Housing cooperative

A housing cooperative or housing co-op is an apartment building or similar development (such as a mobile home park), in which tenants own shares of the cooperative organization that owns the development. This ownership structure (housing tenure) is different from renting and homeownership in that co-op owners don't get exclusive possession of their units. Instead, they are granted the conditional right to reside in the units by a co-op board. Housing co-operatives are usually exempt from some of the anti-discrimination laws that other housing tenures must abide by.
Legal status.
As a legal entity, a co-op can contract with other companies or hire individuals to provide it with services, such as a maintenance contractor or a building manager.