CPT is Live!

Wednesday, 20 September 2023 was a huge day for the Community Preservation Trust, a program of the College Park City-University Partnership, and for College Park as a whole. On this cool (almost) autumn morning, a group assembled in Calvert Hills for a ribbon-cutting marking the purchase of the Trust’s first home by a long-time existing tenant of that home. 

Before getting a sense of the absolute joy that happened at the ribbon-cutting, please allow me to take a moment to explain what the Trust is and how it works.  The Community Preservation Trust was formed by the College Park City-University Partnership to provide opportunities for neighborhood preservation and affordable homeownership in College Park, a prime focus area of Vision 2030, the strategic plan championed by the Partnership. After raising nearly $15 Million in grants at the federal, state and local levels, the Partnership formed the Trust as a Maryland-registered Affordable Housing Land Trust, one of fifteen in the entire state. The recent event was the first sale of a property to a homeowner by the Trust, and is a prime example of the strong, longstanding relationships built in College Park. 

At the event, we were honored to have Carol A. Gilbert, Assistant Secretary of the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, join the homeowner, the Trust, the Partnership, several Board members, Advisory Committee Members, elected officials and excited neighbors in marking the day. As can be seen in the photo below, it was the definition of “community.”

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the sale was that it provides proof of concept; it demonstrates the Trust can make a difference in affordable housing and neighborhood preservation. The Trust was approached by interested homeowners, who were looking to sell and had heard about the fact that the Partnership has created the Trust. The actions that led up to this sale to a first-time homebuyer and long-term renter started, as so many things do, with a series of conversations and participants willing to listen and understand. The home sellers knew that the Trust was just getting on its feet, and they agreed to be patient. There was just one stipulation—the long-time tenant had to come out all right in this process. At that moment, the Trust asked the sellers if their tenant wanted to be a homeowner. The answer was a resounding YES and set us all on the path to the joyous event, in which that tenant was able to purchase his home at a discount to market prices. 

All of us—the seller, the buyer and the Trust— were happy to have accomplished all that we did. We were happy to have members of the news media come to cover this event. Check out the links below for more information: 

What’s Next?

The Trust has purchased two other homes and is working to identify buyers who want to experience the shared equity agreement that will help to make them a homeowner. Interested individuals who want to: a) learn more about the Trust, b) find out about opportunities to purchase a home at a discount or c) hear about how selling their own home to the Trust is advantageous to the entire community of College Park, should contact us at [email protected], or see our website at www.communitypreservationtrust.org.   

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