BC Housing Co-Ops

[tokugawa]

Once the market and economy picks up, I am thinking about selling my condo and moving into a co-op. The location and the rent on some of the co-ops seem quite attractive. Since I have quite a bit of equity with my home right now, the profit I could get from the sale would allow me a more relaxed life style.

Here is the link I have been looking at (westside mainly): http://www.chf.bc.ca/pages/directory.asp?Region=Vancouver+Westside&Go=Go!

What do you guys think? Have any of you guys ever thought about or tried living in a co-op? I am just thinking the cost in home ownership is just a little too demanding and maybe living in co-op is the way to go.

 

[curmudgeon]

I've never lived in Co-op housing, but I checked into on behalf of someone else.

You can't just move in. You have to apply, and your application is evaluated on a need basis.

So if you are married with young children, working a low paying or seasonal job, you will get high priority than someone who is single, with no dependants, working a steady job with a "decent" income.

The rent you will pay will be adjusted according to your income level at the time of application.

The upside is, once you get into co-op housing, this evaluation process is rarely ever revisited, so it is possible to get into co-op housing when you're a student or a shortly after you finish school with your spouse and kid, and then when you finish school and find your self with a good paying job, they rarely if ever reevaluate your income for the purpose of determining your rent.

That said, most of the co-op housing in the city is in some not-so desirable neighborhoods. The notable exception would be the co-op project near Granville Island.

 

[trackstar]

BC Housing doesn't have co-ops, they buy shares and gain control of several units of a co-op. If you do not qualify for BC Housing subsidy (which you don't), you pay full rent, plus pay full shares in the co-op. Even people that qualify for subsidy are on a triage type wait list. Needy families can wait for up to 3 years to gain access to units in co-ops. Only people that qualify for subsidised housing pay a percentage of their income. For most people that do not qualify, they don't find paying market rent plus buying shares attractive when they have to live with the issues plaguing their neighbours who live in a welfare state. I lived in a co-op years ago and it was a nightmare. Wanna-be gangs, drunken fights, vandalism, constant theft, noise all hours of the night, rust bucket cars left for dead in parking spots... NEVER AGAIN!