Nanaimo Intentional Community Living

Attracting potential residents from all over the world, the city of Nanaimo on the island of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada is quickly gaining the reputation of being the source of many utopian modeled intentional communities. A small city of 79,000 residents, Nanaimo prides itself on it’s sophisticated cultural setting comprised of many artists, musicians and craftsmen, with an emphasis on higher education.

As an extension of the alternative lifestyles that often accompanies a community of artists and existentialistic thinkers, many of the residential communities are modeled after the intentional community system. In an intentional community system, new members may be selected by committees of existing members after initial meetings during group events and accepted new members may be subjected to a period of probation, usually of six months, during which time the permanent community members decide if the new member is fitting into their communal way of living. This level of community living extends to the practice of sharing of tasks and belongings that are of benefit to the entire community. Different intentional communities in Nanaimo possess different degrees of communal style living.

Originated in Denmark, the formation of intentional communities is designed to provide a universal sense of responsibility and belonging to every community member. Many communities have an open door environment where individual homes are connected by common interior walkways, and all residents are treated as members of an extended family.

The natural beauty of the island, in conjunction with man made amenities including possessing the world’s largest artificial reef for scuba diving, make Nanaimo a lucrative proposition for purchasing residential property. The residents of Nanaimo also enjoy the readily accessible pleasures of kayaking, rock climbing and cave exploring as well as fishing, golfing and hiking in any one of the island’s ten major parks.

If the benefits of a communal style of living are appealing to you, exploring the possibilities of owning a residence in Nanaimo may lead you to a better way of life. As there are specific variables particular to each community property in Nanaimo, conferring with a local CoHousing Real Estate Agent will help you to identify which of the communities will fit most seamlessly into your desire for this lifestyle. Meanwhile, there are many website listings for properties in the Nanaimo region which include property photographs and descriptions of surrounding areas. In many intentional communities, residents each own an individual house which has all of the private amenities you would expect in a residential dwelling. In addition to individual property ownership, each resident jointly owns all of the land in the community as well as common area buildings where community functions and communal meals take place.

Once your property choices have been narrowed down, a visit to Nanaimo with your CoHousing Real Estate Agent will be in order to meet with the community members, and immerse yourself in the spirit of this close knit community that has all of the benefits of a small town and retains the connections to the major metropolitan areas and advantages.