Raleigh breaks ground on first affordable cottage court as affordable housing push continues

The Raleigh Area Land Trust on Monday broke ground on the city's first permanently affordable cottage court. 

The Cottages of Idlewild will provide 18 homes in the city's Idlewild neighborhood. Idlewild was the first place in Raleigh where formerly enslaved people could own land.

Co-Founder of Raleigh Raised Development and North Carolina Central University Head Basketball Coach LeVelle Moton grew up in Idlewild and is one of the project's visionaries. 

"This is more personal for me than it is business," Moton said. "The thing I always wanted to do is just make it out here to come back and give back and provide opportunities because I know there are challenging situations." 

Families making 50 to 80% of the area's average median income will be able to buy 14 of the homes at the development for $145,000 each.

Triangle MLS data shows the median sales price of a home in Wake County was $489,450 in July. 

"People can gain and profit equity in these homes. If they move, they can take some of the equity out and create generational wealth for their families in the same capacity that it's been created for people that didn't look like us or people who weren't from these communities," said Moton.

The city of Raleigh has embarked on a plan to build nearly 6,000 affordable housing units to combat what leaders call an "urgent housing affordability and homelessness crisis."

The Cottages of Idlewild is the first new construction project in Wake County that the Raleigh Area Land Trust (RALT) is developing. 

According to its website, RALT acquires land to build homes and makes those homes for sale at an affordable price. 

"This is an innovative approach," said Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell, who believes the model could be used to spur other affordable housing developments. "We're going to need more money. I know there's public dollars going into this, but you also have philanthropic dollars."

RALT Executive Director Kevin Campbell says low-income households are feeling financial pressure as population growth outpaces home construction, causing prices to increase.

"Right now, we have that gap not just because we have a lot of new residents coming, but we're also losing units that used to be affordable that no longer are. So, in our model, these units stay affordable for generations," said Campbell.

For Moton, the cottages will honor the legacy of the community where he grew up while addressing urgent housing needs in the community that some residents say is rapidly gentrifying. 

"It's 18 units ... It's certainly just the tip of the iceberg, and in no way is this savior of the Raleigh community," Moton said. "Instead of them having to be displaced and go to Knightdale or Wake Forest or surrounding areas, they can remain in the neighborhood that they grew up in." 

Construction of the new units is expected to take 16 months.