CO-HOUSING: LIVING TOGETHER, AGING BETTER

 Post-secondary students or younger individuals rent rooms in a senior’s home, offering both income and companionship. Initiatives like SpacesShared foster these connections, helping with chores, providing security, and reducing loneliness. 

 Existing single-family homes can be thoughtfully redesigned to host multiple seniors with private suites and shared common areas, like kitchens and living rooms. 

Designed from the ground up, these developments offer:

• Private suites for up to 6 seniors per unit
• Shared facilities (kitchen, laundry, lounge) 
• Social design focused on aging well 
• Structures exempt from the Retirement Homes Act when kept under 7 residents

 Small social pods of 4–6 units within larger buildings allow for privacy alongside shared living. These can be cost-effective solutions using underutilized condo space. 

• Social Connection: Avoid the loneliness and isolation that often come with aging alone. 
• Safety and Health: Live in environments where others are nearby to help or respond in case of emergency. 
• Financial Relief: Reduce living costs through shared expenses. 
• Community: Choose who you live with, how you live, and build friendships that enrich your life.

SHA-SC is actively looking to collaborate with:

• Non-profits and municipalities interested in developing community housing 
• Homeowners seeking to modify their homes for co-housing 
• Developers interested in building co-housing communities 
• Post-secondary institutions looking to partner on intergenerational housing

If you are a developer, policymaker, planner, or financial backer, now is the time to support and enable these community-centered alternatives. We can help you:

• Understand regulatory guidelines (e.g., avoiding Retirement Homes Act thresholds) 
• Connect with seniors looking to co-house 
• Secure funding models or grants for retrofits or new builds