A community land trust (CLT) is a private, nonprofit corporation created to provide secure, affordable access to land and housing for community members. In particular, CLTs attempt to meet the needs of those least served by the prevailing market. Community land trusts help communities to:
Gain control over local land use and reduce absentee ownership
Provide affordable housing for lower income community residents
Promote resident ownership and control of housing
Keep housing affordable for future residents
Capture the value of public investment for long-term community benefit
Build a strong base for community action
Community land trusts are distinguished from other nonprofit housing and organizations in two ways: (1) how they separate the ownership of land and housing, and (2) how they are structured and controlled. These two distinctive features contribute to the effectiveness of the CLT model as a tool for dealing with the problems of gentrification.
Ownership of Land and Housing
The CLT's distinctive approach to ownership involves permanent CLT ownership of land. It is usually leased to low- and moderate-income households. The land may also be used for affordable rental housing and other purposes.
Acquiring Land for the Community . CLTs can acquire vacant land and develop housing or other structures on it. At other times, CLTs acquire land and buildings together. In both cases, CLTs treat land and buildings differently. The land is held permanently by the land trust so that it will benefit the community. Buildings (known as improvements) can be owned by those who use them.
Homeownership on Community Land . Buildings on CLT land may serve different needs, but, when possible, CLTs help people to own their own homes on this land. When a CLT sells homes, it leases the underlying land to the homeowners through a long-term (usually 99-year), renewable lease, which gives the residents and their descendants the right to use the land for as long as they wish to live there.
Still Affordable for the Next Homeowners . When CLT homeowners decide to move out of their homes, they can sell them. However, the land lease requires that the home be sold either back to the CLT or to another low-income household for an affordable price.
Organizational Structure
CLTs create a pool of permanently affordable owner-occupied housing in gentrifying communities where the cost of housing is otherwise being driven beyond the means of local residents.
The organizational structure of the CLT involves an open membership. It includes both residents who occupy CLT housing and other local residents who have an interest in the CLT's activities (as neighbors, as potential future occupants of CLT homes, or as citizens concerned with the availability of affordable housing in the community).
Membership organization . CLTs are usually organized as "membership corporations," with boards of directors elected by the members. Usually there are two groups of voting members. One group is made up of all the people who live in CLT homes (or use CLT land in other ways). The other group is made up of other people in the community (including neighbors of CLT residents).
Board structure . Usually the CLT board of directors includes those representing resident members, non-CLT residents, and broader community interests. In this way, control of the organization is balanced to protect both the residents and the community as a whole.
The CLT is a balanced vehicle for local residents who want to gain greater control over local land use and development.
