Cohousing-L Mailing List: RE: Sweat Equity

[Sue Pniewski (SPniewski]

sorry for the shameless plug for our organization- but- I am working on
bringing Habitat for Humanity together with cohousing right here in
Jacksonville.  We are in the early planning stages, seems there are quite a
few interested parties out there, but real estate is somewhat hard to come
by in growing Jacksonville, so it will be a challenge.  As an aside,
Jacksonville's Habijax is the nation's largest Habitat for Humanity, we have
completed over 1100 homes to date, and are building abour 200 per year right
now.  We accept volunteers from all over, and we have free housing for some
of them as well. I too believe it helps to build community when you put you
heart and hands together in building, not just your own home, but that of
your neighbors as well.  It creates memories for a lifetime, and a bond that
cannot be duplicated.  We are still in the forming stages, lucky perhaps to
have among us an attorney, and a real estate broker, a computer guru, and
possibly an engineer/contractor who is providing invaluable info on building
a subdivision.  If anybody is interested, either in Habijax or for our
cohousing group, please contact me directly.


-------------------------------------
Susan Pniewski, Esq.
General Counsel
Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville
904.798.2712  x202
spniewski [at] habijax.com



-----Original Message-----
From: Elizabeth Cobb [mailto:lizacobb [at] earthlink.net]
Sent: Saturday, July 05, 2003 2:33 PM
To: cohousing-l
Subject: [C-L]_Sweat Equity



I am a recent fan of cohousing -- as soon as I discovered its concept, etc.
less than a year ago.  Co-housing seemed an answer to my growing concerns
about sustainability, putting one's money where one's mouth is vis-a-vis
activism, and community.  I joined the co-housing network, subscribed to
this list serv, and have been trying to do as much reading as possible on
the subject.

But as I read people's messages, I began to be afraid that co-housing was
less successful at addressing the big gap between the haves and havenots --
it seemed to me that at worst, co-housing was just a new way for middle
class people to secure their own piece of the pie.  That's when I became
interested in the possibility of finding a group of people who'd be
interested in working for Habitat for Humanity a couple seasons, not only
for the sake of activism, but also to learn how to build our own houses in
community.  This would make mortgages something less than a lifetime
commitment (or jail term), and it would also make for housing affordable to
people "less fortunate" than the middle class.  I'll be almost 60 by the
time I will be able to commit to Habitat for Humanity (I hear there are
special groups of housebuilders made up of women!), but I think it is
something I really want to do.  I hope I'll be able to find others who put
special emphasis on sustainability, economic diversity, and activism; who
want to live in the same geographic whereabouts (I'm undecided:  I think
about Canada, upper state NY, northern Arizona, North Carolina, Russia!).

I also see co-housing as a way to develop the ability to visualize a society
that is non-hierarchic.  We are indoctrinated at every level to believe that
a system needs someone on top to make the decisions, to lead the way, to
prevent chaos.  And really, the scale of present-day society is so huge
(huge corporations, huge cities, huge populations) that anything other than
hierarchy seems hopeless and wishful thinking.  But in co-community, people
practice consensus every day.  People practice living out a non-hierarchical
way of life in relatively small groups.  It seems to me that our
co-communities, springing up all over the world, with emphasis on
sustainability, human relations, activism, might well be the precursor to a
badly needed new way of life, our "new story."

What do you think, readers?

Liza Cobb



Message: 3
From: Sue Pniewski <SPniewski [at] Habijax.com>
To: "'cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org'" <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
Subject: RE: [C-L]_Sweat Equity and affordable housing
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 2003 16:44:06 -0400
Reply-To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org

This sounds similar to Habitat for Humanity, which has also worked together
with a couple of cohousing groups.  We require 300 hours of sweat equity in
the homeowner's and other people's houses.  It gives the people a real
feeling of ownership and pride in their homes and allows many people who
would otherwise be unable to afford homeownership
 to realize a piece of the american dream.  For more information please see 

www.habijax.com   or  

http://www.habitat.org

-------------------------------------
Susan Pniewski, Esq.
General Counsel
Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville
904.798.2712  x202





-----Original Message-----
From: Jessica.E.Morey.02 [at] Alum.Dartmouth.ORG
[mailto:Jessica.E.Morey.02 [at] Alum.Dartmouth.ORG]
Sent: Friday, June 27, 2003 4:38 PM
To: cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org
Subject: [C-L]_Sweat Equity and affordable housing



I just read an article in the Anchorage Daily News about a USDA Rural
Housing Service Program called SELF HELP HOUSING, which requires the home
owners to work 30 hours a week on the houses, pouring concrete, hammering
nails... everything cohousers seem to want to do.
The home owners qualify by being low income and having low debt.  There is
one developed community like this in Palmer Alaska and another just breaking
ground in Settler's Bay.
Sounded very much like cohousing- an added benefit described was knowing
your neighbors by the end of the project.
All those folks wondering about affordability should check this out.
Jessica
_________________


-- 
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