NorthStar Neighbors seeks county funding to speed community land-trust builds; cabinet recommends $520,000

Corey Bushey, executive director of NorthStar Neighbors and a Northwest Minnesota Foundation staffer, told Beltrami County commissioners the nonprofit is using a community land trust (CLT) model to create perpetual affordability by retaining land ownership and subsidizing home purchase prices for first-time buyers.

Bushey said the organization applied for nonprofit status in 2023, received nearly $2 million in grant awards and over $1 million in loans from Minnesota Housing and partners, and has completed two builds and sales with additional homes under construction in Thief River Falls and Red Lake Falls, with work underway in Roseau and planned in East Grand Forks.

Explaining the CLT mechanism, Bushey said the trust preserves affordability by retaining the land and providing an upfront subsidy. He described the common Minnesota resale formula: “The standard CLT model is 25%,” meaning a homeowner receives their purchase price plus 25% of later appreciation while the resale price remains discounted to keep the unit affordable for the next buyer. He said the CLT charges a nominal ground-lease fee (about $30 a month) and requires a minimum buyer cash contribution of $1,000 ($500 at purchase agreement and $500 at closing).

Anne Linseth, director of health and human services, presented the Beltrami County Housing Trust Fund cabinet’s evaluation and recommendations. Linseth said the county created the fund by ordinance (Ordinance No. 50, 2023) and that the fund is financed by statewide affordable-housing aid and local homeless-prevention aid passed through the Department of Revenue and administered by United Way. She summarized the cabinet’s review process: a pre-application in December 2024, full applications March–April 2025, and scoring and vetting by the cabinet and United Way board.

The cabinet recommended two awards to NorthStar Neighbors: $300,000 to buy down two single-family homes (Beartooth development) to start builds this summer ($150,000 apiece) and $220,000 to support construction of eight single-family homes over the next three years. Linseth said the funding would be used as purchase-price buy-downs to preserve affordability “for generations to come” and that, if both requests are approved, $520,000 would be expended from the trust fund.

LInseth provided the housing trust fund balance and recent transactions: a principal fund balance of $1,257,000 (2023), $49,500 already awarded via an agency RFP, interest earned of $23,178 through April 30, and United Way community donations of $50,000. She said the current balance is $1,356,680 and that 2025 Department of Revenue allocations total $373,882 (half expected in June, half in December). Linseth added United Way recently received an additional $20,000 from First National Bank for the trust fund.

Commissioners questioned priorities and opportunity cost. Commissioner Carlson asked whether $27,500 per house (the smaller subsidy level in the larger proposal) versus $150,000 per house was the best use of funds; Linseth said the cabinet weighed immediacy of need against long-term yield and noted the $300,000 award would allow two homes to begin this summer. Commissioner Wenger asked to pull the $300,000 item from the consent agenda for separate discussion; no final vote was recorded in the transcript.

No final County Board approvals were recorded in the transcript excerpt. Linseth said that, if approved, United Way would develop agreements, monitor compliance and track project completion and impact.