Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: A strategy for affordability - TOUR

[Megan McDonough (mcdonough.megan]

Hello -

I'm a community land trust member who is new to this list.  The land trust I
work with and several other local non-profits have gotten together to
organize a tour of different housing models that are trying to tackle these
tough questions of how to build sustainably, affordably and with a community
focus.  We'll be visiting cohousing, cooperatively owned homes, small green
homes, homes on CLT land, etc.

If you live in/near Western Massachusetts I recommend you join the tour!

>>>EMAIL INVITATION – PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY <<<

*=========================================*

*TOGETHER ON THE LAND*

*Options for Ecological Living in Community*



MULTI-SITE GROUP TOUR

9am-5pm Saturday June 12th, 2010

Franklin County, MA

*Pre-Registration Required <http://www.vclt.org/together2010>*

$20 per ticket, discounts & scholarships available



FIND OUT MORE & REGISTER ONLINE AT VCLT.ORG

No internet access? Call Megan at 413-624-5128 to register.

============================================



Join us for a tour of ecological living options in Franklin County.  We'll
visit homes and farms that have tested different models for community
living, such as community land trusts, coops, cohousing, and more.  Meet
other people interested in community building and see new places!



Throughout the Pioneer Valley there are numerous models for how to create
communities that balance affordability, ecology and community connections.  No
one model has all the answers – but they all offer tremendous insights and
for some, may be the answer you are looking for today.



This tour focuses on concrete examples of sustainable community living right
here in Franklin County.  Tour stops will include:

   - Cooperatively owned homes (Pioneer Coop of Franklin County –
   Greenfield);
   - Homes on community land trust land (Valley Community Land Trust –
   Wendell);
   - A small cohousing development (Salmon Falls Land Association –
   Shelburne Falls);
   - A conserved working farm (Seeds of Solidarity Farm – Orange); and
   - “In-town” green housing (Zero Energy private residence – Montague)



The goal of this tour is to connect people with organizations and
individuals working towards sustainable community living, offer real-world
examples of community models, and describe how these models work.  We hope
you can come!



*Co-sponsored by: *

Cooperative Development Institute, Coop Power, Equity Trust, Franklin Land
Trust,

Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust & Valley Community Land Trust



*=========================================*

Direct Tour Registration Link (PayPal):
http://www.vclt.org/civicrm/event/register?id=7&reset=1

Tour Registration Link (Pay by Check):
http://www.vclt.org/civicrm/event/register?id=8&reset=1<http://www.vclt.org/civicrm/event/register?id=6&reset=1>


On Mon, May 17, 2010 at 6:16 AM, <cohousing-l-request [at] cohousing.org> wrote:

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> Today's Topics:
>
>   1. Re: A strategy for affordability (Marganne Meyer)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Mon, 17 May 2010 01:54:26 -0700
> From: Marganne Meyer <marganne [at] macnexus.org>
> Subject: Re: [C-L]_ A strategy for affordability
> To: Cohousing-L <cohousing-l [at] cohousing.org>
> Message-ID: <a06240802c816abb7aac7@[192.168.1.2]>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed"
>
> Thank you for the great info on CLTs. A subset of this mailing list
> and the main mailing list for the Small House Society came together a
> few years back and created the Low Cost Community Housing email list.
> You can subscribe to the Google group here:
> http://groups.google.com/group/low-cost-community-housing
>
> Along with the 'living simple' notion comes considering exactly how
> much house you really need. In general, small houses are considered
> to be less than 1,000 square feet. Some of the very small size are
> built on wheels meant to tow behind a car or truck.
>
> I'm particularly interested in this concept because it might bring
> home ownership into my price range. I might even be able to build a
> small, extremely efficient, sustainable house without going in debt.
> Most of the people I've met on this list consider their home as a
> place to stay and become part of the community -- NOT as an
> investment. Also, it could be difficult to get a mortgage on a home
> that some see as having no resale value.
>
> This isn't something that appeals to a portion of homebuyers or
> cohousing list participants. We've discussed this many times here. I
> always learn something new during these discussions. One thing I
> learned is that many cohousing members consider maintaining and
> increasing the value of their homes as very important. They see
> construction of smaller homes nearby as less than desirable and a
> possible problem because the smaller home might decrease the value of
> their homes. That plus they like having more space to live in. Also
> smaller homes are seen as rentals rather than 'real' homes which
> seems to be a negative factor.
>
> Less square footage means it costs less. Less space to clean, lower
> taxes. I'd have more flexibility with how to spend my time and income
> because it wouldn't all be sunk into my home.
>
> Many of the LCCH list subscribers come from various points of view,
> but all agree about the advantage of living a simpler, smaller life.
> Cohousing might be a good marriage with small homes. Many things that
> take up space in a 'normal' home would be located in a common house.
>
> The cohousing board mentioned developing a model for lower-cost
> cohousing. I don't know how/if that plan is proceeding.
>
> Oh...btw.. one of the biggest obstacles to developing small homes,
> especially in a community, is the lack of conducive zoning and
> building codes. Some counties restrict the minimum size to 1,200+
> square feet, one home to a parcel. We discussed purchasing an
> existing trailer park where zoning might not be a problem.
> Unfortunately even small trailer parks have a very high price tag.
>
> Cheers!
> Marganne
>
> At 5:06 PM -0700 5/16/10, David L. Mandel wrote:
> >Using a CLT or any other limited equity (e.g. LE coop) model
> >requires disconnecting from the notion that housing, in addition to
> >providing a home, should also be treated as an investment necessary
> >for one's financial future or that of one's heirs. ... One of the
> >ways our ruling elite keeps us from rebelling is
> >  by perpetuating the myth that anyone with the right combination of
> >luck and smarts can get rich. Sure, a few can, but the system is
> >built on exploitation of most of us and impoverishment of far too
> >many.
> >David Mandel
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
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> End of Cohousing-L Digest, Vol 76, Issue 24
> *******************************************
>



-- 
~Together on the Land Tour~
Saturday, June 12th 9am-5pm
Guided tour of coops, cohousing, green homes and land trusts to learn about
ecological community living options.
Registration required www.vclt.org