Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: The "lot" development model

[Rob Sandelin (robsan]

Pablo Halpern    Wrote about the lot development model:
>However,  it doesn't work in many parts of the country owing to high 
land costs. In  >those places, cost-shifting is required in order to 
prevent pricing out
>moderate-income people.


Wow! 100,000 for a lot is lots more than land costs here, except maybe 
for lakefront, but then again we are in the country. I guess in Seattle 
lots may be that expensive or more, I don't really know.  Our current 
price for lots is $35,000.  I agree that is a huge difference.  There 
is a philosophical and values issue about cost shifting which makes 
sense if your goal is to prevent pricing out moderate-income people.  
Your examples indicated that some kind of financial equality is 
important to your group.

Our philosophy has pretty much been market driven.  If you can afford 
to buy a lot and build a house then you can do so. You can build as 
much or as little house as you want and can afford.  If you can't 
afford it, then you can hang out with us, maybe be a renter.  One of 
the difficulties that has emerged over the years is that people come, 
put a down payment on a lot, then realize they don't really have enough 
money or lendability to really build a house.  They then pay 
assessments on the lot for awhile, then drop out, selling the lot back, 
or to the next person in the waiting list.  Sometimes these folks have 
held on to lots for months and in one case, two years, before finally 
figuring it out, and the difficult part is that while they hold the 
lot, others who could afford it, are told there are no lots for sale, 
and they move on.  Sigh.......

Rob Sandelin
Sharngwood