Blog

Land Banks

State of Land Banking: 2023 Survey Highlights

Key takeaways, data, and charts from the 2023 State of Land Banking survey.

Helping Land Banks Advance Racial Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

In the Land Bank DEI Learning Cohort, eight land banks learned how to disrupt racial injustice to better serve their communities.

Challenges—and Opportunities—to Addressing Vacant Properties in Raton, New Mexico

A snapshot of Raton, New Mexico and how the city can tackle vacant and abandoned properties.

Transforming Cleveland Vacant Lots into an Urban Farm

How the Cuyahoga Land Bank and a community activist worked together to transform a block one property at a time.

Celebrating 20 Years of Land Banks in Michigan

In 2023, Michigan land banks mark two important milestones: 20 years since the passage of Michigan’s Land Bank Fast Track Act and incorporation of the 50th land bank in the state.

What is a Land Bank?

A land bank is a public entity with unique powers to put vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties back to productive use according to community goals.

Community Progress Calls on FHA to Improve Access to Rehab Mortgages

On April 17, 2023, the Center for Community Progress submitted a response to the Federal Housing Administration (FHA)’s Request for Information (RFI) Regarding Rehabilitation Mortgages. A rehabilitation mortgage, often called a rehab mortgage, is designed to help homeowners improve their existing home or buy a home needing repair or renovation….

Leaders in Land Banking: A Conversation with the Directors of the Savannah-Chatham Land Bank Authority and Omaha Municipal Land Bank

We sat down with Alison Goldey, director of the Chatham County/City of Savannah Land Bank Authority, and Leslie Smith, director of the Omaha Municipal Land Bank, to talk about the challenges land bank leaders share and the experience of adapting to running a land bank in a new city. Thank…

Looking for a Land Bank Near You? This Map Will Help!

Learn what a land bank is, how it works, how to buy vacant property from a land bank, and if any land banks serve your community.

How the Tri-COG Land Bank is Transforming Vacant Properties in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania

Representing Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, the Tri-COG land bank has had enormous success in its first five years of operation.

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Why Land Banks Matter

For neighborhoods burdened by systemic disinvestment; vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties often become symbols of neglect. They pose social, economic, health, and environmental hazards to communities and residents. Addressing these properties requires intervention at multiple points and systems—and one powerful tool many communities use to address vacancy and promote equitable…

Celebrating Legislative Wins to Combat Vacancy in Missouri and Alabama

Effective legislation is a vital piece of equipping state and local governments to effectively address vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties (VAD). Through our Land Bank Incubator Scholarship Program, over the last three years Community Progress has been honored to support local efforts to craft and advance these pieces of legislation….

A Conversation with Crystal Loffler, President of the Office of Community Renewal

We sat down with Crystal Loffler, President of the Office of Community Renewal at New York State Homes & Community Renewal, to talk about unique and flexible funding opportunities available to land banks in New York State and what other entities can learn from her work. Can you share a…

What is a Brownfield?

Brownfield properties, often referred to as “brownfields,” are properties where the presence or potential presence of hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant makes redevelopment challenging and costly.

What is the Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act?

The bipartisan bill is an important step in giving rural, urban, and suburban communities the tools to address “blighted” properties. The key focus of the bill is providing support to land banks, a tool many communities are adopting to support economic and neighborhood revitalization.

The Problem with Calling Neighborhoods with Vacant Properties “Blighted”

Blight is a shorthand term many people use to refer to properties they perceive as problematic in some way.

How Vacant and Abandoned Buildings Affect the Community

Vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated (VAD) properties—referred to by some as “blighted properties”—pose significant costs to public health, property values, local taxpayers, and more.

What’s the Deal with Rural Land Banks? A Q&A with West Virginia Land Stewardship Corporation Executive Director Taylor Bennett

Land banks can help rural communities deal with vacant, abandoned, and dilapidated properties.

New Study Shows Land Bank Ownership of Vacant Lots Can Reduce Violent Crime

A vacant lot owned and cared for by a land bank sees a greater decrease in crime compared to privately owned lots, finds 2023 study in Flint, MI.

2023 Year in Review: National Land Bank Network

Some highlights from National Land Bank Network and the land banking field in 2023.