Dear Friends, 

During National Homeownership Month, it’s important to spotlight some examples of outstanding work from across our amazing community of affordable housing allies. This newsletter contains a few of those stories, as well as some select updates on the key activities of our staff. Building greater awareness of our network opportunities and wins was also one of several goals for our recent Policy. Practice. Power. national conference in Washington, D.C. For those of you who couldn’t attend, I’m very proud to share that more than 460 dedicated housing and community development practitioners, advocates, policymakers, national experts, and funders converged on our nation’s capital to network, offer and receive support, exchange insights, and explore housing solutions that ensure lasting affordability. 

Our various conversations and activities examined how shared equity housing organizations, investors, and strategic partners are working together to successfully build capacity and advocate for policies that lead to a stronger lasting affordability ecosystem. Gary Community Ventures’ President and CEO, Santhosh Ramdoss, delivered a deeply engaging opening keynote highlighting the newly emerging Ownership Economy movement; leveraging the capital markets, public policy, and philanthropic innovation to help all U.S. families—particularly those in marginalized communities—achieve economic stability, mobility, and prosperity.  

In her stirring plenary address, renowned researcher, advocate, and author of Just Action, Leah Rothstein, challenged the audience to look beyond slogans and surface-level actions to meaningfully address the enduring impacts of government-sanctioned housing discrimination. Dr. George “Mac” McCarthy, outgoing president and CEO of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, closed our convening on a hopeful note, using data to illustrate how innovative approaches to public land ownership and policies can support the rapid expansion of shared equity housing models.  

Overall, we accomplished a majority of the planned goals for the conference, providing an important opportunity for many of those in our field to form new bonds and strengthen old ones, while fostering a deeper sense of community and common purpose. I know from the recent messages with positive feedback received to date, that many attendees left feeling both inspired and re-energized. If you were unable to attend our event or would like to re-visit some of our sessions, photos and session slides are now available. Please also follow us on Instagram to stay up to date on what is happening now across our network. 

Have a wonderful National Homeownership Month, please continue to strongly encourage your partners and allies to join our network, and enjoy the rest of your summer! 

Lighthouse Beloved Community CLT Receives Grant to Create More Permanently Affordable Housing  

Local and National Policy 

National Conference Capitol Hill Visits 

After the national conference wrapped up, Grounded Solutions staff led 69 participants up to Capitol Hill to visit the offices of their Members of Congress. All told, we were able to visit 85 offices representing 22 states throughout the country. We hugely appreciate that so many conference attendees took advantage of this opportunity to advocate for our policies in Congress. We hope the experience was inspirational, and we encourage attendees to follow up on it by calling House and Senate offices, sending emails, inviting Members and their staff to local events and projects, and scheduling time at their Members’ district offices. 

Advancing Equitable Taxation for Shared Equity Homes 

In many states, tax policies have not been updated to account for deed restrictions and other tools that shared equity programs use to keep homes affordable. Grounded Solutions’ Policy team is working to address this issue by assembling a cohort of three to five states to pursue tax reform for shared equity homes over the next 12 months. They will provide technical assistance and policy support to begin drafting legislation that remedies these burdens. E-mail [email protected] to learn more and participate. 

Innovative Finance

Conference Panel Explores the Power of Money in the Shared Equity Finance Ecosystem  

During Grounded Solutions’ Policy. Practice. Power. conference, the Innovative Finance team hosted a panel discussion during which panelists explored what it takes to build a strong and functional shared equity finance system. Speakers unpacked the role of homebuyers, nonprofit developers, private lenders, and federal mortgage entities, highlighting how alignment among these players can support scalable, lasting affordability. The session, moderated by Grounded Solutions’ Senior Principal of Innovative Finance, Alex Cabral, featured real-world examples of successful financing structures and examined what conditions are needed for these approaches to thrive.  

Homes for the Future Wins Prestigious Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability 

Following multiple rounds of judging, Grounded Solutions’ Homes for the Future fund recently won Ivory Innovations' Ivory Prize for Housing Affordability in the finance category. The annual Ivory Prize recognizes and funds novel solutions to the housing crisis. In addition to national recognition and ongoing support from Ivory Innovations, Grounded Solutions receives $100,000.  

“Homes for the Future’s unique and powerful approach to addressing the nation’s housing affordability crisis combines innovative finance with shared equity housing to preserve affordability, build wealth for families, and ensure community stability for generations,” said Grounded Solutions CEO, Tony Pickett.  

Watch this video to learn more.  

Scaling Community Land Trusts with Support from RWJF

With support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Grounded Solutions Network and National Housing Trust have launched a new pilot to scale the capacities of community land trusts through $2 million+ of loan funds and a year of Grounded Solutions-provided technical assistance, covering everything from financial modeling and acquisition strategies to stewardship and revenue-boosting lease adjustments.  

 The selected CLTs are: 
 

• Atlanta Land Trust 

• People’s Housing+  

• Community Land Trust of Palm Beach County & Treasure Coast 

• West Side Community Land Trust  

Read more about the pilot here! 

Technical Assistance

On the Road 

On Wednesday, June 4th, more than 90 community land trust (CLT) practitioners, local officials, funders, and intermediaries gathered in Austin, TX, for a day of learning and connection, with a focus on the work of emerging and established CLTs across the state. Hosted by local chapters of the Asset Funders Network, the first-of-its-kind Texas statewide summit featured a variety of small and large group breakout sessions that covered topics including policy, technical assistance practices, CLT history, and financing strategies.  

Grounded Solutions Network’s Director of Technical Assistance, James Yelen; Community and Technical Assistance Principal, Jason Web, and Vice President of Innovative Finance, Devin Culbertson, attended the event. Devin presented in a breakout group focused on investing in CLTs and participated in a lunchtime “fireside chat” that delved into the history of the model and why the work is so relevant today. With several active technical assistance engagements and plans for more work on the horizon, Grounded Solutions is inspired by the momentum bubbling up from local practitioners and their allies in Texas and excited to continue building on our work there. Click here to read the Asset Funders Network 2024 brief on shared equity housing models, including CLTs. 

Technical Assistance Team Launches New Sector Growth Initiative 

Grounded Solutions’ Technical Assistance team recently launched an initiative designed to strengthen and expand shared equity homeownership programs nationwide. This initiative will support sector research and technical assistance for both established and emerging non-profit shared equity programs, including publicly accessible virtual learning sessions. Throughout 2025, they are offering multiple free opportunities to deepen your understanding of shared equity programs and CLTs. Learn more here. 

HomeKeeper

Conference & Outreach 

HomeKeeper has been on the move! Since April, the HomeKeeper team has attended the Habitat Midwest Regional Conference, Oweesta’s 10th Annual Capital Access Convening, and Grounded Solutions' very own Policy. Practice. Power. national housing conference. These gatherings provide great opportunities to meet our users in person, introduce new folks to all that HomeKeeper can do, and spread the word about the impact good data can have on an organization and our sector as a whole.  

In addition to presenting "Mastering Data Strategies" at the Oweesta Conference, HomeKeeper was thrilled to have a larger role in the Grounded Solutions conference this year, hosting a breakout session, “The Power of Data,” moderated by Lindsey Griggs, HomeKeeper User Experience and Learning Manager.  

"It was a privilege to moderate our session on the Power of Data alongside our incredible and knowledgeable panelists. I also really appreciated the time I was able to spend connecting with Grounded Solutions Network Members, HomeKeeper users, and a ton of other really cool people working on amazing projects. I left the conference feeling re-invigorated in our work, inspired by conversations, and bursting with ideas," Griggs said.  

The HomeKeeper team also organized the conference’s exhibition hall where alliance partners, sponsors, and Grounded Solutions programs were able to connect with members, HomeKeeper users, and other supporters of housing with lasting affordability.  

Numbers

HomeKeeper's user base continues to grow, reaching 210 participating organizations. In addition to the rich data in our National Data Hub, these 210 organizations collectively track over 1.2 million services and 100,000 properties across all housing-related services using HomeKeeper. 

Technical Details/Release Versions

Following the launch of HomeKeeper 2.15, we are also releasing HUD Connect version 1.13 to further enhance our products and maintain compliance with Salesforce standards. We are completing our first HomeKeeper Blueprint — a template Intake Application that organizations can configure as an online application. The Rooted App beta integration is complete, and we are seeking pilot organizations. We continue to explore opportunities for integration with other product extensions that drive our mission to scale our sector and support our community. 

We're also nearing our release of HomeKeeper's new Knowledge Center and are soliciting users to help us test and provide feedback on the new knowledge center format, articles, and training materials. Contact [email protected] for more information and to sign up to get a sneak peek! 

Webinar Schedule

The HomeKeeper team is excited to announce a suite of new trainings and webinars in 2025. Existing HomeKeeper users can register from our Online Learning Platform. If you are not a user but want to check one out, reach out to HomeKeeper at [email protected] to get registered! 
 

• June 17 at 1:00 PM ET: Simple Customizations to Get More Out of HomeKeeper 
  
  Make your HomeKeeper work better for you! Join us for a hands-on workshop to learn simple customizations to make HomeKeeper simpler, easier, and tailored to your needs. 

• August 19 at 1:00 PM ET: Map Your HomeKeeper Properties 
  
  Easily visualize your properties using free and paid tools like Google Maps, ArcGIS, and PolicyMap. 

• October 7 at 1:00 PM ET: Design and Streamline Your Workflow in HomeKeeper 
  
  Learn how to outline workflow processes for common tasks and job functions, identify pain points, and explore tools to streamline them using HomeKeeper and Salesforce. 

• December 9 at 1:00 PM ET: Make the Case! Simple Impact Reports to Create Today 
  
  Together, we’ll create a few simple reports using your HomeKeeper data to tell compelling data stories about your program’s impact. 

Membership and Training 

E-Learning Pilot: Foundations of Shared Equity  

The Grounded Solutions Network Training team has been working on its first-ever self-paced e-learning course, Foundations of Shared Equity. If you’re interested in participating in a pilot version of the course, please sign up here by June 30th to be considered. We will email all those who are interested with more information about the pilot in the coming weeks.  

Join Our Network 

Becoming a member provides you with access to expert support, training, tools and peer connection, and helps advance lasting affordability and equity in housing nationwide. If you aren’t already a member, click here to learn more and join our network! 

• DuPage County setting up land bank as part of affordable housing push 

• Shared Equity Strategy Wins Big With 2025 Ivory Prize Honors 

• Innovative Local Solutions Can Ease America’s Housing Crisis 

• Why Urban Cities Are Investing in the Shared Equity Housing Model 

• Keeping Housing Affordable Is Hard Enough. Unfair Taxes Make It Worse. 

• Is safe and stable housing the key to our health and wellbeing? This docuseries says yes (and has the footage to prove it). 

• Creating a Durable Infrastructure for Shared Equity Homeownership, One Deal at a Time: An Interview with Devin Culbertson of Grounded Solutions Network 

Sign up for the Homes for the Future Newsletter to learn more about our Innovative Finance team’s exciting efforts to scale housing with lasting affordability. Sign up here.

Follow us on social media. In addition to Facebook and LinkedIn, we’re now on Bluesky and Instagram!  

In the Seattle area? Check out Africatown Community Land Trust’s Summer of Soul Juneteenth event.  

Thank You to Our 2025 Policy. Practice. Power. Conference Sponsors 

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.