Local nonprofits report millions in housing investment, urge role in new community land trust

Four local nonprofit housing organizations briefed the City Council work session on Jan. 27 about recent activity in home construction, homeowner repair and lending programs and asked the city to continue partnering to expand affordable housing in Des Moines.

The presentation opened with Lance Henning of Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity describing the four organizations — Habitat, Home Inc., Neighborhood Finance Corporation (NFC) and Rebuilding Together Greater Des Moines — as “ready and willing” to scale their work if opportunities exist.

The groups framed their remarks around two themes: the scale of recent investment and how layered public and nonprofit funding has allowed low- and moderate-income households to obtain or stay in homes. Carrie Worterman, executive director of Home Inc., said Home Inc. has built 86 new homes since 1992 for households below 80% of area median income and in the last five years directed about $5,600,000 toward new affordable housing development. Worterman illustrated the services with a client story: “Lindsey was a section 8 voucher holder… after about 15 months of renting, to purchase her home,” Worterman said, describing a lease-purchase path that also enabled the homeowner to start an in‑home child care operation once a volunteer-built fence allowed licensing.

Stephanie Murphy of Neighborhood Finance Corporation described NFC’s renovation lending and recent capital activity. NFC said it has deployed $5,000,000 through a Polk County down-payment program in roughly nine months and is deploying a Polk County large-renovation program that will provide $30,000–$50,000 per household in partnership with Habitat and Rebuilding Together. Murphy said NFC is applying for up to $11,000,000 of federal capital through Opportunity Finance Network and that “the money is at JPMorgan Chase” for the federal program’s grantee account; she added NFC expects to learn the award amount in March and, if awarded, receive funds in May.

Kimberly Hanson, executive director of Rebuilding Together Greater Des Moines, described the nonprofit’s home-repair focus for very-low-income households and gave a recent example of a homeowner whose ramp, roof and interior repairs enabled ongoing dialysis access and safer mobility. Hanson said her organization’s average assisted-household income was about $18,500 for the cases discussed and that many recipients were female heads of household, older adults or veterans.

Representatives gave consolidated metrics showing combined deliveries in 2024 of new homes, owner‑occupied repairs and homeowners created through lending and lease-purchase programs. Speakers told council staff that city investment of roughly $1,700,000 in the prior year — half from city revenue, half federal funds — was leveraged roughly 9-to-1 when combined with nonprofit and federal sources.

Home Inc. told the council it has agreed to serve as initial steward and staff resource for a new Community Land Trust (CLT) and intends to place homes it builds into the trust so affordability is retained when those homes are resold. “We fully intend for those to go into the land trust when they’re sold to a home buyer, so that that affordability stays in place in perpetuity,” Worterman said. Councilmembers asked about the CLT’s capacity; presenters said the CLT’s steering committee held its first board meeting and that growth targets are aspirational.

Councilmembers asked about differences between infill homes in Des Moines and suburban projects and about tracking energy savings for the energy-focused programs. Murphy said NFC conducts energy audits and that the organization’s experience with whole‑home renovation makes it a strong candidate for the federal energy‑focused capital it is seeking.

The presentation closed with council thanks and questions about coordination. Presenters repeatedly framed their operations as combining city funds, federal grants (including ESG and ARPA), private philanthropy and program income to increase affordability and home preservation in Des Moines.

Ending: Councilmembers did not take a formal vote on funding during the work session. Multiple councilmembers expressed support for continued partnership and asked staff to continue coordinating with the four nonprofits as the city finalizes its housing strategy.