What is a Community Land Trust?
Community Land Trusts are locally based non-profit
organizations that create permanently affordable housing through community
ownership of the land. CLT's separate
the ownership of residential buildings from ownership of the land under those
buildings. Residents control their buildings
by owning them. Residents can own a
house, an apartment, or a share in a housing cooperative. In a limited equity housing cooperative, each
household has one share and thus one vote in the affairs of the coop. The CLT retains ownership of the land under
the buildings.
By
separating the ownership of the land from the buildings, the CLT can reduce the
cost of owning a building or house. The
CLT creates long terms ground leases for the buildings on their land, usually
99 years, and includes re-sale restrictions in these ground leases. In this way, the buildings can remain
affordable not just for the first owner, but for all owners in the future. So in exchange for inexpensive homes,
residents agree to sell their homes back to the CLT, or another low to moderate
income household, at a restricted price. This restriction on price benefits the larger community of low to
moderate income people by restraining inflation in the price of that
housing. Through community control of
the CLT, the CLT can work to focus on the housing needs of the community, not
of for-profit developers.
Get
involved: Join the San Francisco
Community Land Trust and be part of the exciting movement to preserve
affordable housing in San Francisco. Click here to join.
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San Francisco Community Land Trust | P.O. Box 420982 | San Francisco, CA 94142 
