HRDC’s Community Land Trust Offers Three Affordable Homes For Sale Under $320,000
BOZEMAN — Over 30 years ago, HRDC formed Montana’s first community land trust (CLT) to help create and maintain affordable housing for residents in Southwest Montana. Today, the land trust stewards over sixty homes in Gallatin and Park Counties with three homes ranging from $250,000 to $316,000 currently available for purchase.
HRDC’s land trust features a shared equity homeownership structure which creates homes that are affordable to households earning local wages. This model allows homeowners to purchase a home while HRDC retains ownership of the land through a 75-year legally binding ground lease. The ground lease sets forth the terms for the use of the land, including resale restrictions utilized to ensure that the home is affordable for subsequent purchasers. Homeowners are responsible for repairs, maintenance, and taxes, as well as ground lease fees of $50 per month and HOA dues, if applicable. When CLT owners decide to sell their homes, sales appreciation is capped at 2% annually of the home's base price. Selling CLT homes at restricted prices allows the home to remain affordable in perpetuity.
“We are committed to maintaining and creating affordable housing options whenever possible and we utilize our community land trust as one of our tools to do just that. To be able to provide over 60 moderate-income households the ability to own a home in Bozeman where the median home price is nearly $900,000 and in Livingston where it is over $425,000, is something we are very proud of,” said Heather Grenier, HRDC’s President and CEO.
Grenier continued, “There are several ways homes can become part of our Community Land Trust. Most recently community members JP Pomnichowski and Bob Wall, who are interested in preserving housing opportunities for future generations, worked with HRDC to set a sales price that is roughly 25% below market price on a condo they wanted to sell. At the time of sale, this home will be folded into our land trust with a deed restriction to ensure the home stays affordable for future buyers. We are incredibly grateful to JP and Bob for their generosity and to the other community members who have made similar commitments over the years.”
Including the condo Pomnichowski and Wall are selling, known as the Olive Condo, HRDC recently began marketing three homes available for purchase. Each of the three available homes have unique backstories that demonstrate the varied ways a community land trust model can be used to preserve existing housing stock in concert with property owners who share HRDC’s vision to ensure Southwest Montana remains an inclusive place to live and work for individuals and families of all income levels.
The Olive Condo, centrally located in Bozeman, is a two-bedroom, two-bath, 1,184 square foot ground floor home with a single-car garage and is priced at $300,000. Qualified buyers must have incomes that do not exceed 120% of the area’s median income which equates to $121,344 for two people.
In addition, a single-family home in Bozeman known as the 24th Street Property is also currently available for purchase as part of the CLT. This home was built in the mid 1990s and was part of HRDC’s original land trust formation. Located close to Kirk Park, this property includes a main floor primary bedroom with two additional bedrooms upstairs and a single bathroom. At 1,190 square feet, this home features a front porch, back yard, and a one-car garage and is priced at $316,000. Qualified buyers’ income for this property cannot exceed 80% of the area’s median income which equates to $67,350 for two people.
Lastly, the land trust’s Lippincott Condo in Livingston is a 961 square foot home currently available for purchase for $250,000 and offers two bedrooms and one bath. The Lippincott Condo is a free-standing house built in the early 1900s with extensive renovations. This condo was originally one half of a single-family home that was donated to HRDC by Penny Lippincott. HRDC merged this home into its land trust and converted it into two affordable condo units. Qualified buyers for this home must have an income that does not exceed 120% of the area’s median income which equates to $85,632 for two people.
Community members who share in HRDC’s vision to maintain housing affordability for all and are interested in learning more about how to donate a home, or a portion of the full market value of a home, to HRDC’s Community Land Trust, can visit HRDC’s website at thehrdc.org.
Interested homebuyers can learn more about the three properties currently available for purchase by emailing hello@thehrdc.org.
As a private, not-for-profit Community Action Organization focused on building a better community through its nearly 50 initiatives, HRDC combats poverty across Southwest Montana.
