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For many in Duluth and the surrounding areas, the dream of owning a home can feel frustratingly out of reach. At One Roof Community Housing, our mission is to provide a dynamic spectrum of housing development and services so that everyone in our community has the opportunity to attain safe and stable homes.

As a nonprofit organization, we provide housing services and build affordable homes to create healthy, thriving neighborhoods. From first-time home buyers to longtime residents, tenants to landlords, we provide the tools and support needed to successfully purchase, maintain and keep the place the home buyer chooses to call home.

Getting you ready for home ownership

An informed home buyer is a successful homeowner. Recognizing that buying a home is one of life’s biggest financial decisions, One Roof offers educational programs designed to make the process clear and achievable.

This support begins with free Home ownership Counseling — private, confidential, one-on-one sessions with professional housing counselors. In these meetings, individuals and families receive personalized advice to create a realistic plan for success. 

Counselors can help the home buyer understand and improve their credit, develop a workable budget and set achievable goals for saving for a down payment. This process demystifies the financial steps that often feel like the biggest barrier to home ownership.

For those ready to dive deeper, One Roof offers monthly Home Stretch Workshops. These comprehensive classes cover the entire home-buying process from start to finish. 

Participants learn everything from how to find a real estate agent and what to look for during a home inspection, to the complexities of mortgage applications and what happens at the closing table. 

As someone who personally took this course in 2011 before buying my own home, I can attest how incredibly helpful it was in knowing what to expect and what to look for throughout the entire journey. It empowers you to move forward with confidence.

Making homes more affordable

Even with the right knowledge, the cost of home ownership can be prohibitive. This is where One Roof’s most innovative programs come into play, creating unique pathways to affordable home ownership.

The cornerstone of this work is the Community Land Trust (CLT). This model separates the cost of a house from the cost of the land it sits on. A home buyer purchases the house itself at a significantly reduced price, while One Roof retains ownership of the land. The homeowner leases the land for a small, predictable monthly fee. This immediately lowers the barrier to entry.

The beauty of the CLT is how it preserves affordability for generations. When a homeowner decides to sell, they receive the full amount they originally paid for the house, plus 25% of how much the property’s value increased. The remaining 75% of the appreciation stays with the home, passing the savings on to the next income-qualified buyer. 

One Roof does not collect these funds; the value is recycled directly back into the home to keep it permanently affordable. 

To date, this powerful model has recycled more than $20 million in community investment right here in our neighborhoods.  There are currently 375 community land trust homes in Northeastern Minnesota, from Duluth, Cloquet, Two Harbors, Grand Marais and even over to Grand Rapids.

In addition to the CLT, One Roof offers Down Payment & Rehab Loans. As a designated Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), One Roof is a mission-driven lender that can offer flexible loans traditional banks and credit unions often cannot, especially for those who might not meet conventional lending criteria. 

As a CDFI, One Roof is mandated to direct at least 60% of its annual lending to low-to-moderate-income households or into historically under invested communities and neighborhoods, ensuring that support goes where it is needed most.

One Roof also operates a free to use tool lending library. The tool lending library has many of the tools most basic DIYers need to accomplish typical home improvement projects. 

Strengthening Duluth’s entire rental market 

A healthy community depends on stable and fair rental housing. Through its Tenant Landlord Connection (TLC) program, One Roof works to improve relationships, provide crucial education and decrease preventable evictions. 

The TLC offers Ready-to-Rent classes for tenants and specialized workshops for landlords on topics like fair housing laws and business fundamentals. If an individual ever has a question about their rights or responsibilities as either a tenant or a landlord, One Roof is the place to call.

To help resolve issues before they escalate, the TLC program also provides free mediation services. This brings tenants and landlords, or even neighbors, to the table to find common ground and avoid costly and damaging legal action — because nobody truly wins in an eviction. 

Building a more equitable Duluth

Beyond helping individuals one-on-one, One Roof is a major force in developing new and redeveloped housing across the region. We partner with other nonprofits, foundations and government agencies to build homes for all. 

Recent projects include Brewery Creek, a 52-unit building with apartments for the public, people with disabilities and youth experiencing homelessness. 

Decker Dwellings offers 42 units serving a similar mix of residents. 

Developments like these are transforming our city’s landscape. This work builds on a long history of partnerships on landmark projects like Duluth Veteran’s Place, the Steve O’Neil Apartments and Gateway Tower.

This incredible breadth of work, from counseling a single home buyer to developing multi-million-dollar apartment complexes, is made possible by the generous support of public, private and philanthropic partners who are all committed to strengthening our community, one home at a time.

To learn more about these services, find housing, or get involved, please visit 1roofhousing.org. 

Noah Hobbs is a community development leader with more than a decade of experience, currently serving as the Director of Strategy and Policy for One Roof Community Housing. He extends his leadership as Board Chair for Co-North, where he helps create cooperative manufactured home communities, and as Co-Chair for Homeownership Minnesota, a coalition dedicated to advancing affordable homeownership across the state. Committed to his community, Noah also serves as an assistant baseball coach at Denfeld High School.