Only 3.7% is made up of different forms of social housing ⎯ public housing, nonprofit housing, cooperatives and community land trusts.
Boston is home to one of the most successful community land trusts in the country.
In the Dudley neighborhood triangle, community ownership of the land keeps 226 homes permanently affordable, through a deed restriction, and provides security in times of disinvestment and gentrification alike.
On the policy front, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar has proposed the Rent and Mortgage Cancellation Act, H. 6515, which would not only ensure that renters and homeowners emerge from the crisis debt-free, but also establish a buyout fund to turn foreclosed and at-risk properties into social housing instead of speculative portfolios.
John Lloyd is executive director of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, which launched Boston’s first community land trust in 1988.