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UK: housing cooperatives are incorporated as Housing Associations. Many in the Scandinavian countries as well. I thought the values of the coop movement would t
by keithpeter 14y ago
UK: housing cooperatives are incorporated as Housing Associations. Many in the Scandinavian countries as well. I thought the values of the coop movement would translate to US quite well (independence, responsibility &c) assuming you are in US. Coops are fully mutual, you can't buy only rent, but there are self build schemes for participant purchase as well.
I do envy the rental sector in US. UK has issues with artificially high prices (my opinion) preventing a free market rental sector from emerging.
- Mz 14y agoLast I heard, coop housing has serious barriers in the U.S. I think those barriers are largely rooted in the housing finance infrastrucure born post WWII. The "boys" came home, often had high savings and no kids, "Rosie the Rivetter" was encouraged to quit her job so a man could have it, many women did so quite happily so they could have kids and the fulltime mom thing. Prior to the war, we were deep in The Great Depression and many people moved every thirteen months to take advantage of one free month's rent if you could pay rent in full and on time for twelve months straight. People were doubled up in small homes, etc. Levittowns were born to meet the sudden demand for single family homes. The nation created finance mechanisms to facilitate the birth of these instant suburbs. We are still living with the legacy. It can be extremely difficult to arrange financing for anything other than a single family home.