Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Cohousing and car sharing

[Bitner/Stevenson (lilbert]

> For instance, I have not heard of cohousing groups sharing
> income or doing income support when a member loses their job. In the condo
> model that most groups adopt, each individual is responsible for their own
> mortgage and if you can't cut it economically, well, see you later.


This is a little harsh, don't you think? As a member of a community that
does help when people are having hard economic times, I don't want to be
characterized as this callous. When someone has money problems, we have a
system in place to postpone payment of HOA dues, which is usually enough to
help out over the rough spots. And members have helped each other privately
several times. Not to mention the units being subsidized for low and
moderate income owners.

As far as car sharing, no, we don't have any formal program in place, but
there is nothing that says "cohousing" more than being able to walk the
parking lot looking for a car to borrow, and usually being able to. This is
the only way many of us have been able to get by with one car in
public-transit-poor Sacramento. Why does it have to be a formal system to
count or be valid? I know that other groups share in this way, too. Have you
lived in cohousing so long that you have forgotten the days when you would
be afraid to ask for a hammer, much less your neighbor's car???

--
Liz Stevenson
Southside Park Cohousing
Sacramento, California