Friends couldn't afford rent. Pooled together to buy homes instead
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- Опубликовано: 26 сен 2024
- Phil Levin and Kristen Berman wanted to live near their friends, but they didn’t want to sacrifice their privacy, so they started their own intentional community where you can choose your neighbors and eat together but still have your own home. They called it Radish.
Today, on their one-third-acre lot in the San Francisco Bay Area, there are 20 adults and 4 babies living in 6 buildings with 10 units. There's a 4-plex with 5 adults, 2 apartments with 2 or 4 adults upstairs and families downstairs, and 2 houses with families.
They started with a group of friends who joined together to create an LLC to buy a lot with 3 buildings, but once California changed the ADU laws, they added 2 extra structures of around 900 square feet each: one now houses a single family, and another is their community house with a kitchen, dining room, living room, and coworking space.
"Radish is built around the “Obvious Truth” - that people are happiest and healthiest surrounded by people they love and admire," they explain on their website. They all have their own homes, but they eat dinner together (nowadays, they have hired a cook which they can "afford to split among 20").
Levin wants to help other people do what they did, so he started a website called "Live Near Friends" that searches for available housing that could accommodate groups, whether a duplex, a home with an ADU, an apartment cluster, a mini hood, a pocket hood, or a full "friend compound."
radishoakland....
livenearfriend...
On *faircompanies: faircompanies....
![Tee Grizzley - Blow for Blow (feat. J. Cole) [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/wNLN5xsx5dc/mqdefault.jpg)
This reminds me of the neighborhood where I grew up. We lived on a dead end street and all the neighbors had families and the kids played together and parents could call anyone by just opening up a window. The nice thing was that we had two and three generations living in the same homes. The kids bought the parents house and then the grandkids bought out their parents. My kids played on the same street and woods as I had done 30 years earlier. The story finally changed when the families moved out to other places. My son moved to a small farm, and built a barn with a FIL apartment where I moved to. I have home cooked meals, grandkids to visit with along with dogs, chickens and garden space and fruit trees. I’m sitting on my porch watching this while enjoying the evening sunshine and listening to the birds singing. Life is better with family! BTW- the farm is located on a dead end road where we have three properties that have multiple homes owned by family members.
Nicest story one can imagine. I moved all my life averagely every 18 months -> no family no friends - retirement is close, hope to find people to live as a family by choice - like a little tribe. Lonelyness is a common curse these days.
Amazing! You just described my dream! My heart is hungry for that kind of living.
That’s wonderful.
Life in the Mediterranean where I live was always like this more or less, with a lot more drama sometimes. People got and still get a lot of mockery for adult kids living with families. `
Thanks for sharing. You're living the dream. ❤❤😊😊
People are hungry to return to community. Epidemic of loneliness and isolation is upon humanity and its great to see these people and others we have come across, doing this in one form or another. When our kids were little, we lived behind a housing co-op and had friends there, so we put a gate in the back fence, so we could come and go. Our kids loved it and as an introvert, I could retreat to our house when it got too much .
People abandoning the communities that brought them up because of their own inability to commit, only to join these borderline cult like communities😂 in a rural world of community vs community no one in this video seems like a pillar of strength i would rely on, but good on these folks for forging what they got in the very protected and privileged hamlet of SanFran😂
@@pred7949 Sad to choose to go through life in such a negative frame...
@@snowstrobe cope
@@pred7949 You're clearly the one not coping. Ironic.
@@snowstrobe yea sure helen, you tell yourself whatever you need to to make it through the day sweetie
Thank you Kirsten, for always bringing videos that are watchable, thought provoking, and inspiring!
Why is there a 13 minute commercial before your broadcast comes on?
I am happy living alone. I started as an only child for the first 11 years of my life. Parents divorced/remarried and I only had half- and step-siblings on the weekends. I couldn’t imagine this lifestyle in a million years. But I am so happy to know it exists. I do believe “villages” of people make great families. Thanks to all of you for sharing this with us.
Amazing so many people are so compatible. Must be very responsible socially intelligent people. One difficult person could create chaos!
Not if the rest of them didn’t buy into it.
It is amazing because people are crazy, warring monkeys. But these people seem to utilize the very things needed to coexist peacefully - mutual consideration, following basic rules, etc.
Okay but obvi these are mostly economically advantaged white people in a historically Black working class neighborhood in Oakland.
Yep.
@@RevdUp.Art.Fotografer Not always true. There was a psychopath living in an upscale apartment building in New York city. He terrorized EVERYONE who walked IN and out of those doors all day everyday.
Meetings were held, complaints filed with management and the authorities countless times. The man was arrested several times but never changed his behavior. He made their lives a living h*'ll!
Nothing the tenants did worked.
I'm an extreme introvert, and this video demonstrates exactly why I ended up wishing that there were such a thing as life-long on-campus dorm rooms years ago when I lived on campus.
This is the closest you might ever get to that. Only even better, because look how easily it can grow with you as you move through the various stages of life! And it sounds like these people have formed closer bonds with each other than I ever did with anyone I lived on campus with.
Once upon a time, rooming and boarding houses existed to serve that function, but that form of housing has largely fallen by the wayside except in the form of halfway houses
@@MrJethroha Yes, my first independent living situation was a residence club in San Francisco where I got a room, access to a community bath and two meals a day for $90 per month. That was in 1967. Coincidentally, I later ended up in a half-way house but that’s another story.
Introvert with all these people ? Not for me
I think this is an excellent idea and I applaud the group that got together to come up with this solution to work together to conquer so many of life's problems with something better. Living in a one family in the city or burbs, often housing is prohibitively expensive, yard maintenance is overly time consuming, cooking every night isn't something anyone wants to do, childcare is laughably expensive and we don't get to see or enjoy time with our friends and neighbors nearly as much as we'd like. They divide, conquer and get to enjoy life more with less stress! I feel like the people levelling criticism in the comments don't have very good complex analytical skills.
You nailed it honestly, or they know they are messy/a bit lazy and wouldn't be able to contribute enough to keep it going. I absolutely LOVE this concept and have been wanting to do something similar with my siblings, but they live all over. It's smart though.
Or don’t have deep friendships.
I have a group of friends that have been thinking/talking about this type of thing. I'm a General Contractor living in Oakland. Well done (again) Kristen. "Tenants in Common" I think is the technical property ownership term. Tricky business legally with so many owners... Their website looks cool, I will contact them for more info re/legalities etc...
Yah - I assume this is some kind of TIC arrangement.
Or is it Common Law Tenants? 😉
Could this be somewhat like a Condo ‘building?’
I’m asking, I don’t know.
At 13:34 the main guy mentioned that it is an LLC that owns everything (maybe that's a co-op structure?). It sounds like people can then buy into the "business", but the details are mostly absent in the video. It's an interesting exercise to consider a setup that strikes a good balance between owning/renting so as not to create weird ownership incentives and also avoid free-loading owners.
Speculation zone: I'd guess the LLC setup allowed the family that started the pocket community to build it as they envisioned, and then they might have sold off portions of the LLC to new owners (who then are deeded portions of the property) who had been renters who decide they'd like to stay but also own. Each owner could sell their share and corresponding deeded portion of the property, but some contingencies may be worthwhile (e.g. right to current owners to purchase the corresponding share of the business and gain the deeded area at whatever sale price is offered, which they could then rent out).
There's a few legal structures you can use in California for this kind of thing.
You can choose your neighbors......perfect!!!❤
It's interesting the huge impact that 'village' style living can have on peoples' lives. 'It takes a village' can relate to children growing up but also just the affect that a good community has on the quality of life of all the people that live within it
Interesting living arrangement. Reminds me of the 60’s without the drugs.
I'm sure there are some drugs lol
They built a "village"....nice.
I do wonder about the idea that they consider themselves to be many "introverts".
I consider myself to be an introvert and I am not sure how it would feel to live in such an open, shared way with so many others.
But I like what they have done here.
"Does anyone have dietary restrictions?"... "We have a chart."
Ladies and gentlemen, I present you the most Bay Area conversation ever outered!😂
Community 😊 this was great. The living areas can be adjusted for different living situations. Really enjoyed this thanks
It’s an exciting experiment. I’d like to see where they are in 5 years. I hope it works out and everyone continues to respect each other.
Sounds like they have already spent years doing this.
@@serenakoleno9338 it’s interesting because most communes don’t work out but this one is sort of a hybrid.
He said they have been there 6 years
@@larsstougaard7097 let’s see if they get the 7 year itch
Such an interesting concept. Love it!
Our strength is in our UNITY family 👍💪🏻🤠
Pure family enrichment in the best way! How awesome to allow yourself to be free in friendship.
This is a huge inspiration. People are hungry for this option. Please do a segment on the guy who is a partner on Cul de Sac, who is working to expand co living in America.
I love this way of living. It makes so much sense. And if you have a great family (I know not everyone does!) then having the family live like this with all the generations adding their value, is just wonderful!
Love your videos Kirsten, always so uplifting
Human beings being humans beings . Just great.
You guys find the most amazing person and places. Everyone you meet has a wonderful story. I love this channel so much.
Love this concept...and micro spaces too!
I have thoroughly enjoyed numerous episodes as you delve into architecture, environments, cultural and personal stories of our diverse human habits. As a person that has experienced several unconventional, wonderful and much loved living approaches over 50 years, Radish is an absolute delight. An example of community, connection, individuality health, beauty, creativity and actually living lighter on the earth rather than the weight of indiviual/isolated living approaches. From my perspective as the differnt seasons of our lives shift, our desires tend to also and the beauty of flexablity, adaptability while valuing lifelong creative approaches that nurture relationships, joy, depth, laughter and individual expression along the way nurtures optimum health and wellness and vibrant living.
Wonderful and much appreciated this Radish expression of community.
Living in a community that is this close is the dream!
@@ansleytimeLoved it. For my ideal, I would add food forest /organic gardens
I live and is from Oakland. So happy you came here 💛💚
That is my nightmare.
When are kids were toddlers we lived in a
Cul-te-sac with my mother and dad
(Gma & Gpa), my family and my brothers family. It was very nice the kids could go
back and fourth. See Gma & Gpa took turns
watching kids. It was really wonderful.
This is a cool idea. Like a small town.
Thanks 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 🍂🍁🍂🍁🍂🍁🍂
Pretty cool arrangement. I like that there seems to be no hard feelings when it’s time to “move on”, even if it is just down the street. 👍👍
Love it- consider mixing in a few grey haired entities to this mix :)
Grey hair is what you see missing here?
I love this arrangement.
None of these kids will need to go to preschool. I feel like they could probably hire a teacher for cheaper than what they would pay individually at a school, even if they did decide they wanted some curriculum and wanted the time away.
We need more of this.
This setup makes me anxious just watching the tour. Introvert here, just my husband and myself on 77 acres in the country, kids are grown and moved out.
Café Fig is adorable 🥰
My daughter and I used to live on MacArthur up the street from Lake Merrit in the first house her dad lived in. The highway was right across the street, lol! This is a great idea, especially if/when the dung hits the fan and you have your trusted friends there to help each other in an emergency.
Good luck to them when it comes to defending that property in a SHTF situation..After all, this is Oakland we're talking about.
@@NNYER38 I didn't think about that. My daughter and I moved out of CA because it's a blue state, lol!
@@diannamarie464 I left in 89 when I joined the Army but my family still lives in the Bay Area.
@@NNYER38 I left in '90 too for school/work. Lived a block off of Lake Merritt. Was shocked to see that MASSIVE building in the opening seconds of this video.
They should do a show based on this whole thing and call it Friends. Oh wait.
The folks saying it’s too much of a commitment or it seems cults don’t understand the decades long co-housing movement or the rational behind it. Look into it!
I think it's a wonderful idea. Loneliness, as mentioned here, despite all of the social media that is supposed to keep us connected, is widespread and concerning. But it seems like these people are professionals that are well to do. I can't imagine that this was an inexpensive proposition. And it wasn't made clear why some people have left. And then how do they decide who the new incoming 'tenant' will be to replace the outgoing one. Is it an interview process? A friend of someone that already lives there and they feel they would be a good fit? Also, how do they resolve any conflicts that may come up? Again, I think it's a wonderful idea, but these are questions that could've been interesting to ask.
Wonderful concept, so rewarding for the new generation (children), not sure how property taxes would work if people who didn’t sell their shares but lived elsewhere, extremely cool designs, love the enclosed spaces for young and old.
@@jeffbaca1173 I agree on how much you put down and what do you actually own and yes when it's time to sell. aside from that it fits what some are looking for.
This concept is similar to the Jewish kibbutz/communal model.This concept has never been given a fair chance or effort to succeed.Its a highly practical way of living,and the work these people have put into it is exemplary.Way to go Kirsten.
@@fredsimmons2793 It's more like the modern day kibbutzim where the kibbutzniks can have jobs outside and have their own money unlike the original kibbutzim where everyone worked on the kibbutz and no-one earned much of a salary
kibbutz lifestyle came wright o my mind watching this. I had lived/ working on a kibbutz back in Israel. It was wonderful time. Down the road was a highway with buses and taxis to the nearby city and bus station, etc. Plus Israel has modern kibbutz that are apartments in cities instead of farms were people mostly work off site. Shame that many are clueless on this sort of community.
So where ppl of European descent create enclaves where non-white people lived before them?
I feel like these people are swingers. 🍍 Lol.
Either that or polyamorous couples.
I love the sense of community in a pocket style neighborhood, though it does hurt my soul a bit that some trees were taken down to build more homes in what looked like a nice yard area, could have been a green commons. That can be worked with though with mindful planting.
It's going to be interesting when all of those kids are teenagers !😅
@@ZERODESTRUCTION As a father ti two teenage boys (17 and 14) and a teenage niece (17), your comment is spot on 😂
Good luck to these folks as the chaos starts around 12 - 13 when puberty kicks in. A follow up video is needed.
this looks like my nightmare, lol.
I love and appreciate the lense you give us. Home is where the heart lives❤ 🏠
I love stories like this. Basically anything about how zoning regulation reform has allowed people to reclaim urban land use and space to create healthier and happier communities. Unfortunately things like this are illegal in most of the US. We desperately need housing and zoning reform to allow communities like this upzoning, ADUs, tiny house communities, mixed use multifamily medium density, single stair point access blocks, etc.
They basically made their own baugruppen 💚
I like this idea with family members but not for non-relatives. I like the ADUs but they don't even get to own 100% of the property. Only the main guy owns it. This would make sense for a large family or multi-generatiomal family household.
What a beautiful home. So inviting. Thak you for sharing!
I love that they touch on how this is perfect for introverts.
I've spent many years living in shared housing as an introvert and it's always filled me with an intense sense of freedom and fulfillment.
I love this. As a single mom with one child I move into complexes where kids can play outside. They all get to play in the courtyard.
This is the only video on this channel, which we love, that we've disliked. No reflection on KD at all. It's good to see what folks are up to, regardless. Thank you for consistently wonderful work.
"Childfree" people are the only group who I can imagine might not like the message
What is KD?
@@801oap Kirsten Dirksen
@@LowConsumptionAgenda The message, the draw, the sell, marketing, meh. What matters is what's alive and real, not an idealistic presentation.
@@gertferty4566 How in the world can you look at this and not see it's alive and real? They're not 'selling' anything.
Just two observations and not a Snark just an honest observation #1 how did the various families work out the ownerships issue? Is this an HOA? Is it condos? Is it a co-op? How does that work?#2 and then finally just an aesthetic question. Is that grass or Astroturf?
This reminds me of the 2011 documentary, “Happy.” They showed a co-housing arrangement in Denmark that felt a lot like this.
Beautiful
My maternal aunty has a single compund where his three son built seperate homes, seperate kitches but they enclosed with single gate. That way its a family unit. My other maternal uncles also have seperate houses within a single enclosed compund with single main door to outer world. Some family members live adjacent to each others with no single compound no single door. Some family have built a big house/ apartments type and they live seperately but adjacent to each others.
we need more of this
Definately how I'd like to live. It's more efficent too, you can share lots of things like tools and equipment.
Shame about the plastic grass tho!
I really like this idea!
I want this so bad.
We're in Charlottesville, Virginia. Have lived in the same 1938 house since 1995 and we have heavily customized and improved it. So it is going to take a massive force to get us to move.
No kids. But ever since I saw collective child care in the "yard" in Jamaica also 1995, I've known that the everybody has their own, no sharing model is not good and it costs too much. Elder care is the other frontier which I will soon enough be facing.
Finding the right balance of community and privacy is what we need. This is inspiring and thank you.
Maybe Frusins is a good word for the connection of these children. Friends/ cousins. How do they figure out who pays for communal groceries etc?
Curious to know if these people were raised by hippies? What or who gave them the ideas for this? 😊
The original hippies weren’t raised by hippies. They were part of the counter culture against the stale, isolating lives of the new suburbs.
I love this way of living as well -- we need more of this -- please seek out more of these communities to share with us and thank you!!
I have no interest in living with my friends or this close as a full grown adults. 😂
For those who are calling this gentrification, I am curious as to what your thoughts are regarding home ownership. Is gentrification the fault of the new homeowners that may not be of the same ethnicity as the community as historically? Or the fault of the sellers who chose to price their home out of the range of fellow community members to purchase? Is it wrong for a new homeowner to want to improve the property and take pride and ownership? What are some possible solutions to your perceived issue? Deed restrictions? That a historically, black or Hispanic or white neighborhood can then only sell to future homeowners that are the same race or ethnicity? I can only see that as perpetuating poverty pockets or segregation. I’m totally onboard with restricting big corporations from purchasing single-family residences as that artificially elevates home prices and most potential homeowners from being able to enter into the market. But do we really want to restrict who can live in white neighborhoods based on their race or ethnicity or income level?
Just an upscale commune.
Better hope that none gets a divorce as that will make the “Friend group” awkward.
There is something like this being built across the street from me. Slow progress but it is such and interesting property and group of structures.
This is the way we were supposed to live.
I feel like these people are polyamorous couples.
What's really cool is the website he created LIVE NEAR FRIENDS. GREAT IDEA !!!
Being a napper, I loved the bed under the stairs. I like sleeping in small spaces like that.
This is how things work in India when I grew up. As kids we had a great time playing with neighborhood kids.
That's great that they can accept and respect extroverts as fellow communal family, because it seems like a place made for extroverts...until the next one and travel on !!
So they don’t own the houses and are renting? How’s that different than usual? I’m confused. He’s just making a lot money as their landlord but how is this different?.
I heard mention of an LLC, so am a bit suspicious. However, I am sure the arrangements works very well for the residents, especially if the rent is reasonable and there no fees and associated fines.
And he wasn’t forthcoming with that LLC info in the beginning. No mention of the rent or HOA fees 🤷. Looks like usual gentrification
I got the impression that the LLC is co-owned by all the original residents. They all pay rent to the LLC, which is then used to pay the expenses. Like Kirsten said, it’s a co-op (like some apartments in New York.) They said that when people move out, they often keep their ownership in the co-op, even though they don’t live on the property.
I know these guys, this is co-housing! The dark house on the right hand corner of their yard is a woman who won’t rent and won’t sell because she’s so frightened by the anti-landlord laws. Tens of thousands of similar properties throughout the Bay Area.
"Does anyone have dietary restrictions?" (in a Bay area communal living neighborhood). Hahahahaha!! (Pan to chart of restrictions for each resident.)
Kinda cool setup though.
Interesting concept. This story made me smile.
I lived in another pocket neighborhood in Oakland and it was the best
That's fantastic !
Wonderful concept!😊👍
I've always dreamed of living in a little compound in the middle of a city...Right across the street from the kids hospital too!
I love love that kitchen.❤❤❤and i love the idea😂😂😂😂😂
They have found their tribe.🙌🏼🇦🇺
This is wonderful :)
One ADU is blocking the view of the street of the original yellow house. I would have left that spot as a courtyard for community gatherings. Other than that a great idea!
Oakland scene is too scary for my liking but appreciate this video showing the good parts of any city
Don't believe the propaganda. Those people are bringing up children with no apparent concerns.
That should be the future of living. Friemily. But it wont be. People are too selfish. Makes me sad.😢
Nooo way
😂
❤So smart I want to do this with my friend
How do I make friends like this?? 😅😅😅😅😂😂😂
This may give a reason why the rest of the country don’t get cali. I like the concept for non violent felons.
i grew up in chinatown in an alley n i loved playing w the kids
Love the blue but can't live with other people! 💙
A brilliant solution!
Great content. Would have liked to know more about the money side of things. How do they pay for food, yard maintenance, etc., . Also how do they handle problems as they arrive? I love the concept, just curious about the practical stuff. 😅
Americans complain about the housing crisis but dismiss smart solutions like this as intrusive, privileged and cult-like.
@@DRJ-ytp That’s a problem in this country. Offer some (relatively) simple solutions & people automatically find ways to say it won’t work. It seems like the country in general is like this, which is why it’s so difficult to get people moving in a similar direction.
LOVE this!!!
This is my idea of the ideal way to live in community!!!