Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Number of "users" in Senior Cohousing

[Linda Hobbet (coho]

At Village Hearth we are a 55+ community with 28 units (seven 1 bed/1 
bath, seven 2 bed/1 bath, and fourteen 2 bed/2 bath). Couples live in 
ten of the units, the rest are singles. Two of the couples live in the 
smallest units. Two couples live in the 2 bed/1 bath middle-sized units. 
We have one under 55 couple and I believe there are one or two with one 
member of the couple being under 55. No children live here. This is the 
largest number of couples we have ever had.

At least 80% of the units need at least 1 occupant aged 55 or older. 
They don't have to be the head of the household. The law was written 
that way so if the older person died or moved to a nursing home or 
something, a remaining person who was under 55 would not be forced to 
move out. You should not be marketing with the idea of filling all 20% 
with younger occupants. You are also required to state that it is a 55+ 
community in all advertising.

You might also look at non-cohousing 55+ communities in your area and 
ask what their demographics are. They are probably much larger but the 
demographics might be similar.

Best wishes,
Linda Hobbet

On 11/30/2025 9:45 PM, Joel Bartlett via Cohousing-L wrote:
> Dear Friends,
>
> For a variety of reasons, we need an approximation of the number of users
> we expect.  We are planning a 55+ community, which means we can have up to
> 20% heads of households under 55.  We are looking at 29 homes, mostly
> 2-bedrooms, but with 6 3-bedrooms and 6 that have the option of a third
> bedroom.  That's 64 to 70 bedrooms, but how many people?
>
>   We have to balance couples vs singles, an occasional shared house,
> and throw in the max 20% younger families with two kids.  What are your
> demographics?
>
> Thanks for helping us figure this out!  With a current reservation pool of
> about 1/3 of our homes, we really don't know who we are yet!
>
> Yours, Joel Bartlett
> Project Manager for the Members
> 610-220-6172
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VillageHearthCohousing.com
706-202-7178
coho [at] lindahobbet.com

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