In much of Northern Michigan, the inflated housing market makes finding homes unattainable for the area's workforce. When city officials realized the cost of living in Frankfort was outpacing the living wage, they started working to bring affordable workplace housing to the area.
One of the ways they are accomplishing this goal is through a community land trust. A community land trust is a private, nonprofit organization that owns land on behalf of a community.
Homes built by the Community Land Trust are offered at a 25% discount from market price, made possible through grants from places like the Michigan State Housing Development Authority, the City of Frankfort, and the Benzine County Board of Commissioners.
“And that's the exciting part of it is it's not just one or two or three people or a couple of committees,” said Jay White, President of the Frankfort Area Community Land Trust. It's the entire community, everyone that we talked to, is supportive of housing, they recognize the challenge for young families or working individuals to be in our community”
Currently, the Community Land Trust is building two homes that will be finished in August and sold to workforce individuals and families in Benzie County for $205,500, a 25% price reduction from the current market value of the homes. They plan to finish two more homes to be sold in spring of next year.