Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Do Marketing Models Fit the Market? ... was recognizing time versus financial investment in early days

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

> On Jun 15, 2017, at 4:42 PM, Ann Zabaldo <zabaldo [at] earthlink.net> wrote:
> 
> But what I”m seeing in the market here in DC is that people don’t want to 
> “work that hard” to build the community and they don’t want to risk their 
> money.

I would add that people don’t have the money to risk. The people who have even 
a few thousand dollars of unused money lying around to invest in a property 
they won’t be able to live in for some unpredictable period of years, is small. 
It’s a hard model to sell and it limits the range of households that can even 
consider joining a still-hoping cohousing project.

The model that developers use is much, much easier for buyers with limited or 
no money that can be tied up in one condo while they living in another. In 
effect, people have to be able to own two homes at a time.

A developer will insist on limitations that a group may not want to make but 
the limitations reduce risk for everyone. It’s called working with an expert. 
And the best way to ensure diversity and affordability.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org