by Bruce Wolfe, HANC Board
Did you know that SF has a community land trust (CLT) that creates forever homes for low-to-moderate income residents and workers? It’s called San Francisco Community Land Trust (https://SFCLT.org). But, what is a CLT? SFCLT explains it:
A Community Land Trust is a membership-based, nonprofit organization whose mission is to create permanently affordable, resident-owned housing for low- and moderate-income people. Resident ownership of multi-family properties through the Community Land Trust model is one means of stabilizing affordable housing, in perpetuity, for low-income and working class residents. (https://www.sfclt.org/our-approach1#how)
And, how does a CLT provide affordable housing in perpetuity and take it off the speculative market permanently? The California CLT Network describes it this way: (https://www.cacltnetwork.org/california-clt-definition/)
How Do CLTs Create Permanent Affordability?
A CLT achieves its mission by acquiring land and properties from the speculative real estate market, then ensures permanent affordability by leasing the land for a renewable term of 99 years to its residents and community members in order to address their collective needs. Through acquisition and land stewardship, CLTs provide long term stability and resources for individuals and communities to thrive.
Shared Mission
Although there is a great diversity amongst California CLTs in both their size and how they implement their missions, they all still share several key attributes:
- They are organized as a non-profit public benefit corporation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
- Has a primary purpose that includes the creation and maintenance of permanently affordable single-family or multifamily residences, community facilities and land under community control using the ground lease model.
- Centers on resident and community control or ownership of the improvements through direct engagement in individual projects and organizational governance. It accomplishes this by use of a tripartite board structure that includes equal representation of resident interests, community members and the public interest. The improvements (buildings, dwellings and developments) on the CLTs’ land are either sold or leased to an income qualified owner, a resident cooperative, resident association organization to be their primary residence or rented to persons and families of low or moderate income.
- The CLT’s land is leased to the owners of the improvements: residents and community organizations for a renewable term of 99 years. This helps ensure mutual accountability and guarantees the community investment in the land stays in use for the benefit of residents and the community at large through ongoing stewardship and support.
SFCLT currently owns 12 properties citywide and a second new one in the Tenderloin preventing displacement of more than 30 households, 95% being Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) plus brick and mortar small businesses (https://www.sfclt.org/lnews-1/285-turk). SFCLT’s primary design is to remove the typical tenant-landlord relationship replacing it with limited equity housing cooperatives providing a form of collective homeownership that further solidifies permanent residency plus provides a resident equity investment as a shareholder. Success and education in learning how real estate works as a collective helps boost residents’ confidence in potential homeownership on their own.
SFCLT along with other eligible SF nonprofit housing providers have also enjoyed a little known program developed by former District 1 Supervisor Sandra Lee Fewer and her aides, Ian Fregosi and Chelsea Boillard called Community Opportunity to Purchase Act or COPA. It is modeled after Washington D.C.’s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA). Basically, it allows a handlful of eligible SF nonprofit small sites housing providers to get first dibs on ALL residential properties going up for sale between 2-25 units. This privilege gives a nonprofit houser a private head start ahead of the regular speculative real estate market. How cool is that?!
https://sfmohcd.org/community-opportunity-purchase-act-copa
For more information contact SFCLT at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 415-399-0943.