HOMEOWNERSHIP CHANGES LIVES

Homestead has helped more than 300 households become first-time homeowners—giving them more than a set of keys. We offer stability, dignity, and the peace of mind that comes with an affordable, predictable housing cost.

Our homeowners—many raising children, holding essential jobs, and rooted in their communities—gain the freedom to build a future without the constant threat of eviction. The impact is generational: families experience greater financial resilience, and children benefit from stronger educational, health, and economic outcomes.

In our runaway housing market, homeownership opportunities are still distributed unequally. Hard-working households, often with two incomes, can’t afford to buy a home.

At Homestead, we are changing that story. We lower the barriers that shut people out of homeownership. As a result more than 60% of our homeowners have BIPOC heads of household.

This is what equity in action looks like: families able to live within their means, build wealth safely, and stay rooted near jobs, schools, services, and extended family.

It’s also what sustainability looks like. When people can live closer to where they work, in energy-efficient, climate-resilient homes, both families and the environment thrive.

Our permanently affordable homes are not only more cost-effective per dollar than traditional subsidies—they retain affordability without needing reinvestment every resale.

We believe the security of homeownership is a foundation for strong families, connected neighborhoods, and enduring values.

Our work was pioneered by Civil Rights leaders to prevent displacement and create ownership opportunity. Today, permanently affordable homeownership—grounded in collective land ownership as a tool of justice—is not only proven, it’s embraced across the country—and in Europe—and prioritized by public funders as a path toward lasting housing justice.

CLIMATE JUSTICE

At Homestead, we believe climate equity means putting the best solutions in the hands of those most affected. That’s why we’ve taken a leadership role in setting higher environmental standards for the homes we build—ensuring that our efforts toward housing justice go hand-in-hand with sustainability.

Our townhomes and cottage homes are built to be highly energy efficient, with solar panels for on-site energy generation. Developments like Willowcrest in Renton and The Southard in Tukwila demonstrate how Net Zero Energy homes reduce both carbon emissions and long-term costs for homeowners. Village Gardens, a Built Green Hammer award winner, and our solar retrofit pilot with Spark NW, show how even existing homes can benefit from bold innovation.

This is climate justice in action:

Lower operating and maintenance costs
Healthier indoor environments
Long-term affordability for working families
Reduced environmental impact for the planet

Energy efficiency and solar power don’t just reduce carbon—they lower utility bills for families, putting money back into household budgets.We build with the future in mind—homes that respect both people and the planet for generations to come.We don’t believe communities should have to choose between sustainability and stability. At Homestead, we’re building both—because every family deserves a home that’s good for their future and the future of the planet.

PREVENTING DISPLACEMENT THROUGH PERMANENT AFFORDABILITY

From their Civil Rights roots, community land trusts have served as a powerful strategy to prevent displacement and protect community.

At Homestead, we carry that mission forward by making homes permanently affordable—removing land and housing from the speculative market and shielding families from the volatility of boom-and-bust cycles. Our work provides stability in a system that too often leaves working families behind.

We prioritize the construction of high-quality homes in neighborhoods where displacement has already occurred or is rapidly accelerating—ensuring that affordability doesn’t disappear when revitalization begins.

By investing in permanently affordable homeownership, we complete the spectrum of housing choices—ensuring that people of modest means have a foothold in neighborhoods where they live, work, and raise their children. Our homes give affordability a permanent address in places that are growing and changing, helping to make them more inclusive, equitable, and resilient for everyone.

Because these homes stay affordable forever, each donor dollar has a multiplying effect—keeping families stable and communities diverse in the long term.

This is not just about housing—it’s about who controls land, who belongs, and who shapes the future of our communities.

COMMUNITY-LED PARTNERSHIPS

We believe communities shouldn’t have to become housing developers just to have a voice in what gets built, who benefits, and who belongs. For too long, development has happened to communities—especially communities of color and those facing displacement. At Homestead, we work with communities, not over them. We respond to direct invitations from neighborhood leaders to partner strategically—turning visions of affordable homeownership into reality.

By partnering with communities directly, we reduce duplication, center local expertise, and deliver better, longer-lasting results.

This is about preserving what matters most—family, neighborhood, and the right to call a place home.

Our vision is to grow Homestead’s capacity to serve as a trusted partner in deep, long-term collaborations with communities who are leading their own solutions to displacement.

Together, we can create homes—and futures—that reflect the values, leadership, and strength of the people who call these neighborhoods home.