Moving Toward the Vision of the Good Life: Strengthening Family and Community Through Multi-Family Living

In today’s rapidly changing world, where individualism often takes precedence over the importance of family and community, many are searching for ways to restore the time-honored values of strong families, mutual support, and close-knit relationships. One promising solution lies in the creation of housing environments that allow multiple families—whether extended relatives, close friends, or multigenerational families—to live together, while still having separate living spaces. This model reflects the core ideals of strong family bonds and personal responsibility, fostering interdependence while maintaining autonomy.

Whether it is multigenerational families or close-knit groups of friends, multifamily living promises a space for supporting strong and self-sufficient families and communities.

The vision of the “good life” is often tied to the belief in hard work, strong family values, self-sufficiency, and shared responsibilities. However, today’s housing market, social systems, and cultural dynamics have created barriers to achieving this ideal. A system that encourages multiple families living together—while maintaining private living spaces—can help reinforce these values in a way that promotes both family cohesion and personal autonomy.

A Family-Centered Approach to Housing

This vision promotes living arrangements where multiple families—whether related by blood or close friendships—coexist in the same space, fostering tight-knit relationships without sacrificing the need for privacy. These multi-family arrangements could take the form of side-by-side homes on a shared property, duplexes, or a shared estate with separate living areas for each family. The key is to create space where families can be self-sufficient and maintain autonomy, while benefiting from the support, companionship, and assistance of extended family members or close friends.

In practice, this could look like several families or groups of friends renting or buying individual apartments within the same building or complex. Each group or family unit would have its own private apartment, complete with all necessary amenities, but the building itself would be designed to encourage interaction, with shared spaces for socializing, dining, and outdoor activities. In larger apartment complexes, common areas such as kitchens, laundry facilities, or even playgrounds and gardens could be shared, encouraging interaction between families and a sense of community. Families could pool resources to rent or purchase such properties, allowing for a more affordable, sustainable living arrangement that strengthens bonds while maintaining necessary privacy.

This model brings together families that share common values—values that emphasize the importance of raising children in a stable, supportive environment, passing down family traditions, and ensuring that elder generations are cared for with respect and dignity.

Why This Housing Model Reflects Core Family Values

1. Strengthening Family Bonds and Community Ties: At the heart of this model is a return to the core value of family. The shared living spaces foster deeper connections between family members, including between generations. Children benefit from the wisdom and love of grandparents, while parents receive support from both their immediate and extended families. This strengthens the traditional family unit, ensuring that values such as respect for elders, responsibility, and mutual support are passed down and lived out daily.

   
   

2. Economic Independence and Self-Sufficiency: One of the cornerstones of a fulfilling life is economic self-sufficiency. Multi-family living can enhance economic resilience by allowing families to pool resources, reduce individual costs, and share responsibilities. For example, shared expenses like utilities, maintenance, and even childcare can ease financial burdens, creating a more self-reliant and stable environment. In a time when many families are struggling with high housing costs, this model offers a practical way to maintain financial independence without compromising family values.

   
   

3. Promoting Traditional Family Structures: Multigenerational living is a natural fit with the idea of reinforcing the traditional family structure. This arrangement allows older generations to remain actively involved in the lives of their children and grandchildren, and it supports a family-oriented lifestyle. Rather than isolating elderly family members in nursing homes or senior living facilities, multigenerational housing keeps the family unit intact and ensures that the elderly receive care, attention, and love within a familiar environment. This model is not only a return to time-tested family practices but also an affirmation of the value of each generation.

   
   

4. Reducing Dependence on External Services: A strong, resilient family is less reliant on outside assistance. In multi-family living arrangements, families can support each other with child-rearing, elder care, and even healthcare needs, which reduces the demand for external services. This aligns with the desire to foster self-reliance and encourage families to care for themselves and each other.

   
   

5. Sustainability and Stewardship: The value of stewardship—caring for the land and resources entrusted to us—is also embodied in the housing model. By sharing resources, whether it’s land, utilities, or even food, families reduce waste and promote environmental sustainability. This model encourages a lifestyle that values practical conservation and the careful management of resources, aligning with principles of responsibility and sustainability.

   
   

Creating Incentives for This Model

To move toward this vision of the good life, we must create the right incentives and infrastructure to support multi-family living. Here are some key ways we can make this a reality:

1. Policy and Zoning Reform: Local governments should revise zoning laws and building codes to allow for multi-family housing options that respect both privacy and community. By providing incentives for the construction of homes that allow multiple families to live together, governments can help restore the ideal of close-knit family living. This might include easing restrictions on duplexes, triplexes, or shared estates, while allowing for design flexibility that respects the distinct needs of each family.

   
   

2. Tax Incentives for Multi-Family Housing: Offering tax incentives for families who choose to live together or build multi-family homes could be an effective way to encourage this approach. This could include tax credits for building separate living units on family property or tax breaks for families who share costs like child care or elderly care. Such incentives would reduce financial strain, making it easier for families to adopt this model while preserving their independence.

   
   

3. Promoting Faith-Based Communities and Support Networks: Many families value the role faith-based communities play in fostering strong family bonds. Encouraging churches, synagogues, and other religious organizations to help create or support multi-family living arrangements could further align this housing model with the values of family, community, and mutual support. Faith-based communities could facilitate housing arrangements where families with similar beliefs come together to form supportive networks.

   
   

4. Private Sector Involvement: Developers who want to align with family-oriented values could be incentivized to create housing that fosters relationships without sacrificing individual privacy. This could involve building homes with separate family spaces but shared areas like gardens, kitchens, or play areas for children. Private sector solutions that respect family autonomy while promoting connection are critical to making this model a widespread success.

   
   

5. Educating Families About the Benefits: Public awareness campaigns highlighting the benefits of multi-family living—such as reduced financial strain, stronger family bonds, and the ability to care for aging relatives—could help families make the transition toward this model. Community leaders, family advocates, and other influencers can play an important role in promoting this vision as a viable alternative to traditional housing.

   
   

Conclusion: A Stronger, More Connected Future

The good life is rooted in family, faith, and community. By creating housing that allows multiple families to live together while maintaining their individual privacy, we can restore the values that have long been the foundation of society. This model promotes family cohesion, economic independence, and sustainability—while ensuring that families are supported by the extended networks they need to thrive.

For those who champion the values of strong, self-sufficient families, this approach offers a return to the ideals of close-knit family life, while fostering the deeper relationships and bonds that make the good life truly attainable. Whether families come together to rent or buy in a shared building or purchase land for independent but adjacent homes, this model provides a meaningful way to reconnect with the core elements of family and community.