HouseMates; The Concept
GrowingFREE SimpleLife Essay Series
Who Will Leave the Light On For You?
“We’ll leave the light on for you” is the slogan for the hotel chain Motel 6. The phrase became popular after it was used in a series of radio commercials featuring the voice of Tom Bodett, a writer and National Public Radio commentator.
It seems like a Most Excellent Tagline for a HouseMates Project, developing in this Mind of Mine. Post 60, & Single,…….It Is all the More Relevant.
This Ram Dass Quote Sets the Tone
My First Run at "Living" in a HouseMates/Co-Living Space is better than I ever thought it could be, I have been here now for 2-Months +/- in Lower MI, at a very quiet, sustainable farm, I am quite enjoying the space, and it represents the HouseMates LifeStyle I have envisioned.
My HouseMates Morning Routine at a Sustainable Farm; Winter Solstice 2024
Fresh Straw & Bedding, For the Girls, AkA the Chickens
Wonderful Creatures They Are, Enjoying Their Breakfast Feed
And then, The Piglets, What a Morning Treat
To Hang with These Beauties, As they too, Breakfast,……
Then Off for Coffee Now, At one of the Favorites in the Small Rural Town
Hanging Out with People I Don’t Know, Helps This Introvert, Feel Connected, in an Odd Sort of Way
Such a Change this Journey Is, Lovely in Most EveryWay, EveryDay
Feeling Much Gratitude, As I sip my Morning Coffee
It seems that we are at a pivotal point in our society where People, Places & Things are more likely to converge than ever before to this lifestyle.
Developing a HouseMates/Co-Living Space has been a project on my mind for over a decade, but most recently feels more real. I wanted to experience it from the residents side of things.
Inadvertently I received much informal training about this, as it relates to People & Place from my nearly 15-Years at The Green Garage in Detroit, and spending as much time as I could with the founder Tom Brennan, a most brilliant fellow.
I am thinking about taking the experience further next season, the winter of 2025/2026 to increase my understanding, training & experience with an extended stay, at La Vita Sukha Coliving, Coworking & Retreats, intentional community living guided by permaculture principles. Based in Puglia, Italy. Fostering connection, sustainability and co-creation.
We are social creatures. We crave interactions, social engagement and stimulation from the world around us. Yet, as we age, society often turns to nursing homes, care facilities and retirement communities as the answer.
Boomers are calling for new solutions. Aging is a new chapter of life that is equally as exciting, important and valuable as any other time in life. Boomers want housing solutions that allow them to be connected with others and the world around them. They do not want to be isolated in small communities that they are forced into.
Brands as Housemates, an innovative new program born out of the housing crisis many boomers are facing today. Housemates is the answer Boomers have been looking for. It is an age-friendly community where residents are free to pursue their passions, interests, and hobbies while embracing the next stage of life.
Marianne Kilkenny, author of: “Your Quest for Home: A Guidebook to Find the Ideal Community for Your Later Years,” and founder of Women for Living Community talked extensively about the project. Marianne has been an advocate for alternative housing models for the past few years and sees both the need and the urgency for them. “I think the organization looks innovative and it will take somebody who is innovative to look at it as a possibility.
The challenge is often that partners don’t have real estate — so working with somebody who actually has the bricks and mortar, and just needs the people is ideal. Plus we have the added personal tools which helps people get along and build a cohesive program.”
The above was a HouseMates Project I worked on 12-Years ago in Scottsdale AZ. I firmly believe the time has come for Boutique Co-Housing Developments,………. The AZ Project attempted Scale, which some operators have achieved, but that is tough. I see this as Small, and Boutique, with Stacked Income Streams.
A Retreat Development; Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
A Boutique Airbnb concept with a Barndominimum as the central theme structure, with a Retreat Space
-) With a Gong/Meditation Temple
-) A Gathering Space
-) A Common Kitchen
-) And 4-Airbnb Rooms, each with a small living space, bed and mini kitchen.
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The Airbnb Enterprise would fund the operation, along with Retreat Income, and will have be 4–6 private 400–600 S/F Cabins dispersed throughout the property for permanent residences. On-site Gardens, GreenHouse, Medicinal Herbs, Chickens and such for a Sustainable Lifestyle,…..
Tree House AirBnB’s Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
A Pair of TriPlex’s Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
This is great TriPlex, I have known the family since high school, They are quality builders of Manufactured Housing, All in at $125,000 a unit, Great finishes, and an excellent layout.
Accessory Dwelling Units; Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
An Urbaneer Type Development with 3–5 units clustered together in Pods, incorporating a Sustainable Environment, Focused on Well Being/Well Health. Bruce Thompson, Founder of Urbaneer in Traverse City MI is a longtime friend, and he has a pretty cool product, a small footprint house, (not a tiny home) that has tricked out amenities aimed at a GrowingFREESimpleLife. He and his wife had downsized & lived in one of these in Grand Rapids, MI, which I have been in a few times, and they are uber cool, Things like hanging walls that roll back as a dining room and roll out as the bedroom, pretty high quality, and it doesn’t feel small, although they are. Tons of light, Huge Kitchen and Gathering Space.
Shipping Containers Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
Community Gardens
One of My SideHustles, UrbaneFarm has developed & managed a half dozen Community Gardens, one of those are the above image. Growing Food & Flowers. We grew lots and lots of Dahlias, and had over 1,200 Tubers that produced 500+/- New Tubers each year, that we sold at the local Farmers Market every spring.
The Bus GreenHouse
The Bus; A late Model School Bus in reasonably good mechanical order. Must be road worthy. Will be moved around occasionally once on site, but very short distances, local only.
-The Seats; The seats will be removed
-The Tin Roof; The Tin Roof will be removed, just above the windows, but leave the roof members in tact for support of a clear sheets of plexiglass
-The Paint; Some type of graffiti paint, Lavender related
Inside the Bus We would add racks inside to house seedling trays, and a couple of 15-Gallon Barrels with a pump for easy watering.
A RePurposed Bus is actually a very practical GreenHouse Alternative, as the windows are already in place for ventilation, and the structure is solid. I feel like we can garner much attention to our Lavender Project,
Seed saving is an ancient garden craft that engages each of us as backyard preservationists, working to improve our lot with each passing season and every generation. We have long understood that if we saved the seed of our best produce, it would broaden biodiversity and continue to increase yield, disease resistance, and vigor.
Lavender Park
Above is a Lavender Park UrbaneFarm Built. We purchased the plants at Eastern Market (one of the largest Farmers Markets in the Nation) in Downtown Detroit from a quality Wholesaler
In 2017 my Company Urbane Apartments acted on a crazy idea to transform a grass side yard into a Lavender Park, planting nearly 1,000 Lavender plants. Raised Beds rimmed the area, chock full of Heirloom Tomatoes and Peppers on one side and Dahlia Flowers on the other. The Space morphed into a wonderful space for Residents and Neighbors to relax, read, have a glass of wine, and enjoy outdoor gardens.
Five years later, we have expanded our growing space to four additional properties, reducing lawn area with Raised Beds, Outdoor Art, Flowers and Produce. Thus, UrbaneFarm was Born.
Our Mission is to reinvent the way our food is grown and harvested in the neighborhoods we live in. Growing the very finest heirloom varieties of vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs and stunningly beautiful flowers and butterfly gardens.
I Have a Love Affair for Lavender and have registered for the name The Ohio Lavender Festival LLC with the idea of a Lavender Festival at some point.
Small Pop-Up Festivals/Events Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
On Site Farm Market Stand Could be Part of the Income Stack for the HouseMates Project
CSA; Weekly Produce & Flower Basket Subscriptions
Community Supported Agriculture; A model where consumers buy shares of a farm’s harvest in advance, sharing the risks and benefits of food production with the growers. CSA members receive a share of the farm’s produce in exchange for their payment, which helps the farmer cover production costs and focus on growing quality food.
In Summary;
- HouseMates Residents would live onsite in one of the 3–5 ADU’s & Or the Shipping Container Homes and would pay a monthly rental rate for living there.
- The Amenities such as the Lavender Park, Bus GreenHouse, Community Gardens and On Site Farm Market would be enjoyed by both the HouseMates Residents & Patrons of the Event Retreat Space
- Revenue from the HouseMates Rentals, Event Space, AirBnB’s and the Farm Market would be part of the Cash on Cash Returns to the Investors of the Development.
This GrowingFREE SimpleLife HouseMates Adventure could take many different angles, depending on the site & locations. With Our Urbane Apartment Brand Developments we returned a consistent 12% to 18% Cash on Cash Return to the Investors for the last 20-Years.
I am happy to have a Phone Call or Google Meet Meeting to address & answer any questions anyone may have,……….
We are actively Looking for Investors, Land & Locations, for a single development, or multiple developments
Thank You in Advance for considering a GrowingFREE SimpleLife HouseMates Adventure,……..I think it is an excellent path in our later years,………………..
About Eric
Eric is a Writer/Published Author, Poet / Photographer
Reiki Master / Permaculture Activist
Real Estate Developer / Apartment Operator
Find Eric’s Books, Courses & Offerings here;
Eric is an Entrepreneur, and lives a Nomadic Lifestyle and is an OffGrid Practitioner. He is also an Instructor for Melina Emerson Small Biz Lady and an Adjunct Instructor at Drexel University. Eric is well seasoned in urban housing development.
He has built and developed over 14,000 market rate apartments on a national scale. He founded Urbane Apartments in 2000 and oversaw new business, general operations, marketing and branding at the company until retiring in 2021.
He was long recognized by the multi-family housing industry as a vanguard of cutting edge social media marketing. Eric’s social media marketing and branding strategy has garnered national media attention
Eric’s background is rooted in the rental and real estate industries. He founded metro Detroit’s Urbane Apartments in 2003, after serving as senior vice president for Village Green Companies, a major Midwest apartment developer.
He established a proven track record of effectively repositioning existing rental properties in a way that added value for investors while enhancing the resident experience. He also established Urbane Media, a social media marketing and PR laboratory, where innovative marketing ideas are tested. Eric has been featured in Entrepreneur Magazine and Business Week Magazine.
