Re: policies for renting units
From: Ann Zabaldo (zabaldoearthlink.net)
Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2016 07:02:53 -0700 (PDT)
Again … to make sure the record is correct … I used “many” to describe the 
number of wonderful renters.  I wish they had stayed!  

I think the important thing to realize in this exchange between moi and Sharon 
is that views of living here at TVC are different depending on who is writing.  
 I’m sure that’s true for all the communities represented here.  Just because 
one writer says something doesn’t make it so.

Renters here DO use the facilities.  I see them in the exercise room, watching 
TV in the LR and using the CH kitchen.  They come to events. 

My last post on this.    Off to clean the birdbath!

Best --

Ann Zabaldo
Takoma Village Cohousing
Washington, DC
Principal, Cohousing Collaborative, LLC
Falls Church, VA
202.546.4654

My password is the last 5 digits of Pi …


> On Sep 12, 2016, at 9:35 AM, Sharon Villines <sharon [at] sharonvillines.com> 
> wrote:
> 
> 
> I do have to put a caveat on my neighbor Ann’s take on this. Given the fears 
> out there of renters, I’m afraid the “many” will be heard as a huge number. 
> Roommates usually do not participate in the community nor do they use the 
> facilities. They are pretty much invisible, partly because they work non-stop 
> and are unseen. 
> 
> Of the leasing households, who are here for a year or more, only two I can 
> think of who didn’t participate as much as we would have liked. Only one 
> renter has exercised or tried to exercise her right not to leave when her 
> lease ran out. She had many agendas and getting attention was one of them.
> 
> Trouble with people refusing to move out usually happens when rents are very 
> low, lower than anywhere else, so they can’t move easily. That was not the 
> case with our renter and probably wouldn’t be in other cohousing communities. 
> They are too expensive.
> 
> Sharon.
> 
> 
>> On Sep 12, 2016, at 9:06 AM, Ann Zabaldo <zabaldo [at] earthlink.net> wrote:
>> 
>> Hi All —
>> 
>> Just one addition to my neighbor Sharon’s post:  we’ve had our share of 
>> dubious renters here a la cohousing.  A number of them have lived here and 
>> contributed nada to the work of keeping up the community altho’ they enjoyed 
>> all the privileges.  Ditto for “housemates.”
>> 
>> AND … we’ve certainly had many renters who have contributed more than some 
>> of our homeowners.
>> 
>> Part of the complexity of having renters here in DC is that the renter has 
>> the right of first refusal for buying a home.  So when a homeowner rents 
>> their home he/she may also be identifying a future homeowner should the 
>> homeowner then decide to sell.
>> 
>> Best --
>> 
>> Ann Zabaldo
>> Takoma Village Cohousing
>> Washington, DC
>> Principal, Cohousing Collaborative, LLC
>> Falls Church, VA
>> 202.546.4654
>> 
>> My password is the last 5 digits of Pi …
>> 
>> 
>>> On Sep 9, 2016, at 12:22 PM, Sharon Villines <sharon [at] 
>>> sharonvillines.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> On Sep 8, 2016, at 5:09 PM, Kathy Tymoczko <kathy.tymoczko [at] gmail.com> 
>>>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> We're wondering what kinds of policies other communities have and how you
>>>> handle the above situations.
>>> 
>>> It’s important to have time limits on rentals. We have had wonderful 
>>> renters so the issue is opposite of negative experience with renters.
>>> 
>>> You have wonderful renters who want to buy a unit and could afford it, but 
>>> the owner is making more money by renting than by selling. An owner in our 
>>> neighborhood can make $1,000 a month by renting. Rents have skyrocketed.
>>> 
>>> The problem is that it is a precarious position for renters and neighbors. 
>>> I happen to live in a row of 4 units with unusual mobility. Two have been 
>>> stable. In 16 years, one has been sold or rented 4 times. Another has been 
>>> rented for 3 years twice. For the first three years 3 different families 
>>> lived there. One did not speak English or participate in the community. For 
>>> the second of those 3 year periods, one family has occupied the unit and 
>>> has wanted to buy it. In  my opinion the owner has held on to the unit for 
>>> the income. The owner has no intention of returning. 
>>> 
>>> This creates an awkward position for neighbors. We want them to stay but 
>>> have no control over the situation. The owner could return at any time and 
>>> boost them out. Push turns to shove. What will resolve the situation is 
>>> that the owner will run up against the 3 year limit. It could be extended 
>>> for good cause but there isn’t one in this case.
>>> 
>>> We did have extensions during the housing crisis and no one could sell. It 
>>> made sense to extend leases.
>>> 
>>> But to have renters whose situation is precarious, is not comfortable. This 
>>> owner who is now working in Asia also had 6-7 roommates in the second 
>>> bedroom. I feel as if I live next to an AirBnB. That isn’t what I expected 
>>> when I moved into cohousing. It’s a unique case but unique cases can become 
>>> the norm.
>>> 
>>> Sharon
>>> ----
>>> Sharon Villines, Historic Takoma Park
>>> In Washington DC, Where all roads lead to Casablanca
>>> 
>>> _________________________________________________________________
>>> Cohousing-L mailing list -- Unsubscribe, archives and other info at:
>>> http://www.cohousing.org/cohousing-L/
>>> 
>>> 
>> 
>> _________________________________________________________________
>> Cohousing-L mailing list -- Unsubscribe, archives and other info at:
>> http://www.cohousing.org/cohousing-L/
>> 
>> 
> 
> _________________________________________________________________
> Cohousing-L mailing list -- Unsubscribe, archives and other info at:
> http://www.cohousing.org/cohousing-L/
> 
> 


Results generated by Tiger Technologies Web hosting using MHonArc.