Burlington Co-Housing Community Members’ Responsibilities:

Each homeowner or renter who chooses to live here must contribute to the functioning and maintenance of the community in order to keep it running smoothly. We choose to manage ourselves through volunteering our time, energy, and expertise instead of retaining paid professional property managers. However, we do have to contract out for those services that we are unable to do ourselves.

The level of participation varies immensely among residents based on time and interest, but each homeowner or renter must commit to specific minimum requirements. Residents are required to:

  • Assist with our community dinners one night per month
  • Volunteer for a particular seasonal or year round chore that, depending on the nature of the activity, may be daily, weekly, or monthly
  • Serve on one of our committees
  • Participate in community work days held a few times throughout the year

Community meals

Community meals are an important part of our co-housing community. We have approximately 10 meals per month. Assistance can include being a lead cook or secondary cook (planning, shopping for and cooking the dinner for 20-30 people), an early assistant (helping the cooks as needed), and a late assistant (cleaning up the kitchen after the meal).

Chores

Residents here agree to periodically perform some task, thereby helping to keep our property attractive, safe, and well-maintained. Examples include keeping an area of the common house clean, doing kitchen laundry (washing and folding napkins, dishtowels, tablecloths, etc.), mowing lawns, and other typical household chores. Residents and renters are usually able to pick chores based on their own interests, skills, and schedules.

Committees

It is important to contribute and help manage the community by being on one of our committees. We currently have an Executive Committee and Administrative, Building, Land, Communications, and Home Committees.

 Responsibilities on these committees vary.