Tools & Resources
[Tools & Resources]
Some housing myths just refuse to die.
They’ve been around for years, sometimes showing up in neighborhood conversations, community meetings, or discussions about what it takes to develop homes for people with disabilities. As a nonprofit real estate developer specializing in community residences, CIL has seen firsthand how much misinformation can surround community residences. So, in the spirit of Halloween, we’re shining a little light on some of the most common misconceptions.
Myth #1: Community Residences bring down property values.
Reality: The research says otherwise.
Studies conducted across the country have found that community residences do not negatively affect property values, with some studies finding they can actually improve them. Community residences are also generally designed and renovated to look like the other homes in the neighborhood.
In other words, the house next door may be a community residence, but from the outside, you may never know it.
Myth #2: People with disabilities need to live somewhere separate from the community.
Reality: Community is part of independence.
People with disabilities have the right to live and receive services in their communities and those rights must be protected.
The idea that people belong somewhere separate from the rest of the community? That’s one myth we’re happy to leave in the past.
Myth #3: A nonprofit can’t be a real estate developer.
Reality: At CIL, real estate development advances our mission.
Real estate development may sound like an unlikely activity for a nonprofit, but it’s central to what CIL does. CIL acquires property, develops and renovates homes, and manages the many pieces required to bring a community residence to life—from site acquisition and zoning to design, accessibility, financing, and construction.
No tricks. No dark magic. Just real estate development with a mission behind it.
Myth #4: If you don’t have the capital, you can’t grow.
Reality: The right development partner can help turn an opportunity into a home.
For providers looking to expand, the cost of acquiring or developing a home can be a significant barrier. Under CIL’s community residence model, CIL can provide 100% financing for acquisition, construction, and soft costs, eliminating the need for a significant upfront equity contribution from the provider.
That allows CIL and the provider to focus on what each does best.
CIL: Site + financing + development + real estate
Provider: Services + staffing + resident support
There are plenty of things worth being frightened of in October. Misconceptions about community residences shouldn’t be one of them. This month, CIL is putting some of these myths where they belong: six feet under.
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