A community land trust (CLT) is a non-profit organization that stewards affordable housing, community spaces such as gardens, and other community assets on the behalf of and for the good of the community it serves.

Here's a little more information about CLTs:

• CLTs are classified as tax-exempt and non-profits who receive 501(c)(3) designation from the IRS.

• CLTs are focused on the continuous active acquisition of land and development, not on one single project located on one single parcel of land. CLTs are committed to this goal to work on expanding the supply of affordable housing under the CLT's stewardship

• The CLT operates within the targeting boundaries of its locale. Any adult who resides in the targeted local is able to become a voting member of the CLT following membership guidelines.

• CLTs are usually run by a board of directors whose members include three groups of stakeholders: residents or leaseholders, people who reside within its targeted community but do not live on its land, and lastly the broader public interest. This third group is made up of government officials, funders, housing agencies, and social service providers. Organization bylaws may designate each of these groups a specific and equal number of seats, and they may be elected separately by their constituent groups.

• CLTs offer dual ownership of land and resources. It’s intended that land be owned by the trust forever in perpetuity. Any building already located on the land or later constructed on the land can be held by the CLT or sold off to an individual homeowner, a cooperative housing organization, a nonprofit developer of rental housing, or some other nonprofit, governmental, or for-profit entity

• The CLT does not disappear once a building is sold. As owner of the underlying land and as owner of an option to repurchase any buildings located on its land, the CLT has an abiding interest in what happens to the structures and to the people who occupy them. The ground lease requires owner-occupancy and responsible use of the premises. Should buildings become a hazard, the ground lease gives the CLT the right to step in and force repairs. Should property owners default on their mortgages, the ground lease gives the CLT the right to step in and cure the default, forestalling foreclosure. The CLT remains a party to the deal, safeguarding the structural integrity of the buildings and the residential security of the occupants.

Olympic Housing Trust homes are available to individuals and households who reside and work in Jefferson or Clallam counties.

For the Dundee Hill Community Homes project, we are limiting eligibility based upon a few key factors, including: residency, income, first-time homebuying status, qualfication for a mortgage.

Income qualified applicants are households who earn 80% or less of the Area Median Income (AMI) for Jefferson County and Clallam County, adjusted for family size. Specific requirements and applications will be available when these homes become available.

In the future we aim to provide housing opportunities to working families who have incomes above 80% AMI.

Olympic Housing Trust will soon open the homebuyer application process for the Dundee Hill project.

Please visit the project page for more information:

https://olympichousingtrust.org/dundeehill

Olympic Housing Trust relies on the donations of community members to sustain basic operations, like staff, book keeping and insurance.

OHT has taken critical steps to move beyond the volunteer work of our board members by hiring on staff and contract support. Undesignated donations will help us achieve this necessary step in our growth.

We are actively fundraising for housing projects, including Dundee Hill and Chimacum Commons, and any donor can direct a gift to these projects by leaving a memo that requests this.

Absolutely.

Donating property is the fastest and lowest cost method of creating more affordable housing.

Please see our Housing Legacy page for a full write up on this opportunity to create housing for our community.

You can reach out to our Director of Development and Communications, Kellen Lynch, at kellen@olympichousingtrust.org for a conversation at any time.

The best way to help at the moment is to donate and help raise awareness about Olympic Housing Trust and our mission by telling your friends and neighbors about us.

We are a member-based organization, and we are actively seeking new members to build out our organization. Once you have a membership, and you have an interest or skill to off the organization, please consider speaking with us about joining our board or volunteering! Contact info@olympichousingtrust.org or fill out out our contact form.