Multi-Family Living

I used to think this notion of how more grownups ought to live in big houses together the way young single people do was just a crazy idea of Ezra Klein's, but apparently Reihan Salam shares the mad vision:

Why not rent a ramshackle 5 bedroom house and fill it with a couple of couples and a couple of singles, all like-minded. Two members of the "mini-commune" could be the homemakers, preparing meals and creating a pleasant, nurturing environment. These could be people who work from home on a flexible basis or who take a particularly strong interest in the domestic arts. The others would be breadwinners. This could, of course, be a reciple for disaster. But consider the savings, in financial and environmental terms. And consider how full of life such a house would be relative to a sterile home that is empty most of the time.

As the proud resident of a ramshackle five bedroom house, I must concede that the idea has a certain appeal. On the other hand, part of its ramshackle nature was that when I moved in I was warned that small children shouldn't really spend time in the house thanks to the lead paint.