Community members engaging in a group activity at a table in a cozy room.

Monterey Cohousing

  • Communities

About the Communities

  • Established
  • Home-sharing
  • Suburban

Founding year

  • 1992

What we do

We are a unique, small community located just outside Minneapolis near lakes and shopping. We value diversity, and have varying incomes. Our 15 households currently include people of ages 10 through 85, singles and couples, with and without children.
Occupations include computer programmers, artists, teachers, therapists, caregivers, scientists, architect, piano teacher, executive director, gardener, and more. Our traditions include parties, campfires, sing-alongs, game nights, house concerts, solstice celebration, etc. Community meals and “co-chats” (spontaneous conversations) are the glue that hold the community together. We self-manage, and value working together.
The community has an abundance of common space, including a large living room, library, kitchen, dining room, three-season porch, four working fireplaces, exercise room, wood shop, laundry room, children’s playroom, and office. Outdoor common space includes lawns with picnic areas, a play area, a vegetable garden, and an acre of woods. The grounds are lovingly landscaped; we often see deer and wild turkeys roaming through our property.
Homes include eight retrofit coop apartments in an American Colonial mansion and seven townhomes built for the community. The two buildings are connected by a tunnel, which removes the weather as an obstacle to getting together. Home size ranges roughly from 400 to 1600 sq ft.
Our community grows from working together and shared experience.

Our Mission

Our mission at Monterey Cohousing Community is to have a shared experience of living intentionally with
each other. We provide private dwellings and shared common spaces, following the principles of
cohousing. We are committed to consensus, respect, diversity and environmental stewardship within our
ever-evolving community.

  • Purpose
  • Home-sharing
  • Community type
  • Cohousing
  • Activities
  • Property management

Commemorative dates

  • January 1, 1992
  • Started planning
  • January 1, 1992
  • Started living together

Video

  • 23 Total members
  • Open to new members
  • Open to visitors
Total
31

How to join

We encourage people to get to know us by attending community meals, meetings, and other events before committing to purchasing a unit. We have an affiliate participation level to encourage this. Occasionally there are opportunities for renting. All potential residents, whether renting or buying must undergo a credit check and criminal background check and participate in a series of integration opportunities.

Basic expectations or agreements for members

Please email us at in**@***************ng.com

Primary decision-making authority

  • All Community Members Together

The whole membership decides collectively.

Decision-making process

  • Full Consensus

Everyone must agree before moving forward.

Governance structure

  • Collaborative/Horizontal

Power and responsibility are shared relatively equally among members.

Conflict resolution approach

We’re small enough for every adult member to be on the Board of Directors.
We use consensus. (It takes one to block.)

Economic model

  • Independent Finances

Members maintain separate personal finances with minimal sharing.

Economic scenarios for this community

  • Members need to pay fees, dues, or similar to live there on a per month or per year basis
  • There is a labor obligation
  • Members typically need to have their own job or other personal source of income to cover their expenses while living in the community?

Additional economic information

Regular fees: Yes
Labor: Encouraged or suggested (2 hrs/week)
There’s lots to do to keep the community running. Everyone is expected to contribute.
We have an annual budget, supported by membership dues that range from $381 to $864/month based on the size of the unit. In the coop building these dues also cover the utilities and property tax.
There is no “joining fee” other than the purchase price of the unit. For affiliate-residents (renters) there is a $15/month maintenance fee on top of the rent.

Shared resources and amenities that are accessible to everyone in the community

Common House, Garden(s), Workshop, Large Scale Kitchen, Fire pit, Swingsets & play areas, Gym or sports area, Internet

Frequency of communal meals

  • About once a week

Significant food acquisition practices

  • Locally sourced

Community activities and engagement

  • Neighborhood, Community Housing, or Homeowner's Association

Substance use culture

  • Substance use appears in public spaces but no pressure
  • Substance use is prohibited in the community

Gender composition

  • Roughly balanced (no group over 60%)

Age demographics

  • Multi-generational (all ages well represented)

Property status

  • Privately owned

Property owner

  • By a Land Trust, Home Owners Association, or corporation

Setting

  • Suburban

Residential areas outside city centers but within metropolitan regions.

Community type

  • Cohousing

    Private homes with shared common facilities, designed for neighborly
    interaction while maintaining independence.

Self-produced energy

  • Up to 33%

Energy sources used

  • Photovoltaic Solar

Self-produced food

  • Up to 33%

Food systems

  • Community garden
  • Land area size
    2.5 acres

Guest Book

Written reviews are available for plus members. Click here to upgrade.

Location

  • Minnesota, United States

Monterey Cohousing

Needs and Offers

Connecting people and communities through an intentional online marketplace

  • Promoted
Need
Need
  • Forming Communities
2 weeks ago

A call for pioneers, trade-builders, and the four Elemental Elders to construct our first cooperative village prototype.

Intake Open: Flagship WE Network Village in Clubb, MO Call for pioneers, trade-builders, and 4 Elemental Elders to construct our first cooperative village prototype. WE Network is opening ground zero in Clubb, Missouri—our living model to build trade shops and train leadership teams for nationwide village rollout. We are building a self-sustaining, salvaged homestead ecosystem operating as a parallel society alongside existing systems. Bring your own living setup (tents, micro-campers, trucks, schoolies, tiny homes) to secure your lot within the co-op village. The 3×3 Exchange: Mental, Physical, & Spiritual Maintain your lot via our 3×3 exchange (3 hours/day, 3 days/week = 9 hours total): Mental: Classroom teaching, strategy, skill-sharing, and village instruction. Physical: Hands-on labor building active land and shop projects. Spiritual: Participation in our weekly Friday Fellowship Fire Circle. Trade Shops & Lot Placement Every member contributes directly to our local micro-economy: Trade Holders: Set up your specific service shop for the co-op. Transitioning Members: Assigned a trade lot to focus on constructing the physical shop structure. Weekend Operations: Retail open Saturdays and Sundays. Mid-week is reserved for building and life. Priority Intake: The Four Elemental Elders We are recruiting four foundational Elders: Earth Elder: Land, soil, livestock, permaculture, and natural materials. Air Elder: Building structures and Eco Junk waste-to-material upcycling. Fire Elder: Spiritual health, Natural Law, body healing, and Fire Circles. Water Elder: Resource flow, food storage, bookkeeping, and services. How to Apply 👉 Visit fffc.wtf to submit your intake request today.

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