Summer greetings to you all my network friends,

As we approach June, I want to strongly urge each of you to lend us your support by renewing your membership and encouraging other new housing-focused organizations to join our network today! During 2022 our membership reached a milestone high of 262 members, and now with your help, we can increase that during 2023. Our current count stands at 144 members, so don’t wait. Please review the membership section of this newsletter for more details.

I’m excited to share with you that during the week of May 8th, our staff was in Denver, CO, for our first in-person all-staff retreat in over two years. I can now confidently say virtual team meetings will never fully replace in-person interaction. After hiring a significant number of new staff, we created the opportunity to bring everyone together for some fun, bonding, and meaningful conversations regarding our focus on the alignment of actions toward significantly increasing housing with lasting affordability. In addition to sharing our team photo from the retreat with you, I suggest visiting the staff page of our website HERE [[link removed]] to review our various team members and their roles. Our Q3 newsletter will share more specific details on the new staff additions and the planned expansion of our internal capacity and growth.

Two notable things I want to share with you this quarter involve the publication of evaluation focused research that is directly related to our work:

1. Our valued partners at NeighborWorks America Success Measures have released the impact report; “Advancing the Promise of Shared Equity Housing Models” [[link removed]].

Many of you have directly contributed to the clear positive impact for scale documented in that report, which states that during the 3-year period spanning 2019 -2021, the shared equity housing initiative sponsored by NeighborWorks provided $1.37 million in seed funding distributed across 29 nonprofit organizations. That has resulted in a total of 465 shared equity homes completed or in the development pipeline, which is a direct measurable result of the paid technical assistance and expertise our own staff team has provided in partnership with NeighborWorks America. Directly supported by our joint effort is the Pueblo, CO-based work of NeighborWorks Southern Colorado – huge double congratulations to them for both selling their very first shared equity home in May, using our Grounded Solutions model deed restriction template, and breaking ground for their Pikes Peak Park 600+ home masterplan development of 80 acres which also incorporates deed restricted homes with lasting affordability. Learn more HERE [[link removed]].

What an outstanding impact!!!

2. Our network member the City of Cambridge, MA Community Development Department commissioned a study [[link removed]] of resident experiences across their affordable Inclusionary Housing Program (IHP). Our long-standing partners at the National Initiative on Mixed-Income Communities performed that study which collected and analyzed the self-reported perceptions and experiences of approx. 430 residents. The findings indicated that (51%) IHP renters and two-thirds of IHP owners (68%) reported being “very satisfied” with their neighborhood. However, the findings also include the troubling fact that 40% of all renters and 41% of all owners of affordable IHP units reported encountering bias or discrimination at least several times during the study period. Inclusionary housing residents saw race as the primary cause of bias and having a household with children increased the resident perception of experiencing bias. Given the significant implications for our own racial equity work, I have asked our staff team to determine a date for hosting a future conversation with our members on this topic. I also encourage all those who may be interested to review our Grounded Solutions resource guides [[link removed]] for IH programs seeking to incorporate racial equity.

3. A recently published Politico op-ed: “The First Step to Solving the Housing Crisis Might Be Simpler Than You Think”, posed a critical question focused on the potential impact of tracking and regularly publishing our national housing loss rate, which struck me as particularly vital to shaping housing solutions that meet the nation’s dire housing crisis. You can read that piece HERE [[link removed]]. Give it a read, decide for yourselves, and reach out to share your thoughts with everyone on our GSN Member Connections Facebook group page HERE [[link removed]].

4. Along with several of our amazing members and allies, we have been named a semi-finalist in the current round of the national Enterprise Community Partners Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge. Led by our Innovative Finance team, we are grateful to be named alongside ROC USA [[link removed]], Trust Neighborhoods [[link removed]], and the National Housing Trust [[link removed]]. Special shout out to GSN members Kôr Community Land Trust [[link removed]] and California Community Land Trust Network [[link removed]], and HomeKeeper user Richmond Neighborhood Housing Services, Inc. [[link removed]]Watch for additional updates as we all look forward to seeing one or more housing with lasting affordability focused innovations advance the next round [[link removed]]!

Lastly, I want to note that our Board of Directors voted in March to add Lou Tisler as the newest At-Large director. Many of you may likely recall that from 2005 – 2017 he served as the Executive Director of Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland, establishing a community land trust affordable homeownership program as part of their real estate development activities. Today, Lou serves as the National NeighborWorks Association Executive Director, leading the trade association for 247 chartered NeighborWorks organizations, championing advocacy for funding and policy which supports housing and community development programs that strengthen and revitalize our nation's communities. Please join me in warmly welcoming Lou to his volunteer service on our network board for the next several years.

Have a great summer season and know that our collective efforts toward addressing the housing needs of families are steadily gaining greater momentum, attention, and resources.

In solidarity,

Join Grounded Solutions today!

Our members are a vast network of varied organizations and individuals who are each committed to increasing our collective Lasting Affordability impact. While our membership is diverse, what unites us all is a shared vision of equitable communities organized around the values of inclusion, stewardship, and self-determination — achieved by housing solutions with affordability that lasts for generations. Each of our members benefit from curated learning opportunities, a united voice for advocacy, access to our focused data and research based evidence of success, discounted trainings, events access, and prioritized access to our online help desk.

Learn more and join our membership today!

Learn more [[link removed]]

Grounded Solutions virtual learning events - webinars and Monthly Network Calls - have reached 750 registrants so far this year!

Recently, we have been presenting the Community Land Trust 101 Series as part of the Home Futures Institute, presented by Grounded Solutions Network and the Northwest Community Land Trust Coalition, and made possible by the State of Washington Department of Commerce.

All webinars are now available to watch!

Watch now [[link removed]]

The Grounded Solutions Policy Team provides an appropriations update, as well as comments to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) on the topic of reforming the Federal Home Loan Bank system and HUD on their proposed rule on Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH).

Read More [[link removed]]

A big congratulations to our Member, NeighborWorks Southern Colorado, on the closing of the first Deed Restricted Shared Equity home using the model deed restriction created by Ground Solutions Network!

NeighborWorks Southern Colorado hosted several Shared Equity lunch-and-learn sessions and educated local lenders, realtors, and title companies of their program. After partnering with local lender Thrive Mortgage, ensuring full understanding of the Shared Equity Program, they began the process of approving the first homebuyer and getting a full understanding of the underwriting process that is involved with purchasing a Shared Equity home. With the help of Grounded Solutions, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Land Title Guarantee Company in Pueblo, and Thrive Mortgage, NeighborWorks Southern Colorado successfully closed on this home May 11, 2023!

HomeKeeper National Data Hub Refreshed!

The National Data Hub has been updated to reflect your most recent data!

As a HomeKeeper User, your member fees entitle you to a HomeKeeper Social Impact Report, which is refreshed quarterly. The Social Impact Report includes calculations on how well your organization preserves affordability, serves a diverse population and builds wealth for your buyers. Over 45 organizations are using reports to make their case louder, and their programs better.

Contact [email protected] for info about signing up today!

Where we live matters.

We bring together an extensive network of partners and member practitioners from local communities who have a deep understanding of best practices in community land trusts, shared equity housing, local housing policies such as inclusionary zoning, and more.

At Grounded Solutions Network, we know what policies and strategies work to build and preserve housing opportunities, and we help communities use them.

Grounded Solutions Network

PO Box 70724

Oakland, CA

94612

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