A Northumberland boost for Community Land Trusts

Published: 2009-05-26 10:37:20

The HCA is backing a Community Land Trust (CLT) to build four houses on Holy Island off the coast of Northumberland. The development will cost £650,000, with £212,000 from the HCA and the rest from the Tudor Trust and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne Community Development Trust.

This is the first time the HCA has been involved in a CLT and it is very likely to be followed by larger such investments elsewhere in England.

 

CLTs transfer land ownership to a dedicated non-profit trust, which then develops it to provide affordable housing for rent or sale. The process can keep prices low because they do not have to reflect the commercial value of the land, which has effectively been taken out of the market by the trust.

 

Many housing experts have promoted CLTs, but few schemes have come about because they fall outside the conventional legal and financial framework for property development.

Back to news index