Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,

[Mary Kay Doyle (marykaydoyle]

Here at Elderberry Cohousing in Rougemont, NC, we are so very fortunate to
have had founders that took this into consideration. Out POA assessment has
always included three components: Operating, Maintenance Reserve, and
Capital Reserve. Operating is used to pay our bills, Maintenance Reserve is
for maintenance repairs that are unpredictable in terms of timing or amount,
but are never annual (primarily infrastructure repairs, tree management,
etc.), and Capital Reserve to replace the capital equipment in our common
house. We have never had a formal reserve study done, but we know we should
and are planning to do so soon. Our capital replacement numbers are very
adequate though.

Right now our POA assessment is composed of the following components:
Operating - 49.7%
Maintenance Reserve - 29.6%
Capital Reserve - 20.7%

Equally important, we have a legacy agreement that all members agree to that
states 75% of the appreciation (resale value minus cost) comes back to the
community for community improvement projects. These funds go into a special
savings account called Development and they cannot be used for operational
expenses. Use of these funds require community consensus. We recently used
Development funds to install handicap doors on our common house. We will
also use these funds to make our pedway and paths more wheelchair-friendly
in the future.

Some of both the Capital Reserve and Development accumulated funds are
invested in short-term CDs for interest income. I am proud to say we have
never had to use special assessments.

It seems to me that these solutions would be very difficult to implement
going forward in an existing community.

Mary Kay Doyle, Treasurer
Elderberry Village POA
elderberryvillagepoa [at] gmail.com

------ Original Message ------
Received: Mon, 12 Oct 2026 06:17:14 AM EDT
From: cohousing-l-request [at] cohousing.org
To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
Subject: Cohousing-L Digest, Vol 273, Issue 14

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Today's Topics:

   1. Tour Colorado Communities! No Summit Registration Required
      (Trish Becker)
   2. Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
      accessibility, and financial strains (Fred-List manager)
   3. Re: Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
      accessibility, and financial strains (Katie Henry)
   4. Re: Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
      accessibility, and financial strains (Katie Henry)


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Message: 1
Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2026 21:59:28 +0000
From: Trish Becker <trish [at] cohousingalliance.org>
To: "cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org" <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: [C-L]_ Tour Colorado Communities! No Summit Registration
        Required
Message-ID:

<PH7PR19MB71478DBC5F9F3CCD509290B7AB922 [at] 
PH7PR19MB7147.namprd19.prod.outlook.
com>
        
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252"

Want to see cohousing and community-rooted housing in action? Join us for
one of our upcoming community tours in the Denver area, October 21?23!

You don't have to attend the Community-Rooted Housing Summit to join a tour!
Each tour can be purchased separately, making this a great opportunity for
anyone curious about cohousing, cooperative housing, or creative approaches
to living together.

Meet residents, explore shared spaces, ask questions, and experience
firsthand how communities are putting their values into practice.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22: Denver Cohousing Bus Tour

Explore some of the Denver area's most established and exciting cohousing
communities, guided by cohousing architect Bryan Bowen of Caddis
Collaborative!

We'll visit Hearthstone Cohousing, Denver's first cohousing community with
more than 25 years of experience; Aria Cohousing, a beautiful example of
adaptive reuse in a former convent; and Harmony Village in Golden, with its
shared amenities, gardens, and one-acre farm. We'll also get a sneak peek at
two emerging communities in Wheat Ridge, Blue Columbine and Cedar Root.

This tour is especially valuable for anyone considering joining or starting
a cohousing community, or simply wanting to learn from communities that have
been doing this for decades. Transportation and lunch included!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 23: Housing Reimagined: A Tour of Shared, Cooperative &
Community-Owned Homes

Cohousing is just one way to live more collectively! This tour explores
creative approaches to shared housing, cooperative ownership, affordability,
and transforming existing buildings into community.

We'll visit The People's Mansion, a 19-bedroom historic mansion transformed
into a permanently affordable housing cooperative; Pando, an intimate
retrofit cohousing community created by nine friends; Tierra Colectiva, a
community land trust creating permanently affordable, resident-controlled
housing; and Queen City Cooperative, a resident-owned limited equity
cooperative founded in 2015.

This tour is a fantastic opportunity to explore what's possible beyond
traditional cohousing, particularly for those interested in affordability,
cooperative ownership, and creating community within existing neighborhoods.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21: Self-Guided Properties on the Market Tour

Thinking about starting a community of your own? Explore a curated selection
of properties in South Metro Denver that could be suitable for
community-rooted housing projects.

Visit at your own pace, imagine the possibilities, and connect with real
estate professionals at select stops. This is a self-guided experience, with
no group transportation provided.

All three tours are open to everyone, whether or not you're attending the
Summit!

These are rare opportunities to get an inside look at communities, hear
directly from residents, and bring home ideas and inspiration for your own
community journey.

Learn more and register:
https://cohousingalliance.org/summits/denver2026/community-tours/

We hope you'll join us!




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Message: 2
Date: Sun, 11 Oct 2026 07:12:58 -0500 (CDT)
From: Fred-List manager <fholson [at] cohousing.org>
To: Cohousing-L mailing list <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: [C-L]_ Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
        accessibility, and financial strains
Message-ID: <65b3e289-0cae-be01-6f66-a5b46f8d38c3 [at] cohousing.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

The author of the message below prefered not to be named.
It was posted by Fred of the Cohousing-L management team
<cohousing-l-owner [at] cohousing.org>

--------------------  FORWARDED MESSAGE FOLLOWS --------------------

Seeking advice from other cohousing communities facing the consequences of
inadequate long-term financial planning, particularly as members age.

Like many communities, ours kept dues low during its early years and never
commissioned a professional reserve study. Now, decades later, major
infrastructure and appliances are deteriorating or failing, while reserves
are inadequate to cover replacement costs.

Many members, facing retirement, healthcare, or family expenses, feel unable
to afford substantial dues increases or special assessments.

Recently, a member's formal request for disability accommodation brought a
long-deferred infrastructure problem to a head. After considerable debate,
the community agreed to undertake a major replacement project, recognizing
that the infrastructure had deteriorated well beyond what was previously
understood. The expense has intensified long standing financial anxieties.

The resulting tensions have also raised difficult questions about aging and
disability in cohousing. One member has been publicly urged to move to
assisted living because of perceived demands on community resources, and
suggestions have been made that future residents with disabilities should
not be admitted.

We would particularly welcome hearing how other communities have addressed:
? Financial sustainability: How have you caught up with decades of
underfunded reserves without imposing unbearable burdens on members with
limited means?
? Aging and accessibility: How have you balanced increasing accommodation
needs with limited community resources and commitments to inclusion?
? Community cohesion: How have you restored trust and cooperation when
financial pressures and disagreements about individual versus collective
responsibilities have created serious divisions?

Have communities successfully navigated comparable crises? Have others found
themselves unable to recover?

Practical experiences, including unsuccessful approaches and lessons
learned, would be especially valuable.


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Message: 3
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2026 03:35:27 +0000 (UTC)
From: Katie Henry <katie-henry [at] att.net>
To: Cohousing-L Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
        accessibility, and financial strains
Message-ID: <880884665.1551928.1791776127218 [at] mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

These are difficult and important questions. I'm very sorry you're in this
situation.

We are a two-year-old 55+ community. We were under construction in 2021 when
the Surfside condominium collapse took place. There were many news stories
at the time about under-funded, poorly maintained condo communities with
aging residents and deteriorating infrastructure. It's a nationwide problem.
You are not alone.

Because this tragedy was fresh in our minds, we scheduled a reserve study
shortly after move-in and have been aggressively funding our replacement
reserves, even though our HOA dues are uncomfortably high.

OP, I realize this is not helpful to you, but I encourage other communities
to stop procrastinating and get that reserve study. It's not fair that early
members get a free ride and later members have to bear the cost of deferred
maintenance and special accommodations.


The Community Associations Institute?might have useful information.?They
have a page dedicated to Aging Infrastructure in Community Associations?with
some case studies.

I'll bet there are people with opinions and experiences they'd rather not
post here. Fred, can you forward private messages to the OP?

Katie Henry
Heartwood Commons - Tulsa (Oklahoma)
https://www.heartwoodcommonstulsa.com/


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Message: 4
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2026 04:07:05 +0000 (UTC)
From: Katie Henry <katie-henry [at] att.net>
To: Cohousing-L Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: Re: [C-L]_ Aging cohousing communities: deferred maintenance,
        accessibility, and financial strains
Message-ID: <1597840125.1556272.1791778025270 [at] mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

 Oops, my CAI links didn't go through. Here's the link to the Aging
Infrastructure page.

https://foundation.caionline.org/publications/aging-infrastructure/



Katie Henry <katie-henry [at] att.net> wrote: 

The Community Associations Institute?might have useful information.?They
have a page dedicated to Aging Infrastructure in Community Associations?with
some case studies.  

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