Re: Waiting Lists
From: necwest (necwestsirius.com)
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1998 00:40:10 -0500
Hi!  I've been lurking on  this list for a while and just had to respond. 
I'm on the waiting list at Old Oakland Cohousing.

Becky Schaller wrote:

>I have another question about waiting lists.  How do other cohousing 
>communities manage waiting lists for people who want to move in, but 
>the units they want are not presently available?

Our waiting list has two tiers:  those who had been full members until the
final unit selection when it became clear that the remaining units were too
large, and those who have never been full members.  Those who were
previously full members are in line ahead of those who have never been full
members.

>1.  Do they pay a one time fee or do they need to continue paying some 
>kind of ongoing monthly or quarterly fee to remain on the waiting list?

They pay a one time fee and purhcase the introductory packet which includes
all the legal documents and minutes of all the meetings.  I was personally
against having to pay a monthly fee because there was no indication of what
I would receive in return.  I also knew that I would got through periods of
ambivalence and despair that might cause me to want to leave if I were
contiually paying even a pittance into something that didn't seem likely to
payoff in the future. 

>2.  Do people sign up to be on the waiting list for a particular unit, 
>a particular type of unit (such as two bedroom) or is there one list 
>for the entire community?

There is a list that is for the whole community, but I believe most of us
have indicated our preferences for which units - that's how we discovered
that the available units wouldn't work for us and we needed to be on the
waiting list.

>3.  When a unit becomes available, how long does the household which is 
>next in line have to decide whether or not they want to purchase the 
>unit?   How long do they have to come up with the money?

We haven't dealt with this yet.

>If you could let us know what the policy is for your community, I 
>would appreciate hearing about it.

Also, waiting list members are encouraged to attend meetings, but can't
block concensus or vote.  As a waiting listmember I have had a lot of input
into the waitin glist policy for our group and I think this has made it
frankly
more bearable for me. 

Carol Patterson,
Old Oakland Cohousing Waiting List 

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