The Threefold Mission of The Housing Trust is to:
- Serve as a catalyst for the production of affordable homes and apartments and to encourage homeownership in order to stimulate the development of affordable apartments and homes in and near employment centers.
- Invest in affordable residential development and construction in older and overlooked areas of Columbus and Franklin County.
- Use the resources available to us in the most efficient and cost effective way possible by leveraging dollars and manage operating expenses.
The Trust acts as an independent, not-for-profit lender for affordable new home and apartment development and for the rehabilitation of vacant and abandoned residential buildings.
The Trust is a catalyst, generating participation by other lenders and investors to leverage the impact of its own financial resources.
The Trust directs its resources toward builders and developers rather than individual households. But the beneficiaries of Trust programs are in fact the working people and seniors in low- and moderate-income households who benefit from additional affordable housing in the community.
The Housing Trust was created as an independent, not-for- profit entity in 2001, in response to the effort by the City and County to create more affordable homeownership and rental housing and to strengthen neighborhoods within Columbus and Franklin County.
Is there a Problem?
For Homeowners:
- In 2006 the average sales price of a home (new or existing) in Franklin County was $157,900.
- The average cost of a home in Columbus/Franklin County rose 79% in the past ten years, while lower and middle income wages have increased only 29%. Wages have not kept pace with inflation, therefore, more families must spend a greater portion of their income to own or rent a home. This means that working families are paying a much greater portion of their incomes for shelter (either for a mortgage or rent), leaving much less for food, clothing, education, and medical problems. And these families certainly have few reserves in times of emergency.
For Renters:
- Rental housing is unaffordable to many working families:
- A full time worker needs to earn $12.31 an hour or $25,600 a year to afford rent and utilities for a two bedroom market rate apartment in Franklin County. In 2000, 117,615 households had incomes below that level.
News
Welcome to the Housing Trust's new website. Please browse throughout the site to find out more about the Trust, the services we offer, and how we may be able to help you build, develop or rehab affordable, workforce housing throughout Columbus and Franklin County.
A Milestone
The Housing Trust is pleased to have committed over 17.9 million dollars to affordable, workforce housing since its start in 2001. That translates into 1772 homes and apartments for 4000 folks in Columbus and Franklin County. We are proud and energized. However, there is much more work to be done.
Financial Facts
- Trust dollars committed in total loans: over $17 million
- Trust loan commitments for 1,772 homes and apartments
- Trust leverage formula: Each Trust dollar = $6.85 into housing
- We estimate that over 4,000 Columbus and Franklin County residents will benefit from this increased production
