Cohousing has many benefits for people of any age, in any size household.

For families with children, cohousing offers shared child care, safe outdoor play areas, friends next door, spontaneous play rather than "play-dates", playrooms in the common house, space for birthday parties, and extra grandparents.

For singles, cohousing offers an end to isolation without sacrificing privacy or autonomy; spontaneous socializing; interactions with children; space for throwing parties; chances to cook with others; and healthy, tasty meals you didn't cook yourself.

For couples, cohousing offers chances for each of you to get your preferred balance of social contact and solitude, even if your preferences differ.

For empty nesters, cohousing offers a way to downsize without giving up the ability to entertain or have your children visit, and a home you won't need to leave for a retirement community down the road.

For elders, cohousing offers aging in place, with neighbors who you know are happy to help; extra grandchildren; a home designed with accessibility in mind; and a chance to share your wisdom with people looking to learn.

For all households, cohousing offers a chance to participate in designing your own homes; the ablity to live in a smaller space because of shared facilities, such as guest rooms, meeting space, workshops, etc.; spontaneous socializing; and privacy in your home.

Cohousing may not be for you if:

• there's no adult in your household who can tolerate lots of meetings;
• sharing resources and tasks is unappealing to you;
• the effort of cooperating and resolving conflicts feels like too high a price to pay for a sense of community; or
• your household cannot afford to buy a roughly market-rate condo -- although Common Hearth hopes to include rental units, so let us know if you'd like to be a tenant.