BISMARCK, N.D. – The North Dakota Industrial Commission has approved a $3 million pilot program through the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA) that supports local Community Land Trusts (CLTs) efforts to create more single-family housing for low- to moderate-income households.
Community Land Trusts are non-profit organizations that make homeownership more obtainable by separating the ownership of the land from the cost of the home.
“We are very pleased the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency, as state government’s primary financier of affordable housing, is willing to take on this important challenge of making homeownership an option for more North Dakotans,” said members of the Industrial Commission in a joint statement.
The commission, consisting of Gov. Doug Burgum as chairman, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring, oversees the NDHFA.
The NDHFA’s program will provide CLTs with access to a low-cost line of credit. Eligible uses include the acquisition, rehabilitation, demolition and/or new construction of homes on in-fill lots and in higher density neighborhoods for resale to income-qualified households.
In North Dakota, there are currently CLTs in Minot and Grand Forks. Other cities have expressed interest in developing trusts, but they have struggled to get started because they lacked the financial capacity.
“We look forward to reviewing the results of the pilot,” said NDHFA Executive Director Jolene Kline. “We hope that with the agency’s support, other North Dakota communities will be able to offer individuals and families with limited incomes this homeownership opportunity.”
The NDHFA is a public financial institution dedicated to making housing affordable for all North Dakotans. More information on the agency’s programs is available online, www.ndhfa.org, or by contacting the agency at (800) 292-8621.
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Media Contact: Max Wetz, NDHFA, (701) 328-8080 or mwetz@nd.gov.
Karlene K. Fine, Executive Director and Secretary
State Capitol, 14th Floor - 600 E Boulevard Ave Dept 405 - Bismarck, ND 58505-0840
E-Mail: kfine@nd.gov
Phone: (701) 328-3722 FAX: (701) 328-2820
"Your Gateway to North Dakota”: www.nd.gov
Attachments: COMMUNITY LAND TRUST PILOT PROGRAM APPROVED.pdf