The Co-op
Welcome
Bloomington Cooperative Living creates and maintains affordable, communal housing in the Bloomington area. We are democratically controlled by our members, both at house and cooperative-wide levels.
The Trellis and Middle Earth serve community members at or below 80% of the Bloomington, Indiana HUD metro Area Median income level. At Which House and Goodlawn, we strive to serve additional members who are above the AMI.
BCL will announce 2023-2024 Cost of Living fees in February with applications for new members opening in Mid-Fefruary and interviews beginning Mid-March.
Consumables
$127
Utilities
$89
Total CoL
$624 avg
Room Fees
$407 avg
Cost of Living
The Cooperative
BCL announced The Trellis as the official name of our newest community at 921 West 9th Street. This location offers private bedrooms and two suites with communal living areas. The Trellis is ADA compliant and welcomes families and individuals of all ages. The suites offer private living and bathroom areas.
Middle Earth, which is located just a few blocks west of downtown Bloomington, was our first BCL-owned property featuring 20 bedrooms. BCL leases two additional houses. Which House and Goodlawn are located just south of the Indiana University area off Atwater Avenue.
Members
Between our four houses, BCL consists of over 60 members from all aspects of the South-Central Indiana community. Our members come equally from:
The Bloomington community
IU graduate and doctoral students
IU undergraduates
Our membership consists of individuals, couples and families with diverse backgrounds and experiences. We have an open membership policy via prospective interviews. Anyone who can commit to the principles of cooperative living and the expectations of membership is eligible to join.
Join In
At its core, BCL is all about community. We have:
House meals and meetings
Game and movie nights
Cooperative-wide gatherings
And community events for the Bloomington and Indiana University areas
We hang out together and support one another.
Bloomington Cooperative Living is a place where countless people have made lifelong friends. We strive to make the cooperative more than just a place to eat and sleep.
Overview
Join BCL
Apply
All prospective members of BCL go through a membershipping process before signing a lease and becoming a part of the BCL community.
You first step requires you to complete an online application. Access our membership application from our site menu, on house pages and other locations on our site.
Interview
After applying, our membershippers will contact you to schedule an interview which can be done in-person or via Zoom.
During interviews, you'll participate in an informal two-way conversation with current cooperative members. This is a perfect time to ask any questions about BCL, it's members, the houses and cooperatives.
Visit
Schedule a visit to our houses. We highly encourage you to pitch-in for one of our dinners . If you decide to help prepare dinner with our members, don't worry, we aren't asking you to cook alone or to be a super chef.
At the least, you should get a house tour either in person or by video. Since any of our houses could be your new home, we want to ensure you the house.
