CLT

Our model is simple. A home is built or fully renovated, and we sell it at a reduced cost to a very low-income, first-time home buyer. The buyer owns the home and gains the advantages of ownership; BRH retains the land in a community land trust, and ensures the continuity of affordability for another low-income, household if the homeowner chooses to move.

By design and by intent, we are committed to preserving the affordability of housing, one owner after another, for generations to come. With the assistance of contributions, grants, and subsidies, we purchase land and build a home. By removing the cost of the land from the sale price and utilizing a resale formula that balances the homeowner’s equity interest with the affordability interest of the community, we can offer homes that are very affordable and that may be purchased by households otherwise locked out of the housing market.

BRH protects this public and private investment in affordable housing for renewable, 99-year periods, allowing one contribution or grant or subsidy to keep operating for a century or longer, far more than the average 20-year lifespan of most affordable housing programs. Although our plan is to never resell the land, we provide for the exclusive use of our land by the owners of any buildings located upon it. Parcels of land are conveyed to individual homeowners through 99-year (renewable) ground leases. This two-party contract between BRH and a homeowner protects the homeowner’s interest in security, privacy, legacy, and equity, while ensuring BRH interests in preserving the appropriate use, the structural integrity, and the continued affordability and owner-occupancy of any building located upon its land for the community’s benefit.