Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Creative financing of individual portions of the common house?

[David Heimann (heimann]

Hello Maggi,

	We're similar to Mabel's arrangement in that the cost of a unit is 
full and complete in itself, with no separate charge for a share of the 
common house.  However, it appears that the cost you're looking to help 
finance is around 10% of the total private-and-common cost, and we have 
set up an affordability fund that, for three of our 30 units, has paid 10% 
of the unit cost in exchange for a 10% ownership stake.  The households 
can buy out the affordability fund at any time, and do so automatically if 
they sell their unit.  We also have an ongoing condo fee surcharge 
specified in the Bylaws so that the fund can eventually pay off its 
original investors (not very quickly, though, you need some very patient 
investors!).

Regards,
David Heimann
Jamaica Plain Cohousing



Date: Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:12:09 -0400
From: Maggi <maggi [at] intranet.org>
Subject: [C-L]_ Creative financing of individual portions of the
        common  house?
To: Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Message-ID: <DB353748-4458-4261-8BFB-1C8A3C9960C4 [at] intranet.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed

We are starting to plan our common house for the third time.  =P  As
part of this process, we have a subcommittee looking at creative ways
to help our members finance their individual portions of the common
house, both a) the down payment (very roughly $3k each household) and
b) the monthly payment toward a total portion (very roughly $18k each
household).  This does not include monthly payment of taxes,
insurance and utilities.

Of course, there are the usual home equity loans and gifts from Uncle
Joe, but we know we have at least a few members who will not be able
to manage either (a) or (b).  We are wondering how other communities
have helped their own members with this kind of additional cost.

Thanks!

-Maggi Idzikowski
Touchstone Cohousing
Ann Arbor, Michigan