Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: right of first refusal

[Lynn Nadeau (welcome]

As market-rate cohousing (legally a mutual-benefit nonprofit with a HOA), 
RoseWind  (Port Townsend WA) is vulnerable to resales that could go to 
people who are not seeking community. We work hard to facilitate interest 
expressed via email, visitors, etc. We do our best to have a "supply" of 
interested parties, should a resale come available. 

AND our experience is that in many cases the people who are leaving are the 
least concerned with getting the "right" buyers. Maybe they are leaving 
because they don't like it here; maybe they like it but have to move because 
of work or family obligations, and need to get the money from house #1 to 
pay for house #2 elsewhere, as soon as possible. 

In our one worst-case scenario we had an elderly member who died and her 
estranged family deliberately rebuffed our efforts to connect them with 
buyers, padlocking the place and then selling it overnight at a dropped rate 
via a realtor. Result- our least-satisfied member ever! 

We don't have the capital, as a group, to buy a home and hold it for the 
right buyer. Can we require an owner to first offer it to us, collectively, 
or individually? I don't think we can legally require that. We can suggest 
it - and in friendly resale situations we definitely announce it to our 
membership before others. 

I've wondered whether we could have present owners -- voluntarily -- sign 
agreements about resale of their property (right of refusal and/or a 
fee/donation to the community upon resale)? Has anyone tried that? Something 
that would bind heirs, for example, if they resold. 

The good news - In quite a few years as a built community with 22 houses, 
once built, only 5 homes have changed hands, plus one that was inherited by 
people who wanted to live in community. Most of the time we have nothing for 
sale.
Lynn Nadeau