Past Practices in the Development of Cooperative Housing in the United States and an Analysis of Their Implications for Rural Areas

摘要

The report provides information to support the efforts of the Rural Cooperative Housing Demonstration (RCHD). Conducted by a consortium of rural housing development groups in four different areas of the United States under sponsorship of HUD the Farmers Home Administration (FMHA) of the Department of Agriculture, and the National Consumer Cooperative Bank, RCHD is testing the viability of small, self-managed co-ops for low-income families in rural areas. Gathering its information from four case studies, interviews with program participants, and a literature review, the research group assembled data to characterize major U.S. approaches to cooperative housing development, analyze the major issues and concerns of cooperative housing development and operation, and assess the potential benefits of cooperative housing for low-income households. In addition, the group identified possible success factors for housing cooperatives. The group found that co-op housing development practices fall into three categories: (1) top-down (decisionmaking is reserved by the developer until the construction is completed and cooperators take control); (2) partnership (cooperative decisionmaking at the onset of construction); and (3) grassroots (cooperators form the co-op, and technical advice and assistance are provided by an agency, consultant, or individual).