Development

These resources were contributed by Attorney David "Rosebud" Sparer as a resource for housing co-op organizers looking to incorporate as a non-profit or a cooperative.

This resource includes several templates for cooperative business plans from actual housing cooperatives in North America. Other references provided are a blueprint for the development process, of which the business plan is a part, and a cooperative business plan presentation given at the 2009 NASCO Institute.

This presentation was given at the 2009 NASCO Cooperative Education and Training Institute

What is a Nonprofit Corporation?

Not-For-Profit: Pros and Cons

Nonprofit Corporation FAQ's

These sample bylaw can give you an idea of some simple boilerplate language for incorporating your coop.  Of course, a coop should get these bylaws looked at before submitting them, but these should give you a good idea of what you may want to do, and let you change things where you need to do so in order to make these match your needs.

Creating bylaws and policy in student cooperatives

Document describing the process/options for applying for tax exemption in the United States.

Table of Contents

Strategies for Expansion 2

Obtaining Financing 7

Financing Sources 8

Appendices

A: Property Information 10

B: Pro Forma: 505 West Green Street 12

One of the first steps to getting your coop incorporated is to write articles of incorporation for your state.  Most states deal with this through the office of the Secretary of State, but a few don't.  Articles themselves, though, are a fairly simple document, even if the whole thing is in legalese.  One thing about Articles of Incorporation is that they are a brief document, and you can read through them in just a minute or so.  The contents are simple enough that you should be able to get an idea of what you would need to change in reading them, and then those changes can be run by