Michigan state land bank commits $400K for affordable housing in Oakland County

A luxury community in Commerce Township will help provide affordable housing elsewhere in Oakland County, according to the Michigan State Land Bank Authority.

In a press release, the authority said a total of $400,000 in tax revenue that was captured from former land bank-owned properties will be directed to the Oakland County Housing Trust Fund. The first $250,000 of that total has already been contributed after the state land bank authority partnered with the Oakland County Brownfield Development Authority to convert a former sand and gravel pit in Commerce Township to The Reserve at Crystal Lake, a 203-lot market rate housing development currently under construction.  

“The Reserve at Crystal Lake provides another exceptional example of the State Land Bank Authority’s commitment to putting unproductive property back on tax rolls,” Joseph Rivet, director of the Michigan State Land Bank Authority said. “At the same time, we are creatively targeting our resources to further workforce housing development here and throughout Michigan.”  

The funding is obtained by the authority by collecting a share of property tax revenue for five years after selling land bank-owned properties. Although the Commerce Township site wasn’t developed as affordable housing, the authority says it is upholding its broader commitment to housing access by redirecting tax revenue from the project. Spokesperson Chelsea Wuth tells Michigan Advance that it is the first time the authority has used this type of arrangement to further affordable housing efforts.

“This investment from the State Land Bank Authority will have a meaningful impact on addressing the demand for affordable housing in Oakland County,” Oakland County Housing Officer Khadija Walker-Fobbs said. “By reinvesting tax revenue from a market-rate development into our Housing Trust Fund, we are strengthening our communities and making them more livable.”