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Cohousing is a community-led housing paradigm in which intentional, self-governing communities live together. Usually, this means developments of private dwellings with shared communal spaces.
In Creating Cohousing, Kathryn McCamant and Charles Durrett write:
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<p>Cohousing developments vary in size, location, type of ownership, design, and priorities. Yet in our research we identified six common characteristics:</p>
<p>Participatory Process: Residents organize and participate in the planning and design process for the cohousing community, and are responsible as a group for all final decisions.</p>
<p>Designs that Facilitate Community: The physical design encourages a strong sense of community.</p>
<p>Extensive Common Facilities: An integral part of the community, common areas are designed for daily use, to supplement private living areas.</p>
<p>Complete Resident Management:</strong> Residents manage the development themselves, making decisions of common concern at community meetings.</p>
<p>Non-Hierarchal Structure: Responsibility for decisions is shared by the community’s adults.</p>
<p>Separate Income Sources: Residents have their own primary incomes. The community does not directly generate income for its residents, nor (with rare exception) do its residents share income from community-owned retail or office spaces. All the residents pay a monthly fee, in addition to membership dues, to a homeowners’ association to cover shared costs, as is typical of a condominium arrangement.</p>
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