This interactive, community-powered resource allows users to explore housing co-ops, submit updates and access resources to support cooperative housing development, preservation and organizing. The project began with UHAB’s national co-op survey in 2015 and has grown into this dynamic website thanks to support from the Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF) and ongoing collaboration with co-op communities nationwide.
“At UHAB, we believe housing co-ops are key to addressing the affordability crisis—offering long-term stability, equity and community control,” said Margy Brown, Executive Director of UHAB. “The National Co-op Map is part of a growing movement to strengthen limited-equity co-ops nationwide.”
The National Co-op Map offers stakeholders across the housing justice landscape a centralized way to see where housing co-ops exist, where there are gaps, and where new organizing can take place. It complements other shared equity housing tools like Grounded Solutions Network’s Map of Community Land Trusts and Nonprofit Shared Equity Homeownership Programs by helping to fill critical gaps in the visibility of cooperative housing nationally.
While UHAB initiated and led the map’s creation, this work reflects a shared commitment to expanding access to shared equity housing. The National Co-op Map aligns with the goals of the Affordable Housing Initiative—a research and education project led by CDF to document the impact of shared equity cooperative models and build the case for their expansion. The initiative brings together housing practitioners, researchers and advocates working to grow permanently affordable, community-controlled housing across the country.
The map is designed to evolve with community input. Users can explore co-ops by region, submit updates and access shared tools. The website is designed to become a living resource that helps people learn from each other, strengthen local organizing, and deepen the impact of the cooperative housing movement.
“UHAB National is responding to the growing demand for more training and support from communities across the country who want to use cooperatives to help meet their housing needs,” said Julie Bosland, Executive Director of the Cooperative Development Foundation. “This website will help link communities to resources and answer the question, ‘Where can I find the housing co-ops near me?’”
This project was made possible with support from the Cooperative Development Foundation and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, as part of the Affordable Housing Initiative, a national multiyear research project on the impact of shared equity cooperative models of ownership.
Thanks to Partner & Partners for designing the map and website.
Visit the Map and Get Involved
The National Co-op Map is live at uhab.org/national. Explore, share feedback and submit updates to help strengthen this tool.