"Affordable forever" homes are now for sale in Des Moines

How it works: Houses in the network are sold to low-income families at a discount, but the land they sit on is owned by the trust.

• Homeowners agree that when they resell their properties, they do so at a restricted price to other low-income buyers — and can expect to receive their initial investment back, plus a percentage of the property's increased equity.

Catch up quick: A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS) — a network of churches and community groups — launched an advocacy campaign for a local land trust years ago.

• A partnership with Des Moines, West Des Moines and Polk County ultimately led to the CICLT being established as its own nonprofit group last year.

The intrigue: Local governments' first-year investments for CICLT's startup costs — expenses that don't include land or home construction — are under $200,000, with the housing group HOME Inc. managing it until it becomes self-sustaining, Iowa Public Radio reports.

The big picture: Land trusts have been successful in hundreds of places across the U.S. for years.

State of play: Local builders and groups like HOME Inc. partnered to deliver the first homes.

• Of the first three homes for sale, one is already sold and applications are being accepted for the others, Carrie Woerdeman, executive director of HOME Inc., said in a video announcement this week.

What's next: The land trust aims to reach 100 homes within five years, Jaqueline Chico, CICLT's program manager, said in the video.