The Roots of the Community Land Trust Movement
NHT has a multi-faceted approach to unlocking housing opportunity, including two Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs): the NHT Community Development Fund (NHTCDF) and the Institute for Community Economics (I.C.E.). NHT assumed stewardship of I.C.E., a pioneer in both Community Land Trusts (CLTs) and CDFIs in 2008, taking on its loan portfolio and its legacy. Today, I.C.E.’s influence continues to shape our values, our lending approach, and our deep commitment to CLTs.
The Early Days of the Institute for Community Economics
Social reformers and early champions of the CLT model, Robert Swan and Ralph Borsodi, established the International Independence Institute in the late 1960s. Initially focused on international development, the organization shifted its mission in 1973, renaming itself the Institute for Community Economics (now known as I.C.E.) and dedicating its work to advancing the domestic CLT movement. This transition was informed by Swan and others’ work launching the New Communities CLT in Georgia and reflected the growing belief that community ownership models could be tools for equity and self-determination in the United States.
In the mid-1970s, I.C.E. created its loan fund, formalizing the financing arm that still exists today. In 1979, former teenage Civil Rights activist Chuck Matthei became Executive Director. Under his leadership, I.C.E. significantly expanded its reach and ambition.
The Expansion of the Institute for Community Economics
During the 1980s, I.C.E. relocated from Cambridge to Greenfield, Massachusetts. Inspired by the other social justice movements, staff lived communally, shared resources, grew food on an organic farm, and pooled financial resources. This unconventional structure reflected I.C.E.’s values and supported its role as a pioneer in the CLT and community loan fund models. During this period, I.C.E. also became a convener and co-creator of other loan funds, helping lay the groundwork for today's CDFI industry. The 1985 convening specifically led to an association being created. Initially, I.C.E. incubated the association of 21 loan funds before it transitioned to become an independent organization in 1989; that organization is now known as Opportunity Finance Network, with nearly 500 CDFI members and more than $1 billion under management today.
As the CLT movement grew, I.C.E. became a one-stop shop for CLTs nationwide. Its offerings included technical assistance, conferences, training events, a CLT network, and financing from its loan fund. I.C.E. even had its own construction crew that supported building efforts. During Chuck’s decade-long tenure, the number of CLTs increased from a dozen to over 100 groups, supporting hundreds of homes across 23 states.
I.C.E. also produced some of the earliest resources to support CLTs, including The Community Land Trust: A Guide to a New Model of Land Tenure in America (1972), The Community Land Trust Handbook (1982), The Community Land Trust Legal Manual (1992), Homes and Hands: Community Land Trusts in Action (1998). These publications helped define the model and provided practical guidance for practitioners.
In 1990, I.C.E. moved to Springfield, MA, and leadership changed. Shortly thereafter, the organization moved away from communal living, and staff positions shifted to traditional salaried roles. Even as its structure evolved, I.C.E. continued to play a critical role in developing both the CLT and the CDFI fields. As the portfolio and impact expanded, the organization helped establish greater legal precedent, technical expertise, and sophistication for the CLT model.
By the late 1990s, increasingly challenging housing markets required more hands-on loan management. In 2008, I.C.E.’s loan fund was conveyed to NHT, which already had a similarly sized CDFI in-house as well as other business lines that aligned with I.C.E.’s work.
Community Land Trusts and NHT Today
This pioneering support of CLTs is reflected in NHT’s portfolio today. NHT continues to be a lender to CLTs, providing project-level and enterprise loans for organizations to scale their work. Since 2024, NHT has deployed over $13 million to CLTs. Our deep familiarity with the CLT model allows us to be thoughtful partners, and we continue to collaborate with others to elevate CLTs as a proven, enduring solution to the housing crisis.