There are many reasons a CLT will benefit individuals, families, and the Village of Hempstead community, where the affordability crisis is demanding an innovative solution. Here are just seven (7) of those reasons:

1. CLTs Allows More Families to have the Opportunity to become Homeowners

Fewer and fewer working individuals and families can afford to buy a home in the Village of Hempstead because of soaring open market real estate prices. CLTs create opportunities for those of low-to-moderate-incomes to buy a home at an affordable below-market price. When they decide to sell, they will benefit and keep a portion of the equity built over time, which will sell again at a below-market price, making the home affordable for the next family of limited means. This will occur from family to family and will remain affordable for generations in perpetuity (forever).

2. How CLTs Build Wealth for those of Lower-Income

Clt homeowners steadily gain equity in their homes; the longer they stay in the home, the more equity is building. CLTs function as a stepping stone for those of lower-income, taking them from renting to building wealth, which can be passed to their children.

3. CLTs Help Communities Resist Gentrification

CLTs obtain land and housing, which is then controlled by the community. This means that developers and absentee investors can never purchase these properties. The CLT homes remain affordable even when gentrification is on the rise, which protects families from displacement.

4. CLTs Gives Community Members a Significant Voice in Development Decisions

Community members, businesses, and ultimately CLT homeowners are always involved in the governance of the CLT. This helps direct the CLT to development in the community's best interest while refecting the values and culture of the residents of the Village of Hempstead.

5. CLTs Help Prevent Foreclosures

In 2007, the U.S. economy entered a mortgage crisis that caused panic and financial turmoil worldwide. The Village of Hempstead was especially hit hard, with hundreds of homeowners losing their homes to sub-prime mortgage foreclosure. CLTs take a proactive role in preventing foreclosure. CLTs work with the CLT home-buyers from the very start through financial literacy education, down-payment assistance (when available), and help make mortgages affordable and sustainable. CLTs can also assist with major home repairs and will intervene early when the CLT homeowner is at risk of falling behind on the mortgage. As a result, CLT homeowners have typically experienced low foreclosure rates. At the height of the foreclosure crisis, CLT homeowners were 10 times less likely to be in foreclosure than a homeowner with a conventional mortgage.

6. CLTs Make Taxpayer Dollars for Affordable Housing go Further

Every affordable rental apartment is funded in part by significant government subsidies until affordability restrictions expire (often 15-30 years). In the CLT model, tax dollars applied to the home's initial construction or rehabilitation are preserved for all subsequent homeowners. This means that public investments have a longer and larger impact with a CLT.

7. CLTs Promotes Civic Engagement

Throughout the country, residents who took leadership roles in their CLTs also became leaders in their local communities. Engagement on CLTs boards, committees, and sponsored activities can translate into residents acting to spearhead positive change within the Village of Hempstead community.

We will have 5 Panelist to answer any questions or concerns you may have.

Visit our website at hempsteadclt.org and on Facebook