HEBER CITY, Utah — A state-backed program is offering lower-income Utah families a path to homeownership, but it requires a 15-year commitment before they can buy.
Construction crews are busy in Heber City, where six new townhomes are taking shape. The project is part of Utah's CROWN program — short for Credits to Own — an initiative designed to help lower-income residents eventually purchase a home.
Jason Glidden, executive director of the Mountainlands Community Housing Trust, said the program targets people who might otherwise be priced out of the market.
"The Crown program specifically, really gives opportunity to folks that are in a lower income bracket," Glidden said.
Mountainlands Community Housing Trust is a nonprofit focused on creating affordable housing along the Wasatch Back, one of the most unaffordable areas in the state. The organization is overseeing the Wasatch County housing development.
"You want to make sure that a community stays strong, and when you have a lack of affordable housing, that begins to erode that community," Glidden said.
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Here is how the program works: Applications will open soon. To qualify, applicants must earn less than 55% of the area-median income — roughly $75,000 a year for a family of four in Wasatch County. Those accepted can rent the property for 15 years, after which they have the option to purchase the home at a price considerably lower than market value.
Rent for the current Heber City build is estimated at around $1,700 a month for a 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom home — well below the average rent of roughly $4,000 for a 4-bedroom home in Wasatch County. At the end of the 15-year period, those homes are estimated to sell around $250,000.
Claudia O'Grady, vice president of multi-family finance and development at the Utah Housing Corporation — the state-backed organization running the CROWN program — said the homes are built to the same standards as market-rate properties.
"They are built to the same standards, built to that same quality, the same aesthetic and that's really one of the nice things about this program is that the community, the neighborhood, grows up together," O'Grady said.
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O'Grady said the 15-year timeline has not deterred families from following through.
"15 years may seem like a long period of time, but we've had a good number of our units purchased by the original occupant, and that just really speaks to the opportunity here, the demand, the need," O'Grady said.
Statewide, about 67% of CROWN homes that have reached the 15-year benchmark so far have been purchased by the tenant.
Glidden said affordable housing in areas like Wasatch and Summit counties also benefits local employers by keeping workers close to their jobs.
"You have an economy that's more sustainable because you have a workforce that's actually present. You have essential employees, nurses, policemen, firemen, that actually live in the area, rather than traveling in, you know, from outside the county," Glidden said.
Currently, there are only 505 CROWN program homes across Utah. O'Grady said the limited number comes down to funding and tax credit limitations.
"That's exactly the constraint. We have a limited number of tax credits that we get every year from the Treasury," O'Grady said.
Glidden said rising housing costs have pushed workers further and further from where they are needed most.
"When the pricing here went up, you know, really pushed the workforce out of here, so they started to go towards the neighboring communities. Now the price of those neighboring communities has risen, so you're pushing your workforce out even further," Glidden said.
He is calling on community members to support more affordable housing developments.
"Instead of saying not in my backyard, we really need them change that to yes in my backyard to allow for more of these homes to be built," Glidden said.
The Heber City townhomes are expected to be complete by October, though the mild winter could push that timeline earlier. Applications will open soon. Families can visit housinghelp.org to express interest in the project.
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