Strategies to Increase Community Control of Land and Housing
Ownership of land and housing has been key to wealth building for generations of Americans. However, racist policies and practices have systematically excluded BIPOC communities and residents from ownership opportunities for too long. Even in booming economic times, BIPOC residents often face threats of displacement, unaffordability, and exclusion instead of sharing in the wealth that arrives in their communities.
This subject is explored in a report from the Democracy Collaborative, Community Control of Land and Housing: Exploring strategies for combating displacement, expanding ownership, and building community wealth. The deeply researched report examines the legacy and dynamics of displacement throughout American history, offers solutions for increasing community control of land and housing, and looks how anchor institutions can help advance the goals of community control where they are located.
The report offers several strategies for putting more control of land and housing into the hands of community residents to minimize displacement and foster greater community participation and more equitable outcomes. The strategies examined in depth are:
- Limited equity cooperatives – Ownership structures in which property is owned by a cooperative board of which individual homeowners are members. The structure limits the amount of equity that homeowners can accrue, which preserves long-term affordability and keeps wealth in the community
- Resident owned communities – Member-run cooperative organizations that jointly own the land in manufactured housing communities, giving resident owners more control over maintenance and management and preventing sale of the land and displacement.
- Community land trusts – Nonprofit organizations made up of multiple community stakeholders that own land on behalf of and for the benefit of a community. These organizations steward the land for the community and place restrictions on sales of homes in order to preserve long-term affordability.
- Community benefits agreements – Contracts signed between developers and community groups that specify amenities or mitigations the developer will provide in exchange for community support for their projects. These contracts are legally enforceable and often include housing affordability benefits and space set-asides for community use.
- Land banks – Governmental or nonprofit entities that give local governments the ability to acquire, rehabilitate, and resell vacant and tax-delinquent properties. Land banks are able to resell properties by considering not only the highest bids, but also potential uses that benefit the community.
For each strategy, the authors discuss how it came about; how it supports democracy, participation, racial equity, and inclusion; and how it benefits community members economically. They also provide multiple real-world examples of each strategy in action.
The authors conclude by offering recommendations for ways community development practitioners, local decisionmakers, funders, anchor institutions, and residents can undertake the systemic change necessary to drive greater community control of land and housing.