Couple seeks to meet housing needs through home sharing

ADDISON — Addison residents Jan Louise and John Ball often opened their doors to those who needed a place to stay.

They have hosted several people in their Mountain Road home over the years, whether it was someone from out of state looking for a place to live in Vermont or a friend needing a break from their current living situation.

“My mother was like that, people would come on Sunday mornings and she would start cooking with love. She was also the ‘animal saviour’ of the village,” Jan Louise said in a recent interview. “I think when you grow up with these values, you apply them forever.”

Today, the couple wants to share their home with others in the community on a larger scale. They are currently evaluating the potential of creating a housing cooperative or home-sharing scheme, starting with their home in Addison and a bungalow in Bristol that the couple has been renting out for several years.

They see the home sharing model as an opportunity to build community and help address local housing needs.

“Right now, with the current housing situation, a lot of people can’t find a place to live that’s right for them,” said Jan Louise. “The idea of ​​sharing a house, of a co-op, really snowballed in my heart because something needs to be done for the homeless and the hungry.”

Housing is getting more expensive: The median sales price of a primary residence increased 5% in 2023, to $325,000, and the price of new homes jumped 11% to $616,500, according to the Vermont Housing Finance Agency. Rental costs have also increased.

The shortage of affordable housing has prompted more people across the country to embrace the home-sharing model in recent years. In many cases, older Americans rent out vacant rooms in their homes to younger roommates.

With home sharing, two or more roommates share a common space and, often, responsibilities in the home. Services like HomeShare Vermont have become a popular way to connect potential renters with hosts.

Cooperative housing revolves around a similar idea, in which individuals collectively own the property and contribute to its management.

Jan Louise Ball said the couple lived in a similar type of community in southwestern New Mexico about 36 years ago. Community members lived in their own spaces with shared common areas like a dining room.

“It was pretty magical,” she said. “The community life, working with food, making music together and sharing childcare. We had a Montessori school for our kids. It was a really enriching experience, which most people miss.”

Jan Louise has long dreamed of creating a home-sharing system in the Green Mountain State.

She and John have lived in their Addison home for more than three decades. Nestled at the base of Snake Mountain, the four-acre property includes a thriving garden and a yurt where former roommates have stayed.

About seven years ago, Jan Louise came across a bungalow for sale in Bristol, a city the couple had considered moving to before finding their home in Addison. They lived in the Bristol house for a few years during the pandemic and rented it out to several tenants.

Jan Louise said when the last tenant moved out, it prompted the couple to see if they could try sharing their space.

The idea is to use the couple’s homes in Bristol and Addison as base residences for the home-sharing. Jan Louise said people interested in the idea would help shape it, with the possibility of each home being a space for people with similar interests.

The residents would all join the cooperative and each would pay the same monthly rent.

“It would also be a placement issue in the sense that if someone had lived in Burlington for years and all of a sudden their son graduated, they could find a place in Middlebury that would be a good fit,” Louise said.

She noted that her long-time dream for the Addison property was to co-create a “Seven Sisters Healing Sanctuary” with other local women. That dream continues to evolve, and more information will be available soon for those interested in becoming part of the community.

Jan Louise stressed that nothing is set in stone and that ultimately, potential roommates will work together to orchestrate the arrangement.

“I keep thinking and feeling that if we can just get these two houses (in Bristol and Addison) working, then the seed will be planted and others will be inspired to grow there,” she said.

If this model is put into practice, Jan Louise sees it as an opportunity to meet local housing needs and use available space in homes in the area.

“This could be helpful to a lot of people,” she said. “I have friends of all ages who are struggling to get a place to live.”

She believes the arrangement could also help strengthen community at a time when loneliness is on the rise across the country.

“It’s not just about having your own space (in a home), but working together and making sure everyone gets what they need, rather than living in this room and me in that room, it becomes a community,” Jan Louise said. “We’re designed to live as a tribe, but we’re moving into separate living quarters and giving up that experience on a daily basis.”

The couple is currently looking to share the idea with other members of the community and reach out to anyone who is interested. Jan Louise said community members of all ages and interests are welcome to participate in the effort.

“That’s what we really need at this point is people getting excited and coming forward and saying, ‘Wow, I really want to be a part of helping you get there,’” she said.

You can access the Balls at (protected email) or 802-759-2058.