The largest Latino civic organization in the U.S. named the Durham Community Land Trustees as one of nine finalists to be awarded grant money to support homeownership for Latino residents.
An initiative from UnidosUS called Premio HOME, which stands for Home Ownership Means Equity, held a national competition where housing organizations proposed innovative solutions to America's housing crisis.
As a finalist, the Land Trustees received a grant award of $75,000 for their project proposal titled EcoGrace Durham. The new project will build new, affordable homes that are environmentally sustainable and energy efficient, as well as compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant.
The group's proposed EcoGrace initiative will build out seven four-bedroom homes scattered throughout Durham's Southside, East Durham and Hayti neighborhood. Land Trustees serves low to moderate income households who are majority Black and Latino.
鈥淗ousing prices in America have far outpaced increases in income, particularly for Latinos, and solution-oriented interventions like Premio HOME are vital in securing access to homeownership for this powerful community that is foundational to America鈥檚 real estate sector and broader economy,鈥� Janet Murgu铆a, president and CEO of UnidosUS, said in a news release. "The finalists, runners up, and honorary mentions of Premio HOME represent the best of Latino innovation and entrepreneurship."
The initiative will make new homes in central Durham economically accessible to buyers of color who would typically be priced out of the market. The homes will be built on lots of land donated to Land Trustees by the city.
"We know that a lot of our homebuyers are looking for four bedrooms or more. And that's really hard to find in Durham right now, at an affordable price," Sherry Taylor, executive director of DCLT, told 瓜神app.
The median price for a home in Durham is currently $451,000, according to Redfin.
At least three of the proposed EcoGrace homes will be a model that will include an accessory dwelling unit, known as ADUs, with a separate bedroom and bathroom, to serve a range of purposes for families.
"We're able to provide environmentally sustainable homes, ADA-accessible homes and homes that can help generate an income for a family they can rent it rent out that ADU or it can be used for caregiving, and it can be used for multi-generational families," said Taylor. "We know that some families are larger."
Through the Premio HOME grant award, Taylor said that more funding and institutional support is possible for their proposed project.
As a land trust organization, affordable housing developer and property manager, Land Trustees develops and sells homes and allows homeowners to lease the land the home is built on. It has sold properties to over 50 homeowners and also manages affordable rental properties with over 400 residents in Durham.
The proposed homes will be net zero energy emission units, with lower property taxes as land that belongs to a land trust, according to Taylor.
"That's going to help our homeowners be able to afford their house but also really lower their energy bills," she said. "My goal is to get the homes as low (in price) as possible."
An estimated price range for the homes hasn't been released, but the homes will be priced at or below 80% of the area median income.
Taylor encourages prospective homebuyers to join homebuyer waitlist and attend a homebuyer session. The information is available on their .
Building for EcoGrace is expected to begin as soon as mid-2025.
