Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Non-standardized houses?

[Raines Cohen (rc3-coho-L]

On Tue, Aug 26, 2008 at 2:52 PM, Cindy T <cindy_t25 [at] hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> [The Lot Development] model also allows disabled people with special needs
> to live in the the community. I have to have a house that is 100% free of
> formaldehyde, and certain other chemicals.  I built such a house  for no
> more than it would have cost to buy a house built with regular toxic
> materials.   I would like to live in a community as I grow older, so I'm
> looking for a place to build another house.


Building your own house with that level of review is one way to do that.

Another way is to build a group that has a core mission of meeting the needs
of members, and investing time in educating your future neighbors about the
health and economic benefits (i.e. resale value preservation through market
expansion, serving a growing population of people who share the same/similar
needs, with limited suply) (and the lack of added costs you experienced),
and getting them to share the work of doing the review. And you get the
added benefit of a "standard" model that also meets other members' core
needs, including things you might not have requested or thought
of/prioritized yourself.

Then you get the same features in the home, but with the economies of scale
and purchasing power of many-at-once development.

Raines Cohen, Cohousing Coach
http://www.CohousingCoach.com/

Northern California Cohousing Regional Organizer
Noting that only a few seats remain for the Cohousing Partners "Getting It
Built" workshop in Redwood City (CA) Sep 6-7. Sign up today, and bring a
household member at half price. Details at the East Bay Cohousing MeetUp:
http://www.ebcoho.org/