FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is Common Ground Community Housing Trust?
Common Ground Community Housing Trust is a 501-c3 nonprofit housing developer whose mission is to provide quality homes for residents to own that are permanently affordable for low-to-moderate-income households in the Greater Wenatchee area. 

So what exactly is a Community Housing Trust (CHT) and what does it do?
CHT’s acquire, own and steward land for the common good. The most common CHT land use is housing.

What does affordable housing mean?
* Affordable housing makes sure the total housing costs including principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and leases (PITIL) do not exceed about 1/3 (33%) of the household’s total gross monthly income.
* At Common Ground, we’re selling our homes at prices that are affordable for households earning 80% or less of the Area Median Income (AMI).

What does Affordable for life mean?
Public investment puts the initial price of the home within reach. And then our homeowners keep homes permanently affordable by agreeing to "pay it forward" when they resell their home. They can own their home as long as they wish, but when they sell, they do so at a formula price (1.5% equity per year) that keeps the home affordable to the next modest income person. This pooling and sharing of resources will create homes in our community that are affordable to low-to-moderate-income homebuyers and will remain affordable permanently as an asset to our community. The recorded ground lease as part of the real estate transaction ensures this.

How our project differs from other affordable housing options?
Solving the affordable housing crisis requires all types of housing, including apartments for sure!  We’ve chosen to build CHT homes for ownership because it provides secure housing and wealth building potential for Greater Wenatchee area residents who are drastically underserved by the current market. HUD rental assistance programs, Chelan/Douglas Housing Authority, and other private and public housing types are working consistently to meet the need for rentals and other housing options. Common Ground aims to fill a gap that is not otherwise filled—below average income homes for ownership. This also helps make available affordable rentals in our town because when someone moves into a Common Ground home, an affordable rental opens up. Common Ground is not opposed to rentals and many Community Housing Trusts do manage rentals like the new project in Leavenworth with Upper Valley Mend, however, this is too big an undertaking for Common Ground at this time of our organizational development.

The other difference worth mentioning is that every affordable option requires public and/or private funding to fill the affordability gap. With our model, there is a one time subsidy that stays with the home at purchase with no additional ongoing funds needed to stay affordable for the life of the home.

Who qualifies for a Common Ground home?
We have several eligibility criteria for a Common Ground home. Our homeowners are typically working families who simply can’t find other affordable options, including teachers, health care workers, laborers, servers at our favorite restaurants, etc. Income eligibility will vary from project to project depending on the funding sources obtained. For our current project, our funding sources mandate that the homes will be priced for households whose gross income is below 80% of the Greater Wenatchee area median income (AMI). We also limit availability to first time homebuyers who do not have excessive liquid assets. Additionally, homebuyers will need to be qualified by a mortgage lender for purchasing the home.  

How is money obtained for projects and how is it spent?
With our projects, there is an affordability adjustment. If it costs $300,000 to build a home, and we can sell it affordably for $150,000, the difference is the amount of adjustment that needs to be made. Funding comes from a variety of sources including state and local government funding and/or private donors to fill this affordability gap. With our current Crail Cottages project, $350,000 was provided for acquisition (Chelan Co. ARPA), $231,000 was provided from Chelan Co. CPIF for infrastructure, and $250,000 is being provided by the State of WA for the home’s foundations, final sidewalks and landscaping. Some of the funding allows Common Ground to collect administrative costs to help fund the organization and some don’t. We are also raising funds from members of our community who want to be a financial partner in this solution. Additionally we will need to get loans for additional construction costs and when the project is completed we will pay back those loans with the sale proceeds.

How does the land lease work?
The Master Ground Lease is the recorded instrument that connects the ownership of the home (Home Buyer) with the ownership of the land (Common Ground). The ground lease includes a nominal fee, $75/month, that is paid to Common Ground. This cost is calculated as a cost to the homebuyer when determining affordability. Common Ground makes sure that PITIL (Principal, Interest, Taxes, Insurance, Lease) monthly payments are no higher than 33% of the household’s total income. The ground lease also includes the resale restriction, covenants, HOA regulations, etc.

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