Cohousing Resources

One particular book has been a cornerstone for many successful multigenerational cohousing communities.  Charles Durrett and Katheryn McCamant brought the Danish cohousing concept to America, and they introduced cohousing through this useful book - it is easy to understand, and the stories within are beautifully told. They coined the English term "cohousing," meaning "collaborative housing." 

"If I could make only one suggestion for your long-term success and the continued success of cohousing, it would be that all your prospective members have read this book, and that the folks in your town/area know what cohousing is. It is better for your community and the success of cohousing if people who are buying a house in your cohousing community actually know what cohousing is—in detail.   New residents who have read the book and refer to it from time to time are the happier buyers. It sets the community up to succeed and helps get people in your cohousing community who want to be in cohousing. And it makes it more fun for everyone. "(Charles Durrett)

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Buy "Creating Cohousing" from Amazon here.

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This is Charles Durrett's most recent book.  It is chock full of important & updated information. 

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"This book is for people who care about architecture as a social act. This book is for architects, sociologists, and housing advocates. For families that want to be best assured that they are moving into a high-functioning neighborhood and that their children can grow up as happy and healthy as possible. For seniors that seek alternatives to institutions or isolation. It’s for planners and politicians who want high-functioning neighborhoods as building blocks to their towns. For people planning shared housing, co-living, ecovillages, churches, hospitals, mixed-use commercial/ housing, and childcare centers and schools. This book is for developers who want to make much better than average multi-family housing, and non-profit housing developers who know that housing first is great but that community first will take us further. This book is for colleges and universities planning new neighborhoods for retired alumni, or new housing for students and faculties. And this book is for towns making, planning and walking streets, and other town altering improvements into the future wherever a highly functional community is a priority. This book is definitely for anyone planning a new cohousing community or improving an older one."

The Cohousing Association of the United States
www.cohousing.org

The Cohousing Association of the United States (Coho/US) is an organization whose purpose is to promote and encourage the cohousing concept, support both individuals and groups in creating communities, provide assistance to completed groups for improving their systems for living together in community, and provide networking opportunities for those involved or interested in cohousing.

The Canadian Cohousing Association
https://cohousing.ca

The Canadian Cohousing Association is a registered non-profit organization that promotes the creation of cohousing communities as a model for sustainable development by raising public awareness about cohousing and by bringing people together to form communities. The most valuable function of the CCN is making connections with people who are interested in living in a cohousing community. CCN links individuals and cohousing groups together to share resources and make the process of creating a community easier and more economical.

Cohousing Australia
communities.org.au

Cohousing Australia promotes collective models of housing, housing diversity, and housing choice. Cohousing Australia’s mission is to create and expand the sector, network and conditions necessary to make cohousing an option for all interested.

Cohousing New Zealand
cohousing.org.nz

Sharing some facilities and neighborhood life amongst clustered private dwellings–a new wave of cohousing in NZ is developing.

Belgium Cohousing Association
https://www.samenhuizen.be/
Samenhuizen vzw promotes and supports all forms of communal living. For anyone who dreams about living differently with less private space and more quality.

United Kingdom Cohousing Network
cohousing.org.uk

The UK Cohousing Network was established to promote awareness of cohousing and support the development of new cohousing communities. The UK Cohousing Network is a membership organization with a mission to enable communities to use the cohousing principles to create better places to live by reducing isolation and loneliness, and by sharing facilities and services to reduce living costs.

Swedish National Cohousing Association
http://kollektivhus.se/category/english/

The Swedish National Association Cohousing NOW
– in Swedish Kollektivhus NU – is an association working to promote collaborative housing and other alternative ways of living. The association supports existing co-housing units as well as groups intending to create new units. Originally formed in 1981, it has recently been revitalized with the prime purpose to inform the public about cohousing as an alternative, and influencing authorities to facilitate the creation and running of such units.