Good daylight in a house makes a big difference in how people make it through the winters. Planning for cohousing means intensive collaboration between architect and prospective residents. Appleyard gives a lot of credit to the residents who started and persisted with the project. There's a certain amount of skepticism, because it's a fairly new concept. Banks and government bodies may resist at first.
People go out on a limb.
In many co-housing situations, the first occupants have also been the developers. But they're successful in creating community even before its completed, because of the trials and tribulations they go through before moving in.