Community Land Trusts
Community Land Trusts (CLTs) are nonprofit organizations that hold land in trust for the benefit of communities, ensuring long-term affordability and sustainable stewardship. By separating land ownership from building ownership, CLTs create perpetual access to affordable housing and agricultural land, preventing speculative market disruptions while fostering long-term care of place.
Key Features
- Collective Land Ownership - Community-held rather than private ownership
- Democratic Governance - Community-controlled board structure
- Perpetual Affordability - Long-term price controls
- Sustainable Stewardship - Environmental and social responsibility
Applications
CLTs can be used for various purposes:
- Affordable Housing - Creating permanently affordable homes.
- Agricultural Land - Preserving farmland for food production
- Conservation - Protecting ecological areas
- Community Facilities - Securing spaces for community use
Housing cooperatives are another model for affordable housing and building community wealth.
Implementation Models
Successful approaches include:
- Cooperative Land Trusts for crowdfunding land purchases
- Permanent Real Estate Cooperatives
- Indigenous-led land stewardship trusts
- Mixed-use development trusts
Case Studies
- Farmers Land Trust - Supporting regional food sovereignty
- Diamante Bridge Collective - Teaching CLT models in Costa Rica
- Sogorea Te' Land Trust - Supporting Indigenous land stewardship
- Permanent Real Estate Cooperatives - Ensuring perpetual housing affordability. This in turn creates more community wealth for investing in and building local businesses that improve the well-being and vitality of a place.
Benefits
CLTs provide numerous advantages:
- Long-term farmland and housing affordability
- Protection of agricultural and conservation lands
- Community wealth building
- Increased food security
- Enhanced environmental stewardship
- Resistance to gentrification