Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Rental Policy

[Sharon Miller (slmiller.325]

We have a rental that just came on the market (longtime absentee landlord). We 
have agreed upon these steps to find appropriate new renters:
1. After inquiry is made, a community member talks w them about Sharingwood and 
answers questions. 
2. They get a tour of Sharingwood (and more info about expectations)
3. If still interested, they get a tour of the house. 
4. Completes rental application 
5. Potential renters then meet w three Sharingwood members - get to know them 
and learn further about community. 
6. Attend a potluck or work party, if available. 
7. By this point at least 5 Sharingwood members will have met and interacted w 
potential renter. Feedback sent to owner. 

From what I’ve read on the legal aspect of this, it’s important that the 
community offer the owner advice and feedback - not approving or disapproving 
of the potential renter. 

It’s a lengthy process and we’re trying it out for the first time right now. 
Hopefully we’ll get renters who really want to be a part of the community. 

Sharon Miller
Sharingwood (Snohomish, WA)

Sent from my iPhone

> On Apr 20, 2023, at 5:43 PM, Sharon Villines via Cohousing-L <cohousing-l 
> [at] cohousing.org> wrote:
> 
> 
>> 
>> On Apr 20, 2023, at 8:20 PM, Joel Bartlett <altairecovillage [at] gmail.com> 
>> wrote:
>> 
>> We at Altair are trying to finalize our rental policy.  Still a
>> forming community, but we need to be clear to folks who are thinking of
>> investing, but not living there themselves and wanting to rent out their
>> home.
> 
> Is there any way to have a rent-to-own plan? The problem is that you would 
> have an owner who has never lived there who will have equal say with owners 
> who are part of the community.
> 
> it’s a bit like Zuckerberg having to produce income for his investors whether 
> he likes it or not. They just want more money. To hell with the utopian ethos 
> of the Internet that existed when Facebook started. He has pressure from 
> people who probably care nothing about Facebook.
> 
> Right now it is all idealism and thankfulness to have buyers for units, but 
> that is unlikely to last when prices start rising, or falling.
> 
> If an investor is financing a unit that another person would own at a certain 
> point, it makes the ego interest less cloudy. With a good rent-to-own 
> contract, the worst that can happen is that the investor gets the unit back 
> if the renter defaults.
> 
> It gets weird when you don’t know who you are dealing with. If you are using 
> consensus that person out there is in control of your decisions. You won’t be 
> able to do anything that they object to.
> 
> Sharon
> ----
> Sharon Villines
> Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
> http://www.takomavillage.org
> 
> 
> 
> 
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