As the president of a cooperative, elected 2 terms...

As the president of a cooperative, elected 2 terms in a row, it is my opinion that this organization is terrible to work with and does not care about the best interests of the cooperatives they work with. If you don't ask questions, maybe they are great, but if you look at the figures, their rates, what they actually offer cooperatives, and question things, that's where it all goes downhill. I had issues with them not responding to emails or phone calls, as a new board member, and noticed that they seemed to pick favorites on the co-op boards they work with (the ones who don't ask questions), and will completely ignore those on the board that they seem to not like. That was my experience with the last person we worked with, who spent most of their time partnering with specific board members they liked. We later got someone else to work with, but the previous representative works with other board members still, just refusing to work with some on the board. This all started when I questioned our interest rates and why because of that, they felt it was appropriate to be biased against me because of it.

Ultimately, it is my opinion that the people I spoke with at the organization do not like board members that ask questions; especially when it is regarding our costs. Even our bank was receptive to questions and working out a change in our rate in order to help our community survive and help slow the process of our failing infrastructure. This so-called non-profit seemed far less concerned with our stability as a cooperative, and does not seem willing to work with us. Don't be mistaken, it's my opinion that their only concern is being profitable, which is fine, but they shouldn't pretend otherwise, and act like they offer equal representation for all communities and board members, as in my experience, that is just not true.

Overall, I don't like the way this company works, as I believe fear tactics are used to get communities to become co-ops, regardless of the cost or whether it is something they can afford. In my opinion, a community I have been part of bit off far more than they could chew when they became a co-op based on their recommendations and what I consider to be fear tactics based on what I have heard. When the community first became a co-op, the rent went up substantially as soon as it became a co-op. Everyone was so scared of losing their home, they signed up by any means necessary.

In my opinion, the cost is far more than what an interest rate is using a for-profit bank, so I'm not sure what benefit is received from any involvement with this so-called non-profit company that is supposed to be there to help communities (while at the same time being the company that is involved in loaning money to the cooperatives and individuals buying homes in those coops)... It seems like there are endless conflicts of interests in my point of view, but this is all just my opinion. Even the contractors the coop was referred to seem to be far more costly than some of the competition. In fact, the community I was part of switched from using a contractor they were referred to, that provided management, to using their own bookkeeper, which was a major cost savings. I'm not sure if new co-ops are able to choose whether or not to use a management company. If not, well, it wouldn't sound to me like the freedom that was pitched to community.

Ultimately, I believe we will see a reversal of co-ops going back to being privately owned, or, if some remain, it will be because the residents are able to purchase the property on their own. I am all for co-ops, but in my personal opinion, I don't believe this company is for communities, as much as they are for shareholders.