in the Guardian: "We’re trying to turn our flat into a co-op. Here’s what we’ve learned"
Tim McCormick
Caught in the rental trap, we’re trying to turn our flat into a co-op. Here’s what we’ve learned
This kind of homeownership is a sustainable solution to the housing crisis – but it’s not easy in today’s property market
My home, like many people’s, is a place of solace and comfort. It’s somewhere I’ve worked through the end of a long-term relationship, hosted parties, waged an ongoing war with a squirrel in my garden and housed my extensive condiment collection. Despite my emotional ties to this place, I do not own it. Like the other 13 million people in the UK who rent from private landlords, that puts me in a permanently precarious situation. I am at the behest of a landlord, who can evict me for no reason, at any time.
In this state of uncertainty, you can be reminded of your powerlessness at any moment. That moment came for me and my housemates towards the end of last year, when we found out that our landlords were considering selling. So what did three young professionals with no rich benefactors but an unusually large understanding of housing policy do? We decided to try to turn our house into a cooperative.
The housing cooperative movement has become a striking alternative to a profit-driven housing market. In simple terms, turning a house into a co-op brings a property under collective ownership, where members can come and go and ensure that a house remains under not-for-profit ownership in perpetuity. Once the cost of the property has been paid off, rents in the co-op can drop to the minimal levels needed to fund repairs and other minor costs, forming a home that can be rented affordably and well below market rate. It’s also sustainable – any surplus rent saved can be used to get other housing co-ops off the ground.
Housing Alternatives Network
Organizer at Village Collaborative
Andrew Heben
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