What is a CLT?

Since the 1960s, community land trusts have enabled community-driven housing, development, and stewardship that can serve the unique needs of a community.

1. Affordable Housing: CLTs are crucial for providing and preserving affordable housing in rapidly gentrifying areas. By owning the land, CLTs prevent speculation and keep housing costs stable over the long term.

2. Community Stability: They help maintain economic diversity within neighborhoods by offering affordable housing options. This prevents displacement of long-term residents who might otherwise be priced out due to rising property values.

3. Asset Building: CLTs allow residents to build equity through homeownership while also protecting them from volatile housing markets. This can promote financial stability and wealth accumulation for low-income families.

4. Sustainable Development: CLTs often prioritize sustainable and environmentally friendly development practices, contributing positively to urban planning and community resilience.

5. Community Engagement: They foster community involvement and empowerment by giving residents a say in land use decisions and ensuring that local needs are met.

6. Long-Term Impact: By maintaining control over land use and development, CLTs can influence neighborhood development for generations, promoting inclusive growth and social equity.

Overall, community land trusts play a vital role in addressing housing affordability challenges and fostering community development that is inclusive, sustainable, and responsive to local needs. Their model has proven effective in various cities around the world, making them a valuable tool in contemporary urban planning and housing policy.

There is a strong network of national and regional community land trusts, as well as resources to learn more about the model:

• Visit New Communities Inc. to learn more about the civil rights roots and origin of the community land trust model.

• Center for Community Land Trust Innovation: promotion & support of CLTs and similar strategies of community-led development on community-owned land in countries around the world. 

• California Community Land Trust Network: membership network of CLTs in California.

• Grounded Solutions Network: national membership organization of community land trusts & shared equity housing programs

• Schumacher Center for a New Economics

• Equity Trust

More CLTs!

Eden Community Land Trust is one of many CLTs in California. The California Community Land Trust Network (CACLTN) is a network of California CLTs supporting the growth of permanently affordable, community-controlled land and housing in California. With 40 established groups statewide and more emerging, Community Land Trusts are a growing force of de-commodified, permanently affordable housing.

• Bay Area Community Land Trust

• Beverly-Vermont CLT (Los Angeles)

• Bolinas Community Land Trust

• Coastal Commons Land Trust (Santa Cruz)

• Community Land Trust Association of West Marin

• Commonspace CLT (Sebastopol)

• Eden CLT (Unincorporated Alameda County)

• El Sereno CLT (Unincorporated East LA)

• Fideicomiso Comunitario Tierra Libre (Boyle Heights – LA)

• Liberty CLT (South Los Angeles)

• Northern California Land Trust

• Permanently Affordable Housing Assets Long-Term, Inc. (East Palo Alto)

• THRIVE Santa Ana

• TRUST South LA

• Richmond LAND

• Sacramento CLT

• Saint Joseph CLT 

• San Francisco Community Land Trust