A LONGITUDINAL STUDY AT AN ELDER COHOUSING COMMUNITY: AFTER 10 YEARS WHO LEFT AND WHO’S LEFT?

摘要

Long common in Europe, the first senior cohousing communities opened in the USA in the last decade. These communities are run by the residents themselves and offer the potential for mutual peer support and a strong sense of community. A longitudinal mixed methods study has been conducted by annual data collection at one such community since it opened in 2006. One outcome explored is retention, which is important to sustainability and future-proofing. The cohousing community is comprised of both owned units and income-subsidized apartments, with 31 units in total. Of the original 39 first “charter” residents, 38 were white, 8 were male, and the mean age at move-in was 70.4 (range=63–84). Thirteen (33%) of these charter residents were still living in the community in 2016: 11 were females, all were white, with a mean age of 79.5 (range=73–94). Reasons why they have stayed included friends, the location, liking the community and the mutual support, and pride in their creation of a new model of housing for older adults. Six (15%) charter residents died locally. The remainder (projected mean age in 2016=79.7, range=73–88) moved due to health issues and the need for greater care, to be near family, because of the income-subsidized housing regulations, or because they found that living “in community” was not a good fit for them or was too much work. Lessons learned about sustainability and the value of cohousing for older adults will be shared and suggestions for similar housing models will be discussed.