Investments will help combat displacement and increase opportunities for generations
SEATTLE – The City of Seattle’s Office of Housing (OH) is proud to announce investments of over to $7 million to create 51 new, permanently affordable homeownership opportunities in the Central District and South Park neighborhoods. The funding, awarded through OH’s 2025 Homeownership Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), supports two new developments that will provide pathways to homeownership for households earning up to 80% of the Area Median Income.
The $7 million in funding will support affordable homeownership through the following investments:
- Homestead Community Land Trust: Awarded nearly $5 million to develop 34 homes on land owned by Goodwill Baptist Church in the Central District. This project is a key part of the Nehemiah Initiative’s effort to partner churches with developers to combat displacement.
- Frolic Community: Awarded over $2 million for the Marra Commons development, which will construct 17 permanently affordable homes within a Limited Equity Cooperative in South Park.
Both developments will offer a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes, serving a variety of family sizes and supporting the creation of vibrant communities.
The homes created through the 2025 Homeownership NOFA are in addition to $3.6 million in investments through the Rainier Valley Affordable Homeownership Initiative to create 24 new for-sale homes. In total, the City of Seattle is investing $10.6 million in 2025 to create 75 new affordable homes for low- and moderate-income first-time homebuyers.
Including these newly awarded projects, the City has invested in the creation of 316 permanently affordable homes for ownership since 2022, which exceeds the number created in the prior 20 years combined. City investment has also created, preserved, or funded the development of more than 8,000 affordable rental homes since 2022.
“These affordable homeownership opportunities are part of our broader strategy to create more housing more quickly across income levels — a proven way to make housing more affordable for everyone,” said Mayor Bruce Harrell. “By helping working families put down roots, achieve stability, and build an even brighter future, we’re moving closer to a Seattle where every resident has access to a healthy, stable, and affordable place to call home.”
Mayor Harrell’s proposed 2026 budget includes a record $350 million investment in affordable housing and establishes a new Anti-Displacement and Reparations Housing Fund. Earlier this year, the City released its Anti-Displacement Action Plan, developed through the Mayor’s Executive Order to strengthen housing stability. The City is also supporting innovative models such as Limited Equity Cooperatives and partnerships between housing providers and community organizations to promote inclusive communities and expand access to affordable homeownership.
What People Are Saying
Councilmember Rob Saka, District 1
“This is such welcome news for our city. I am proud that a portion of these new affordable homes will be built for working families in our vibrant South Park neighborhood, in District 1. Investing in affordable housing such as the new Marra Commons development, has been, and will continue to be, a top priority of my office.”
Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth, District 3
“I’m incredibly proud to see our City stepping up to create real pathways to affordable homeownership in two neighborhoods that have carried deep cultural significance and have been hit hard by gentrification and displacement. It means a lot to see organizations like Homestead Community Land Trust and the Nehemiah Institute doing the work to make sure families not only have a chance to buy a home here, but that those with deep roots in the Central District have a way to come back home. This is how we honor our history and invest in our future.”
Kathleen Hosfeld, CEO/Executive Director, Homestead Community Land Trust
“Homeownership is the foundation of stability, equity, opportunity, and community. This investment by the City of Seattle helps ensure that longtime residents of the Central District can remain rooted in their neighborhood and build generational wealth. Partnering with Goodwill Baptist Church and the Nehemiah Initiative, we’re demonstrating how faith institutions and community land trusts can work together to combat displacement and keep land in community hands for good.”
W. Tali Hairston, PhD, Executive Director, Nehemiah Initiative
“We at the Nehemiah Initiative celebrate the collective action that has brought about the development of Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church’s affordable housing project, a continuation of the church’s historic commitment to equity and justice in the Central District of Seattle. The City of Seattle, under Mayor Harrell’s leadership, is supporting critical efforts to address displacement and is empowering community-based affordable housing solutions. Such efforts are crucial to addressing affordable housing, demonstrating what is possible when we work together to leverage relationships that center community leadership, increase access to resources, and invest in pathways to homeownership.”
Josh Morrison, Chief Operating Officer, Frolic Community
“We are honored to begin this partnership with the South Park community, moving toward a future with beautiful, accessible, and permanently affordable homes. Vibrant, rooted housing for vibrant, rooted communities. We are deeply grateful to the Office of Housing and our community partners for their ongoing commitment and collaboration in helping make scalable, community-led, cooperative housing possible.”