Housing Cooperatives are similar to Community Housng providers. They also provide secure and affordable housing to people with low incomes. The difference is the tenants are also members of the cooperative, have a say in the running of the organisation, and the maintenance of their houses.
Housing cooperatives can also be hard to find and apply for. If you make an application on the Victorian Housing Register you might also be offered a place to live in a Housing Cooperative.
| Cost before you move in | There is a usually a one month bond to pay when you move into a housing cooperative. HAAG can provide information on accessing a Bond Loan from the DFFH |
| Cost each fortnight | Usually 30% of your income, as well as Commonwealth Rent Assistance if you receive it. |
| Eligibility | Depending on the housing cooperative. Usually requires engagement in the setting up or maintenance of the cooperative. |
| Location | Housing cooperatives are a great model of housing, but can be hard to find. |
| Changes you can make to your house | |
| How long you can stay there | As long as you need it. |
| How to apply | When making an application for Public Housing or Community Housing you can apply to live in a housing cooperative at the same time. Contact us on 1300 765 178 for help to apply. You can find a list of Housing Cooperatives, which includes some Community Housing providers at https://chimeshr.my.site.com/publicregister |
All information contained on these pages is general in nature, and should not be considered advice. Information will be subject to change. Please contact us to discuss your individual circumstances.
Latest updates about housing cooperatives
Older People's Housing at the Victorian Homelessness Conference
Shane and Fiona hear from speakers at the Victorian Homelessness Conference, held at Melbourne Town Hall late last year. Vera Considine talks about her experience of precarious housing as an older woman, and Peter Sibly talks about his plans for the Footscray Lions Village co-operative for older women. …
Posted in: Podcasts, Client Stories, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives, Campaigns, Victoria
United we Stand: forty years of co-operative housing
Fiona and Shane talk to Janet, Mea and Peter from United Housing co-op on their 40th anniversary. We discuss the history of co-operative movements and the importance of partipatory tenant-led housing, how things have changed and what the future might hold for this important housng type. …
Posted in: Podcasts, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives
Hear the lions roar – Footscray Lions Village
Fiona and Shane speak to Anicia, Violet, Elvie and David about the Footscray Lions Village redevelopment and their hopes for the future.To read more about the United Housing Co-op and Lions Club partnership to build 55+ womens housing, see https://www.unitedhousing.org.au/news/united-housing-co-operative-big-housing-build/To sign the Sweltering Cities petition for better cooling in rental housing see …
Posted in: Podcasts, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives
United in Housing – Cooperatives and the Big Housing Build
Fiona and Shane talk to Peter Sibly, General Manager of United Housing Co-operative, about his new project to build housing for women aged 55 years and older in the Western Suburbs, with a grant from the Victorian Governments Big Housing Build. He talks about co-operative housing as a model for tenant participation and reminisces about… …
Posted in: Podcasts, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives, Public Housing
Community Housing Co-Ops in East Gippsland; Surviving the Fires
Fiona speaks to Deb Foskey, an older resident of Orbost in far East Gippsland, about her experience as a member of a remote community housing co-operative in the 1970’s and 80’s and more recently, what it has been like for older people coping with the recent fires. …
Posted in: Podcasts, Climate, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives, Regional issues
Cohousing & Aged Care
The second part of our discussion on cohousing. Fiona and Leonie from HAAG talk to Myfan Jordan from Per Capita about her new research with a focus on older women’s housing and aged care. You can read more about her research here. Fiona also discusses her experiences explaining the connections and disconnections between homelessness and aged care at the… …
Posted in: Podcasts, Aged care, Cohousing & Housing Cooperatives