How Fort Worth’s Community Land Trust Is Expanding Affordable Homeownership
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The North Texas population continues its unprecedented boom, adding 234,125 new residents last year.
In 2024, Fort Worth topped one million residents, making Cowtown the 11th largest city in the U.S. The entire North Texas region’s population now numbers 8,718,500, an increase of more than 886,000 since the 2020 Census, according to calculations from the North Texas Council of Governments. Fort Worth added 32,191 new citizens, with Dallas gaining 29,510.
Housing Crunch
So exactly where will all those people live? The housing crunch has become a critical problem concerning legislators, home builders, Realtors, and families. Producing innovative solutions for both affordability and availability has become crucial.
Expect to hear more in the future about community land trusts, one idea to solve the problem. Creative minds and regional leaders have collaborated to knit the needs of people with the greater civic good. Urban areas across the state searching for ways to address the shortage of affordable housing are turning to the land trusts as an answer.
In fact, two years ago, the Fort Worth Community Land Trust was launched with help from city leaders, housing experts, and philanthropic partners, including the Rainwater Charitable Foundation. A community land trust, (CLT) a nonprofit that holds land for the improvement of a community, is designed to create homeownership opportunities for families struggling to become homeowners.
“The idea is to create affordable housing in perpetuity,” said Realtor Natalie Winchester, who works with the Fort Worth project. An associated broker with Ebby Halliday who has experience selling luxury homes in affluent areas, Winchester thinks this concept is a wonderful solution to transform hard-working renters into happy homeowners. “It’s really, really amazing,” she said.
Income-Based Housing
This Fort Worth CLT retains a lease on the land, while the buyer owns the actual structure. Prospective buyers, who have ranged from single mothers to retirees to recent college graduates, must qualify for the housing based on income. These cooperative arrangements are a growing movement, not only in Fort Worth, but also Austin, Houston, and Dallas, said Becky Bass, executive director of the Fort Worth Community Land Trust.
“A lot of affordable or attainable housing programs are providing great housing,” she said.
“What sets us apart is the long-term affordability in housing the community.”
Duplex, Townhome, or Cottage?
The 15.61-acre housing development, Carroll Park, consists of 200 one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes, ranging from duplexes to townhomes to cottages. Prices start at $135,000, and the houses are available to buyers with moderate household incomes. Potential buyers qualify based on a formula calculating their income and family size.
“These are meant to build wealth for people who don’t have that ability,” Winchester said. “They just happen to have too low an income to come up with a down payment.”
With this innovative housing program, a homeowner owns the structure, but not the land. The homebuyer receives a 99-year commitment to the ground lease, she said, with the non-profit retaining ownership of the land.
“That renews so it’s really in perpetuity,” the Bass said.
Currently, 20 refurbished duplexes have been completed. The model home, located at 4092 Merida Ave., is an active listing for prospective buyers to see. The program includes a process involving Realtors showing the model, an orientation class, income verification, and an introduction to a lender.
Merry Christmas
The Fort Worth CLT marked its first closing in Carroll Park on Christmas Eve 2025 with a family purchasing a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house, Bass said. The development sits across from Alice Contreras Elementary School, making walkability an added benefit. Removing barriers to home ownership is the goal, Bass said.
“We’re seeing everything from people starting out to people who have been working their whole life but can’t seem to get ahead,” she said. “It’s really an opportunity, and we’re big believers that affordability isn’t going to mean you don’t have something nice.”
The next two open houses are scheduled for 2 to 4 p.m. this Sunday, Feb. 15, and 3:30 to 5 p.m. Feb. 23. More information is available at FortWorthCLT.org for anyone interested in taking the first steps to owning a home.
“It’s really, really amazing,” Winchester said of the community housing program.
