Land Trust
A Lasting Approach to Affordable Homeownership
The Ho‘omaluhia Community Land Trust Program, or HCLT, is a homeownership program established by PAL Hawai‘i. It expands access to homeownership while protecting affordability over time.
By retaining ownership of the land, HCLT can offer homes at prices below the open market. Homebuyers gain the stability and financial benefits of ownership, while the land remains a lasting community resource for future Kaua‘i households.
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Land Acknowledgment
The ʻāina [ayne-ah — land] on which we operate is located on the mokupuni [moh-koo-poo-nee] of Kauaʻi within the pae ʻāina [pie-ayne-ah] of Hawaiʻi.
We acknowledge Hawaiʻi as an Indigenous place and the ancestral and continuing homeland of Kānaka Maoli, the Native Hawaiian people.
We recognize that Her Majesty Queen Liliʻuokalani yielded her authority under protest and duress to avoid the bloodshed of her people. We also recognize the generations of Kānaka Maoli whose knowledge, practices, and stewardship have cared for and sustained Hawaiʻi and continue to do so today.
For these gifts and responsibilities, we are deeply grateful.
PAL Hawaiʻi recognizes that our work takes place within the current legal and economic structures governing land ownership in Hawaiʻi. Within these structures, we have chosen the community land trust model as one practical way to hold land for long-term community benefit, limit its exposure to speculative resale, and preserve more affordable homeownership opportunities for future generations.
We understand that this model does not resolve the broader history of land ownership in Hawaiʻi. It reflects the responsibility we can exercise through our work today.
How it works
HCLT stewards the land
HCLT owns the land interest and holds it in trust. The land remains with HCLT when a home is sold or inherited.
The homebuyer owns the home
The homebuyer purchases and owns the home, finances the purchase with a mortgage, and may build equity by paying down the loan and receiving a portion of the home’s appreciation when the home is sold.
The home remains affordable
When the homeowner sells, the Ground Lease limits the maximum resale price. This allows the homeowner to build equity while helping keep the home affordable for the next household.
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A Home for Generations
Affordable homes are often created with support from donations, grants, public funding, and community partnerships. In a conventional sale, that investment may benefit only the first household if the home is later resold at full market value.
The HCLT Program protects that investment by building long-term affordability into the ownership structure. As one homeowner moves on and another purchases the home, much of the affordability remains in place.
This allows the same community investment to create opportunity for household after household, extending its impact far beyond the first sale.
