Any co-ops you belong to? (and if so, your experience?)

I'm a member of a local co op, I go there 2-3 times/ month. I buy local fruit e.g apples also like their tuna fish,chicken noodle soup,chocolate chip cookies
As for the other 'co op' ,I lived in co op apt for 36 yrs, was sold Aug 5th, haven't closed yet do to the ***** board members,its been extremely frustrating/I've had many sleepless nights .I still have to pay monthly HOA there because I'm technically a shareholder. By the end of this month, I hope this long nightmare will be over with
 
In terms of being served as a customer, we've always had a positive experience with the three co-ops we've belonged to. The nearest food co-op had its roots in three local food-buying clubs where members pooled money to bring in bulk food staples from Vancouver... then we members would get together to divvy it up according to the record of which household had ordered & paid for how much of some item.

From there, the three clubs amalgamated to rent a very small space for storage and retail sales to members. (All this was way before Costco.) Three location shifts later, the co-op now has over 16,000 members in the region.

I could cite a similar story about an outdoor-gear co-op we were members of, back in Vancouver. But there are also some worker-run co-ops that we buy from than don't require anybody to take out membership.
 
I've not been a member of the kind of co-op you are referring to JBR. I guess the closest thing to that kind is I'm a Costco member. I am one of the original shareholders in our residential co-op, however, which basically is the equivalent of owning my unit (for 53 years).
 
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OneEyedDiva said:
I've not been a member of the kind of co-op you are referring to JBR. I guess the closest thing to that kind is I'm a Costco member. I am one of the original shareholders in our residential co-op, however, which basically is the equivalent of owning my unit (for 53 years).
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Yes, I think the residential co-ops can be a very good thing. DW and I have a friend from Utrecht who lives in one, and lives part of her year here. Also, I was in Copenhagen briefly at one time and was invited to have dinner with a couple who live in one.
 
We have belonged to our Credit Union for about 30 years, it says it is a co-op. Then we used to belong to Costco, however now our son belongs since we rarely leave the house. Liked them both , especially the Credit Union!
 
mrstime said:
We have belonged to our Credit Union for about 30 years, it says it is a co-op. Then we used to belong to Costco, however now our son belongs since we rarely leave the house. Liked them both , especially the Credit Union!
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Interesting! I never thought of our credit union as being a co-op, but I guess it is because it's "owned" by the members. I've had credit union accounts for decades also.

@JBR One major benefit of our co-op is that we've managed to keep the housing expenses extremely low. We were on the PILOT program (payment in lieu of taxes) until our mortgage was paid off in 2012. Despite the predictions by a board member that our "carrying charges" (aka HOA fees) would triple after the PILOT program was over, that never happened. In fact, since then our CCs rose by $200 but we still only pay $644 a month, which includes heat, hot water and maintenance of common areas within the buildings and the grounds. This means we are paying between 28% - 37% of what comparable apartments cost in this and surrounding areas. A real plus living on a retiree's income.
 
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OneEyedDiva said:
Interesting! I never thought of our credit union as being a co-op, but I guess it is because it's "owned" by the members. I've had credit union accounts for decades also.

@JBR One major benefit of our co-op is that we've managed to keep the housing expenses extremely low. We were on the PILOT program (payment in lieu of taxes) until our mortgage was paid off in 2012. Despite the predictions by a board member that our "carrying charges" (aka HOA fees) would triple after the PILOT program was over, that never happened. In fact, since then our CCs rose by $200 but we still only pay $644 a month, which includes heat, hot water and maintenance of common areas within the buildings and the grounds. This means we are paying between 28% - 37% of what comparable apartments cost in this and surrounding areas. A real plus living on a retiree's income.
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That sounds great. If you don't mind, is there anyway to read about how your co-op operates. It could be a model for other places if it works so well. I would like to be directed to be directed to co-ops for housing that are helping their members so much. Thanks.
 
I tried joining the downtown natural foods co-op a couple of times. But in the end, just didn't seem worth it and not crazy about the place or location.

Many grocery stores now carry much of what they do. It wasn't that way years ago. And we have two other natural food stores in town. One started as a glorified permanent fruit stand and expanded. Another opened a number of years ago. Those places aren't cheap but the first one offers 10% senior discount every day.

I look for items on sale and they are the only places I can find the non dairy Ripple half and half. So good in coffee.
 
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Remy said:
I tried joining the downtown natural foods co-op a couple of times. But in the end, just didn't seem worth it and not crazy about the place or location.

Many grocery stores now carry much of what they do. It wasn't that way years ago. And we have two other natural food stores in town. One started as a glorified permanent fruit stand and expanded. Another opened a number of years ago. Those places aren't cheap but the first one offers 10% senior discount every day.

I look for items on sale and they are the only places I can find the non dairy Ripple half and half. So good in coffee.
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So I think a particular town or city's situation will vary from that of others. So I can understand your perspective. The co-op we usually shop at has a very good location, a friendly helpful staff, an impressive stock that we like, and it's bright & clean. And yet my DW is a discriminating shopper, and if she finds that a supermarket has a better price on some identical product, she's often been drawn to buy there. Still, we're in a realistic position to be fans of our co-op.
 
Paco Dennis said:
That sounds great. If you don't mind, is there anyway to read about how your co-op operates. It could be a model for other places if it works so well. I would like to be directed to be directed to co-ops for housing that are helping their members so much. Thanks.
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Sorry Paco, I don't have information about how our Co-op works specifically. Might not be a good example anyway because we've had issues over the years with mismanagement and rogue board members who cost the complex our
Section 8 allotment after failing to fulfill HUD's requirements. This caused a hardship for some of my neighbors.

I read a few different articles about co-ops but none of them were completely accurate as to how our Co-op works. As @JBR pointed out, it may be different in different cities.

Here's an article that might give you an idea.
Housing Cooperatives: a Unique Type of Home Ownership.
 
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OneEyedDiva said:
Sorry Paco, I don't have information about how our Co-op works specifically. How is might not be a good example anyway because we've had issues over the years with mismanagement and rogue board members who cost the complex our
Section 8 allotment after failing to fulfill HUD's requirements. This caused a hardship for some of my neighbors.

I read a few different articles about co-ops but none of them were completely accurate as to how our Co-op works. As @JBR pointed out, it may be different in different cities.

Here's an article that might give you an idea.
Housing Cooperatives: a Unique Type of Home Ownership.
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Thank you. It got me to a website that is central to providing housing to low income folks. It is for Columbia, Mo. It is a big and powerful organization that really helps people find affordable housing. This is what I was looking for. I think all our communities should have a similar organization. If it can be arranged their should be staff of competent people who understand and can work with the housing market to arrange this kind of housing.

I see now that running such an organization is complicated. Too complicated for me to get involved. :) I did find a large organization that has several buildings you can rent and cooperate with the goings on.
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It doesn't provide for hospice care, or special needs though. You have to find other organizations for that.
 
Paco Dennis said:
Thank you. It got me to a website that is central to providing housing to low income folks. It is for Columbia, Mo. It is a big and powerful organization that really helps people find affordable housing. This is what I was looking for. I think all our communities should have a similar organization. If it can be arranged their should be staff of competent people who understand and can work with the housing market to arrange this kind of housing.

I see now that running such an organization is complicated. Too complicated for me to get involved. :) I did find a large organization that has several buildings you can rent and cooperate with the goings on.
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It doesn't provide for hospice care, or special needs though. You have to find other organizations for that.
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I'm glad you found the co-op information somewhat useful.
 
OneEyedDiva said:
I'm glad you found the co-op information somewhat useful.
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This is not only a racial problem, it is becoming a national problem for all sectors of our society. We need discussions about the necessity of cooperation between the people and government. The more we discuss the needs the more people will respond. Like I said, the elderly are becoming an increasing problem, including health care. That's one sector, just think of the malnourished children. So anytime we run into this, take a moment to address the situation and understand it is going to take a village.
 
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