Eugene Community Land Trust Neighborhood to Offer Homes Under $275,000

Emily Reiman, executive director of the Eugene-based nonprofit DevNW, is building 36 ownership homes on Floral Drive in the Laurel Hill Valley neighborhood of southeast Eugene, pricing every unit below $275,000 in a market where the current median sale price sits at roughly $450,000.

The monthly math makes the gap concrete. A buyer who puts 20% down on a $275,000 Floral Hill home carries roughly $1,460 per month in principal and interest, plus a $100 to $125 monthly land lease paid to DevNW. A comparable purchase at the Eugene median requires financing around $360,000, pushing the monthly payment to roughly $2,400 at current rates, before taxes and insurance.

That land lease is the linchpin of DevNW's model. Buyers own the home but not the ground beneath it; DevNW retains the land, strips its value from the purchase price, and in return caps what future owners can earn when they sell. Resale prices are restricted by formula to keep homes affordable for the next buyer. Floral Hill is designed to build stable equity rather than speculative returns, and DevNW is targeting it explicitly toward first-time homebuyers, fixed-income households, and racially marginalized and immigrant communities who have been largely priced out of Eugene's ownership market.

To qualify, a household must earn no more than 80% of the area median income, currently capped at $71,300 per year for a family of four. The 36 homes, a mix of townhomes and detached units totaling 100 bedrooms, occupy a 3.9-acre parcel zoned R-1 near Hendricks Park.

The total project cost is $19.2 million. Eugene City Council awarded DevNW $600,000 from the city's Affordable Housing Trust Fund on June 9, 2025, with state LIFT funds and other sources covering the remaining 97% of the budget. Site preparation began last year, and phase one home construction is set to begin in May 2026. The first homes are expected to be available for purchase between May and September 2027.

Prospective buyers should start preparing now. DevNW requires a HUD-certified homebuying class and a consultation with a HUD-certified homeownership counselor before purchase, and a $75 annual DevNW membership covers access to both for a full year. Income documentation will be required at application. The nonprofit's community land trust application and program details are available directly through DevNW. A second construction phase is scheduled to follow, with additional homes expected in 2028 for households who do not qualify or are not selected in the first round.