Cohousing in the Media
In the past 10 or so years — the period when baby boomers started turning 65 — a large number of articles about senior cohousing have appeared in newspapers, magazines, and on websites. Publications such as The New York Times, Fast Company, The Wall Street Journal, Parade, Psychology Today, the AARP Bulletin and more have featured the senior cohousing phenomenon.
The following is a curated list of some of these stories that discuss the benefits of cohousing. Each listing is accompanied by a short excerpt from the piece.
Cohousing New Option for Older People
Pamela Biery, Sidney Daily News, 2019
The biggest cohousing benefit for any community is living with kindred and having a number of close friendships. But it cannot be overlooked that cohousing costs are significantly less than other senior facilities and gives the longest possible independent lifestyle — good for living a full life and conserving financial resources.
Tulsa’s First Cohousing Development Offers Fresh Approach to Senior Living, Backers Say
Rhett Morgan, Tulsa World, 2019
With other retirement communities, you can get amenities. You can get a fancy place to stay. But it doesn’t guarantee that you’re going to have people that have your back and people you can turn to for everything from conversation to whatever the future may hold.
Elder Cohousing: The Epitome of Aging in Community
Anne P. Glass, asaging.org, 2019
These communities differ from other types of retirement communities and should not be confused with assisted living or skilled nursing facilities, because they are planned and managed by residents, and purposefully designed to promote social contact. They offer residents many benefits, including companionship, mutual support, and a better aging experience.
Coming of Age in Cohousing
Courtney Martin, curbed.com, 2019
Many of the kids who grew up in cohousing attest to having a different way of moving through the world than most people. They’re curious about humanity and what each person brings to the table.
The Future of Housing Looks Nothing Like Today’s
Kelsey Campbell-Dollaghan, Fast Company, 2019
The idea that it’s normal for each nuclear family to own a single-family home, connected to other people only by cars, is actually “radical,” as architect and cohousing development consultant Katie McCamant puts it.
How America Lives: Creative Housing Options for Boomers, Veterans, Millennials and More
Paula Spencer Scott, Parade, 2018
Whether the initial draw is company, saving money, greener living or physical and emotional support, communal living seems here to stay.
The Loneliest Generation: Americans, More Than Ever, Are Aging Alone
By Janet Adamy and Paul Overberg, Wall Street Journal, 2018
Baby boomers are aging alone more than any other generation in U.S. history, and the resulting loneliness is a looming public health threat. About one in 11 Americans age 50 and older lacks a spouse, partner or living child … . That amounts to about eight million people in the U.S. without close kin, the main source of companionship in old age, and their share of the population is projected to grow.
There’s Community and Consensus. But It’s No Commune
Tom Verde, New York Times, 2018
“People aren’t staying where they grew up anymore, and a huge trend among seniors is that they don’t have their siblings or kids around them because they’ve gone away to university or moved out of state for a job. Living in a community can help people feel connected,” says Karin Hoskin, executive director of the Cohousing Association of the United States.
In this Housing Development, Community Is the Keystone
R.A. Schuetz, Houston Chronicle, 2018
Cohousing is a collection of private homes grouped around shared spaces that usually include a communal kitchen and dining area, a guest house and a garden. While shared spaces are nothing new — condominiums and neighborhood associations typically offer rooftop decks or clubhouses — the intent of cohousing developments is much different. Shared spaces serve not as amenities, but as keystones to community.
Cohousing Offers a Radically Simple Idea
Wineontheporch.wordpress.com, 2018
Cohousing offers a radically simple idea … people flourish when they belong to an active community where relationships are valued and privacy is respected. It turns out that cohousing is a very good fit for those who want to maintain their autonomy and independence as they age.
Co-Housing for Older Adults: Casting Your Own Episode of “The Golden Girls” (or Guys)
Susan Hyatt, silversherpa.net, 2018
Today, older adults are embracing the idea of co-housing as a way to empower themselves as they age—allowing them to age in place, retain their independence, and surround themselves with a close-knit community of like-minded individuals.
From Communes to Cohousing
Richard Seven, 3rd Act Magazine, 2017
Cohousing supporters say the model offers a possible answer [to the question “Now what?”] by building on the bedrock notion of community. Cohousing developments … are called “intentional communities” for a reason. Individual dwellings surround common open space to nudge conversation. Residents gather in a shared building … to dine together, do laundry, perhaps exercise, and socialize.
Everyone Needs Someone Else
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 2017
“We evolved to depend on our social connections,” says Dr. Vivek Murthy, former U.S. Surgeon General. “Over thousands of years, this got baked into our nervous systems — so much so that if we are feeling socially disconnected, that places us in a physiologic stress state.”
Why Boomers Are Designing Their Own Retirement Communities
Lisa Wirthman, Forbes Magazine, 2016
Senior co-housing is not assisted living, although the accommodations and shared support typically allow residents to age in place longer. Some communities employ a shared caregiver, who is paid for by the residents who need the service but selected by the entire community to increase accountability.
Conscious Aging in Cohousing Community
Beth Baker, ChangingAging.org, 2016
Unlike many alternative models, cohousing is an intentional community, built from the ground up. Each household is separate, so that members maintain privacy and boundaries. At the same time, the architectural plan encourages neighborliness. A large common house accommodates frequent community dinners and other gatherings and often includes guest quarters.
Cohousing: The Power of Community
Charles Durrett, techenhancedlife.com, 2016
We are each other’s stewards in the ebb and flow of our living landscape, which allows us to know, therefore care, and therefore support each other without it hindering my life or theirs. To learn how to grow old together is a natural part of life, more of a freeing experience than an encumbering one.
Cohousing for Us
Diane Wiley, Daily Hampshire Gazette, 2013
While living in cohousing involves a significant commitment of time and energy, it also offers the opportunity to live with neighbors who share your vision for a life-enhancing experience as you age. Cohousing epitomizes a caring community.
Eccentric’s Corner: The Modern Homemaker
Katie Gilbert, Psychology Today, 2013
Contemporary households face social isolation in part because people live in housing that no longer suits them. Cohousing neighborhoods rebuild community with proximity.
Group Hashes Over Plans for New Cohousing Community in Amherst or Northampton
Nick Grabbe, Daily Hampshire Gazette, 2012
“We want to approach aging differently; we don’t want to do it as our parents did,” said Dyan Wiley, 60, who lives at Pioneer Valley Cohousing in North Amherst. “We’re asking questions like: How do I want to age and die well? How can I give back to the community? How can I have a spiritual life?”
Elder Cohousing: A New Option for Retirement or Sooner!
Sally Abrahms, AARP Bulletin, 2011
Don’t be fooled by the word “senior.” Many opting for this arrangement are in their 50s, 60s and early 70s and often still work. The plan is that when they get sick, there will be lots of helping hands, which will supplement, although not replace, professional help if needed.
Living Together, Aging Together
Paula Span, New York Times, 2010
Senior cohousing promises the blend of privacy and kinship, plus the support for aging in place, that assisted living or continuing care retirement communities try to provide — but with the residents themselves firmly in charge. From hiring architects to setting pet policies, they run the show.
The Making of Senior Cohousing: The Story of Wolf Creek Lodge
Suzanne Marriott, Communities Magazine, 2010
Senior cohousing is all about active aging-in-place within a supportive community. We accept the inevitability of aging, and we want to be in control of our own aging process. Ours will not be our parents’ aging. It will be different — vibrant, socially revolutionary, and fun.