Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Limits on rentals with or without absentee landlords

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

> On Jul 2, 2023, at 12:37 PM, Sharon Miller <slmiller.325 [at] gmail.com> 
> wrote:
> 
> Technically there isn't. But in reality, people who are buying homes are
> much more concerned about the location of the house and getting along with
> neighbors. Renters have less skin in the game!

This really hasn’t been our experience. If anything renters are as involved as 
our most involved members. The renters are well-oriented so they know what they 
are getting into and are eager to be involved. It may take a few months for 
them to get their sea legs because they are unsure about where to jump in but 
then there isn’t any measurable difference. 

I personally am more hesitant with renters because I like the idea that people 
will be around forever. That when you move into cohousing it is to stay. I 
don’t want to become attached to people who are leaving. But that’s my 
personality, not theirs.

It is important to look carefully at what the real estate industry says — who 
benefits from believing that renters are not responsible and are to be feared? 
Recent looks at the whole single-family bias, for example, are looking squarely 
at the real estate salespeople who only make money off selling single-family 
houses. Except in places like New York City where rental agents charge large 
fees to the people renting, the money is in sales, and sales of large 
properties.

To rent in an apartment building, you just go to the rental office or look at 
the ads. When building a large building, the return on the investment is the 
fastest with sales. Turn the property over and move on to the next sale.

Sharon
----
Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org