Exploring Compatibility: Utilizing Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) for Community Land Trust (CLT) Developments, is a national study examining how Community Land Trusts are using the federal LIHTC program to finance affordable rental housing while preserving long-term affordability and community stewardship. The study draws on DJC’s 2026 U.S. LIHTC-CLT Survey of more than 30 CLTs across states representing nearly half the U.S. population, along with follow-up interviews, independent research, and detailed case studies of CLTs’ varied approaches to structuring LIHTC-financed developments.
The United States faces an affordable housing crisis, with housing costs rising far faster than incomes & demand significantly outpacing supply.
LIHTC has financed more than 55,000 developments and nearly 4 million units nationwide since its creation, but nearly 500,000 units are projected to lose affordability protections by 2030.
Detroit justice center’s new study explores combining the scale of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) financing with the long-term affordability of Community Land Trusts (CLT) We found that LIHTC and CLTs can work together, but structure matters; whether they work well together depends heavily on the organization’s capacity, project structure, and a CLT’s ability to maintain meaningful control over affordability and stewardship outcomes.
No single model exists for integrating LIHTC into CLT developments. However, projects that retain stronger CLT ownership and governance structures are generally better positioned to preserve long- term affordability, stewardship, and community control. At the same time, respondents consistently identified LIHTC complexity, limited organizational capacity, and competition for funding as major barriers to participation.
LIHTC-CLT developments are not a silver bullet— but they offer one of the most promising opportunities to combine large-scale affordable housing production with permanent affordability.
The report was prepared by Eric Williams, DJC Legal Director; Mark J. Bennett, Managing Attorney, Affordable Housing; Louise Engohang, Legal Researcher; and Lauryn Thomas, Legal Researcher, with CLT expertise contributed by Jeff Washburne of Burlington Associates.