The Development of Co-Housing Initiatives in Germany

The range of diff erent types of co-housing community in Germany is quite extensive, including projects with single-family houses and large community houses jointly planned by a group of families, o en with high ecological standards; projects with elderly people; inter- or multi-generation projects; and communal housing projects following the historic 'Beguine' ideas. As diff erent as the people coming together in the projects are the legal forms and financing models used for implementation, ranging from rental to owner-occupation, with public or private developers building the projects. The first part of this article provides an overview of the current situation of co-housing projects in Germany, based on a database developed by Fedrowitz. The second part reviews current practices in German municipalities in support of cohousing projects. For years, co-housing projects were mostly initiated 'bo om-up' and many initiatives failed because of the complex planning process. Meanwhile, the increasing demand for this particular housing model has been acknowledged at the political level and municipalities have set up speci fic support structures for cohousing. In the last section, the article draws some conclusions regarding this new form of housing and its future in Germany.