Principles and practices of an affordable housing Community Land Trust model - Research report

Sep 15, 2026

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This research report examines the principles and practical implementation of an affordable housing Community Land Trust (CLT) model, focusing on how CLTs operate within different national contexts. It reviews CLT development and history in the United States, outlines core CLT traits and sector performance, and discusses implementation issues across legal, financial, policy, and governance dimensions. The report further considers UK implementation elements and concludes with implications and operating requirements for adopting CLTs in Australia.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages59

Reading Time2 h 29 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Community land trusts in the United States of America

Development and history of CLTs

Core CLT traits and existing variations

Performance and monitoring of the sector

Issues and factors in implementation in the United States

Case study: Champlain Housing Trust

Case study: Dudley Street Neighbors Incorporated

Case study: Northern California Land Trust

Community land trusts in the United Kingdom

Case study: the first 150 homes

Urban placemaking

Issues for implementation

General operating requirements

Unfamiliarity and market issues

Concluding comments

References

Principles and practices of an affordable housing Community Land Trust model authored by Louise Crabtree, Peter Phibbs, Vivienne Milligan and Hazel Blunden for the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute UNSW-UWS Research Centre January 2012 ISBN: 978-1-921610-89-9 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This material was produced with funding from the Australian Government and the Australian states and territory governments. AHURI Limited gratefully acknowledges the financial and other support it has received from these governments, without which this work would not have been possible. AHURI comprises a network of universities clustered into Research Centres across Australia. Research Centre contributions, both financial and in-kind, have made the completion of this report possible. DISCLAIMER AHURI Limited is an independent, non-political body which has supported this project as part of its programme of research into housing and urban development, which it hopes will be of value to policy-makers, researchers, industry and communities. The opinions in this publication reflect the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of AHURI Limited, its Board or its funding organisations. No responsibility is accepted by AHURI Limited or its Board or its funders for the accuracy or omission of any statement, opinion, advice or information in this publication. CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................... IV LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................... V ACRONYMS ............................................................................................................... VI 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1 2 COMMUNITY LAND TRUSTS IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA...............3 2.1 Development and history of CLTs .......................................................................... 3 2.2 Context—shared equity home ownership in the United States of America .............5 2.2.1 Deed-restricted houses and condominiums ................................................6 2.2.2 Limited equity housing cooperatives ........................................................... 7 2.3 Core CLT traits and existing variations ................................................................... 8 2.3.1 The CLT Classic ......................................................................................... 9 2.3.2 Variations .................................................................................................. 10 2.4 Performance and monitoring of the sector ............................................................ 13 2.4.1 Explaining sector growth—Curtin and Bocarsly (2008) .............................. 13 2.4.2 The National CLT Network (US) Academy and Foreclosure surveys ........ 14 2.4.3 The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy........................................................... 15 2.4.4 The Urban Institute ................................................................................... 16 2.5 Issues and factors in implementation in the United States.................................... 18 2.5.1 Legal issues .............................................................................................. 18 2.5.2 Financial issues ........................................................................................ 19 2.5.3 Policy issues ............................................................................................. 20 2.5.4 Governance issues ................................................................................... 22 2.6 Case study: Champlain Housing Trust .................................................................23 2.7 Case study: Dudley Street Neighbors Incorporated ..................

FAQs

What is a Community Land Trust (CLT) model in the context of affordable housing?

The report analyzes CLTs as a mechanism for delivering affordable housing, describing core traits and how the model varies while retaining defining features.

How do CLTs evolve and perform in the United States, according to the report?

It covers development and history, shared-equity context, sector performance and monitoring, and explains factors behind sector growth and ongoing measurement approaches.

What issues must be addressed for implementing CLTs, and what are the key operating requirements?

The report groups requirements into legal, financial, governance, and considerations of scale, context, and viability, and also discusses market and understanding challenges relevant to implementation.

Sep 15, 2026

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