Co-op tips needed.

[Fwingnut]

I kinda inherited a house on 7 acres in K.C. MO. I've got 3 years probation here, so I won't be going anywhere for a little bit, soooooo I think I wanna do this co-op thing.

I don't know shit about it, and I need tips, suggestions, or any kind of info at all.

 

[happyearthhomes]

what kind of co-op ? do u want to stay legal if so check local ordinance and laws. are you willing to share the house and if so are you gonna want to be able to kick people out than you need a clearly defined charter or contract i mean u are on a squatter site and if u accept money or contractual work for housing could have a hard time if u r un happy with other co-opers a really good resource for info is http://www.permies.com/bb/index.php if u dont care bout legality and ur gonna bust heads if needs be than there aint much to it find like minded ppl and grow some herbs

 

[Fwingnut]

Ahhh yeah, I guess ima just do this squat style. I'm not all about the legal shit.

 

[acrata4ever]

i would do earth bagging, make some beehive cottages, start a cult get a ministers ordination a church charter, pay no property taxes. a name? ill give you church of the uprising earthworm, im keeping the cool ones to myself.

 

[plagueship]

you inherited it or you're squatting it?

 

[happyearthhomes]

starting a cult or survival group is always watched by the government jim jones messed that up for everyone ever since jonestown but if you call it a not for profit holistic medical center you can get a ton of tax breaks and can grow and use just about anything to naturally heal

 

[acrata4ever]

no theres been heretical cults before jonestown. like the onida community. the guy who shot mckinnley was a member they were into child molestation. they used to make decorative items and medals for the freemasons the cult disbanded but still make onida silverware. jim jones was actually ordained in the disciples of christ a xtian socialist church i am a member of. ronald reagan was also a lifelong member. jim jones also got funding from the cia. theres nothing wrong with the word cult, xtianity started out as a cult, in europe theyre called sects. as long as you can show where the money goes and you keep good books and dont break laws its not a problem. the usa is the only country where the church doesnt pay taxes. say you raise enough money to fly some of your congregation to africa to dig a well. you dont pay taxes on the airfare its deductable. taxes are half the outrageous airfare. say you start a church in alabama called the communist cult of christ, youre ordained you have a church charter and are incorperated and run a clean house, THERE ISNT SHIT THE PISSED OFF COMMUNITY CAN DO!

 

[happyearthhomes]

ya but the local government can and will make life difficult for you by enforcing zoning and code laws if they dont like what you are doing or if its not mainstream enough for example michael reynolds 30 year battle to build earthships in th u.s. legally when in the not so distant past they where the normal form of construction of homes

 

[acrata4ever]

in some boonies there are no zoning codes

 

[mamamutiny]

I kinda inherited a house on 7 acres in K.C. MO. I've got 3 years probation here, so I won't be going anywhere for a little bit, soooooo I think I wanna do this co-op thing.

I don't know shit about it, and I need tips, suggestions, or any kind of info at all.

yeah, i would figure out what kind of a co-op you want. what's your focus (gardening, music, queer space, art, a mixture of lots of things, etc.)? what might your goals be? how many people would you like to work with on this? will people need to contribute monetarily to participate/ what will cost of living be? will you allow pets/drugs/alcohol/smoking, etc.? do you allow long-term visitors, and if so, does there need to be consensus from housemates on that? will you have meetings, and if so, how often? will food be shared? the list goes on...
in my experience, having a clear idea of what you want out of the project will help you find the right people to do it with. being clear about these goals will prevent future conflict with those folks. for example: starting a co-op farm only to find out later that some people want to sell produce and make money to live on, while others would rather grow produce predominately for storage/eating to move the co-op towards self-sufficiency (avoiding the use of money). seems like a fine line, but these little differences can cause a lot of trouble. be clear about your ideology and the specifics of the way you want to live.
i wish you lots of luck, and keep us posted.

 

[Fwingnut]

Ahh man, it's nothing like that. I just plan on letting people stay here if they want, they can pitch a tent or w/e. Stay in the house when the weather sucks. The morgage payment is 200 bucks, and I have to have a job due to probation so that's no biggie.

But, I'm a carpenter myself, and plan on doing some stuff to the house. I wanna build a barn, that would be cool. But realy, I'm going to be right outside the suburbs of Kansas City MO, bored as hell.

IDK, it's like if anyone wants a place to chill for a while, I got that. I don't expect shit out of nobody, expect contributions to the beer/whiskey/wine. If you don't drink you can do your own thing, but that would be some kind of work, maybe cutting wood, or dick'n around with a garden or something production I don't care.

As for who actualy owns the house, it's in my aunts name, but she gave it to me, and she's not judgemental, know what I mean.

Drop me a line on this webpage, and I'll send a #.

 

[dprogram]

I liked KC when I lived there. I might be down for a trip soon. I've got some friends I haven't seen in forever who are cool as hell up there. The cops there suck though! And OMG the winter is sooooo cold. Hrm. Wonder if I could get my old job over in Overland Park back...Ritz Charles wasn't a bad banquet hall to work at. I'll be in touch man.

 

[KnottyGrrl]

so it sounds like you just wanna have a house in which you house people up at...so its not really a co-op or collective type thing if people arent really working together towards a common goal...so, does the govt (or anyone) need to know about that at all? you pay mortgage, so the place is already legit...you didnt break in & steal it to squat it...so have your house, pick up travelers off the road & post on STP that you have a house open for travelers...& im sure youll get people coming thru the way it sounds like you want to