household community with 17 adults and 11 children. We have 2 vegans, about 5 vegetarians and the rest are omnivores with some strong... Read More

Cohousing Costs After You Move In: Part II Findings of the Study

Part I of this series described how Coho/US and CRN have co-ventured research into the annual budgets of cohousing communities; obtained the annual budgets of 20 communities comprising 611 units; and analyzed these budget materials to help develop some consistent interpretations of community budgeting practices. In this Part II, we present some of the actual... Read More

Cohousing Costs After You Move In: Part I, Intro to Our Investigation

“Cost of living” refers to all the expenses sustained by a household in the ordinary course of life. It includes, not just the cost of housing, but also the cost of food and clothing, furniture, transportation, medical and child care, and so on. Traditionally, “cost of housing” has referred to the specific shelter expenses of... Read More

The True Costs of Senior Housing

“We at Silver Sage strive to age-in-place. Given the caring support of our community, we can do so a lot longer than in many other aging care models,” says Art Okner. “Getting older is a long, fulfilling journey for most—you have a caring family, a good job, activities that you enjoy, and friends to share... Read More

Community as Economic Engine

Laird Schaub and Terry O’Keefe and will be presenting “Community as Economic Engine” at the 2017 National Cohousing Conference in Nashville TN, May 19-21 . Please join us! Laird offered a version to a packed audience at the 2015 Cohousing Conference in Durham. Intentional communities sort broadly into two kinds: those where members share income... Read More

Cost of Living in Cohousing – Data Solicitation

Cohousing Friends — Coho Cost of Living Data Solicitation. Back in November, we announced that the Cohousing Research Network (CRN) and CohoUS are collaborating on a “cost of living in cohousing” research project. Since then, we’ve received useful and interesting responses from more than a dozen communities. Who knew, for instance, that annual per-unit dues... Read More

Reserve Studies and Why Every Project Needs One!

Editor’s Note: Learn more from a webinar on reserve studies we are planning with National Condo Advisors for January 2017; and at the 2017 National Cohousing Conference, where Darlene, and cohousers Sharon Villines and Lyons Witten will be presenting about reserve studies. Also at the conference, National Condo Advisors will be exhibiting as part of... Read More

Growing Demand for Cohousing Leads Fannie Mae to Update FAQ’s

Media Contact: Alice Alexander, Coho/US Executive Director alicecohous@gmail.com 919-824-4799 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Press Release GROWING DEMAND FOR COHOUSING LEADS FANNIE MAE TO UPDATE FAQ’SGuideline for underwriting purposes establish this increasingly available housing type as no different than condominiums or cooperatives. DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA, October 6, 2016 – Fannie Mae, the entit

Fannie Mae Supports Loans for Cohousing Homes

Success! In response to seeking Fannie Mae support of cohousing, Fannie Mae has included specific language in its online FAQ’s to clarify that they will do loans on cohousing homes. While it is a relatively small step in the larger scheme of things, it is a big step for cohousing to be formally recognized by... Read More