This report about our Housing Co-operatives Tour event on August 24, 2025, was written by an attendee for the Common Equity NSW newsletter.
On a bright Sunday morning in Erskineville, a keen group of locals gathered at Emoh Ruo, an artists’ co-operative on a quiet back street. Michael welcomed us into its leafy, peaceful central courtyard while he explained the co-op’s history to us.
Sitting in their meeting room and garden, Michael explained Emoh Ruo’s guidelines for deciding how to admit new residents, how residents are able to adapt their apartments to accommodate changing family situations, and their policy to cap rents at a quarter of their residents’ incomes.
Sydney Cohousing organised this tour of three local housing co-operatives: Emoh Ruo in Erskineville, STUCCO student housing coop in Newtown, and Ningana in Annandale. We wanted to see what co-op life is like, and learn about how they work. We think it’s vital that people understand there are more ways to live than the homeowner/renter/social-housing-tenant options they’re familiar with.
After a short walk to STUCCO, inside nondescript-seeming brick walls, we were greeted by another plant-filled courtyard, criss-crossed with wood and metal beams, the remains of a former glass factory. A students’ residence attached to the University of Sydney, rooms are grouped into “apartments” of five, creating something like a private terraced street.
Students were engaged in study, a rehearsal, and preparations for that day’s march for Palestine. Each student must be on a committee, and we heard from several of them about how they pass on knowledge in a constantly-changing student population, the challenges they face maintaining a historic building, and how their collective decision-making has kept rents low for their 30 year history.
After lunch and a longer walk, we finished the day at Ningana. Adapted from hostel accommodation, it was the densest of the three even with its shared kitchens on each floor. It is fulfilling an important role providing housing for singles, many of whom are priced out of areas like Annandale as they age.
Sydney Cohousing believes that co-operatives play a vital role in solving Australia’s housing crisis. Providing real community living by allowing individuals to control and manage their own housing means more affordability, more skills and resilience, less loneliness. We want to move away from the limited vision of the past, improve limited policies at all levels of government, and educate everyone about alternatives like cooperatives.
