Cohousing-L Mailing List: monthly dues and affordable housing

[karen jacobsen (karenldrn]

We are a 13 unit community almost ready for move-in. Two of our units are
"affordable". There are complicated income formulas for these households;
they need to meet criteria for both the city and the lender. There are also
60 year equity limits on their homes. The details go on and on. We are
hoping to hear from other cohousing communities which also have designated
affordable homes. We chose to have the two "affordable" homes priced as high
as possible (given all the constraints); this was done in lieu of HOAs. 

Different from what is comprised in the usual non-cohousing HOA dues, what
does your community do with "softer" expenses like workshops/ trainings,
child care, garden expenses, marketing, special assessments for community
improvements, community events or parties, etc? Are they voluntary or
required for all? Are they required for "market rate" houses but voluntary
for "affordable" units?

I assume these situations will be seen more and more, as municipalities
require an affordability component for urban cohousing projects. Other
interesting comments would be how you have handled class issues that emerge
in such inherently two-tiered communities.