Trust Montana is a statewide community land trust (CLT) working to increase the stock of permanently affordable homes, farms, and other vital land-based community assets. We facilitate perpetual affordability by owning the underlying land and preserving subsidies, while helping our home buyers build equity in their home and other improvements. Our professional partners play a key role in the continued success of community land trust projects:
•Lenders ensure low-to-moderate income buyers can access mortgage insurance-free loans by us-ing Affordable LTV underwriting
•Appraisers ensure the home is valued correctly by following the Fannie Mae guidelines on appraising CLThomes
•Title companies ensure title insurance is underwritten as a leasehold interest instead of a fee simple sale, andhelp to monitor resale restrictions long-term
•Attorneys counsel CLT home buyers, on a pro bono basis, to ensure the buyers understand what they aresigning up for.
In Montana, the CLT tool is increasingly utilized to preserve affordable homes for low to moderate income people. CLTs provide a path to equity-building for people otherwise excluded from the real estate market. Affordability is ensured by placing resale restrictions on subsidized homes so they can serve multiple generations of buyers. On a national level, the CLT tool is supported by partners like Habitat for Humanity, the Ford Foundation, the Federal Reserve, and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Look for Trust Montana’s presentations in upcoming NeighborWorks Montana webinars and learn how you can help increase permanent housing affordability in Montana! Be sure to visit their website – trustmontana.org.