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Mountainlands Community Housing Trust completes construction on 50th home

By Grace Ami, publications and graphic design specialist

Mountainlands Community Housing Trust (MCHT) is a nonprofit agency that believes people should have the opportunity to live in the community in which they work without spending a disproportionate amount of their income on housing. Previous MCHT projects were focused in Summit County, home to Park City, a town gaining a reputation as an upscale mountain getaway. Small resort towns often face unique challenges when it comes to affordable housing. Land costs and home prices are elevated and everyday costs such as food and utilities are inflated as well. However, residents’ incomes rarely reflect these higher living costs, making it difficult for hard working families to be able to purchase a home. By utilizing U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) self-help building program, MCHT is able to provide an affordable housing option to low-income residents.

Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) provided MCHT a $1.4 million acquisition loan to purchase more than four acres of land in Kamas, Utah. The planned development is located adjacent to a high-end resort area, and many of the self-help participants are workers in tourist service industries. As a result of taking part in the program, 14 low-income families will achieve homeownership through “sweat equity."

MCHT staff members provide many services and help the self-help participants every step of the way from qualifying for a mortgage to teaching and overseeing construction of the participants’ homes. Self-help participants work together under the supervision of a construction supervisor to build approximately 65 percent of their homes, each working about 30 hours a week. Their labor, also known as sweat equity, is the down payment on their house, and it reduces the price of the home by approximately 20 percent. By providing labor in lieu of a down payment, residents who would not otherwise be able to afford to can purchase a home of their own.

Through the process, the participants develop strong bonds and create a supportive community — every family works on all the homes in the neighborhood simultaneously and no one moves until all the homes in the group are completed. All homes are Energy Star Certified, meeting strict guidelines set by the Environmental Protection Agency and are 15 percent more efficient than traditionally built homes. Homes that are more energy efficient also will have lower utility bills, helping to increase affordability in the long run. RCAC has supported MCHT with seven previous loans, creating 50 greatly needed self-help built homes in the Summit County area since 2003.

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