Mission
The Methow Housing Trust develops and preserves affordable, quality housing for residents of the Methow Valley.
Needs
For many Methow Valley residents, the stability and benefits of home-ownership are forever out of reach. As the Valley grows and changes, living wages cannot keep pace with dramatically increasing real estate values, leaving more and more Valley households in unsustainable living situations.
Over the past 5 years, median real estate sale values have been outpacing wage increases more than 5:1
The 2020 median home price in the Methow Valley was $420,000. The household income required to purchase a home at that price is nearly double the 2020 median income of a 2 person household in the Methow Valley.
The stock of affordably priced homes in the Methow Valley is almost non-existent.
AND
Thanks to exceptional community investment, the Methow Housing Trust, will have developed 21 permanently affordable homes by the Summer of 2021
Staff
Danica Ready
Executive Director
danica@methowhousingtrust.org
Danica became a part of the Methow Valley community in 2000. Her background is on non-profit administration, conservation biology, environmental education and community trail development. Prior to joining MHT, she has worked for Methow Trails, Methow Conservancy, Brainerd Foundation, Teton Science School and National Audubon Society. She earned a BA in Geology at Whitman College (1994) and an MS in Biology at UW (1999). Since moving to the Methow, Danica has added two kids (Payten and Ben) to the world, and loves to hike, bike and ski with them. She also designed and built 5 small and affordable homes for her family prior to applying that interest to community housing needs.
Simon Windell
Chief Operating Officer
simon@methowhousingtrust.org
Simon moved to the Methow Valley in 2019, and joined the Methow Housing Trust team as COO at the beginning of 2022. He grew up in Spokane, WA, studied Physics at Seattle University, and spent the next 14 years working in IT: designing systems & processes, and building multidisciplinary teams. He is passionate about housing, equity, and building sustainable systems. Simon is the Housing Solutions Network facilitator, a Winthrop Planning Commissioner, loves swinging a hammer, and running through the mountains with his wife and two dogs. Above all, Simon is grateful for the opportunity to live and work in service to such an incredible community.
Joel Reid
Project and Stewardship Manager
joel@methowhousingtrust.org
Joel Reid got his start in the Methow Valley in 2008 as an Instructor for the Northwest Outward Bound School in Mazama. Over the last 14 years he has served Outward Bound in multiple capacities both in the field and as an administrator, most recently as the Washington Program Director. After moving to the Methow full time in 2015 he started to develop a deeper connection to the area and community. He now splits his time between building his own house, volunteering for Aero Methow, and exploring the wildness of the surrounding mountains and rivers. He is excited to join the Methow Housing Trust team and help to strengthen the local community through affordable housing.
Erika Krumpelman
Stewardship Director
erika@methowhousingtrust.org
Erika Krumpelman joined the Methow Housing Trust team in 2018. She works part-time as the Stewardship Director, helping homebuyers through the process of purchasing a home and provides post-purchase support to homeowners. Before moving to the Methow in 2016, Erika was a high school English teacher in the Spokane Valley. She has a B.A. in English from Gonzaga University. Erika is a wife, mother, and grandmother who loves to bike, hike, ski, garden, or anything else that gets her outside in the beautiful Methow Valley.
Sarah Thomas
Director of Outreach and Development
sarah@methowhousingtrust.org
Sarah and her partner Max, moved to the Valley in 2017. They love the community, recreation and beauty of the Valley. In 2019 they purchased their first home through the Methow Housing Trust. With a background in environmental education and non-profit administration and leadership, Sarah is drawn to the community driven culture of the Trust and enjoys her work as Director of Outreach and Development. If you see her around town be sure to say hi and ask any questions you may have about your local community land trust!
MHT Staff Left to Right: Erika Krumpelman, Danica Ready, Joel Reid, Simon Windell, Sarah Thomas
Board of Directors
John Battle
John Bliss
Maureen Collins
Rocklynn Culp, Vice President
Phil Davis, President/ Treasurer
Madeleine Eckmann
Teresa Mitchell, Secretary
Chris Moore
Nancy Nash Mendez
Bill Pope
Jeanne White
Advisory Members
Frank Kline
Don Linnertz
Julie Muyllaert
Jason Paulsen
Previous Board Members
Raleigh Bowden
Claire Bunney
Jessica Dewbrey
Nancy Milsteadt
Glenn Schmekel
Laurel Spelman
John Sunderland
History
2017
The Methow Housing Trust (MHT) was formed to address the need of affordable housing for Valley residents, following a six-month housing assessment involving a diverse committee of valley residents, sponsored by the post-fire Methow Valley Long Term Recovery Group. MHT gained it’s 501 (c)(3) status in May 2017 and hired Danica Ready as the Executive Director in August of 2017. MHT is one of over 250 community land trusts nationwide. The ribbon cutting ceremony pictured above, was held in 2017, after the purchase of the Canyon Street property in Twisp.
Lee Whittaker approached the MHT with a vision he and his late wife Marilyn had for their property in Mazama. A neighborhood with a mix of affordable and market rate homes. The generous support from the Marilyn Whittaker Fund was the beginning of the Methow Housing Trust’s McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama. Thanks to a significant donation from a private donor, MHT was able to purchase the Canyon Street property in 2017. Through a bridge loan from the Community Foundation of North Central Washington, MHT also purchased property in Winthrop.
2020
A total of 9 homes were completed and sold on Canyon Street by 2020. 4 final homes are under construction for completion in 2021.
The McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama was completed with a total of 8 homes built and sold by 2020. New homeowners were welcomed to the neighborhood with a parade in May.
In a year of uncertainty due to a global pandemic, 17 Methow Valley families had secure housing thanks to community support of the Methow Housing Trust.
A generous end of the year donation of ‘shovel ready’ lots to the Methow Housing Trust will enable the construction of 9 homes in the new Cascade Meadows neighborhood in Winthrop over the course of 2022 and 2023.
2018
2018 saw the beginning of construction, applications for homeownership, development of policies and procedures to support the organization, hiring of additional staff and increased community outreach to share the Community Land Trust model of homeownership with the Methow Valley. In October 2018, the frames of the first homes were complete in both neighborhoods.
CAST Architecture designed the MHT homes. The prioritization of constructing these affordable homes amongst the building, business and broader community helped fast track the completion of nine homes within two years of MHT’s founding. With homes being built, MHT also began to work with applicants and lenders to get things ready for homebuyers to purchase their newly constructed homes in 2019.
2019
Phase one of both the Canyon Street and McKinney Ridge neighborhoods was completed in 2019. Homebuyers purchased their homes and began to form their communities.
Four homes were completed in the McKinney Ridge Neighborhood in Mazama by 2019.
Five homes were completed in the Canyon Street Neighborhood in Twisp by 2019.
Strategic Priorities 2019-2021
Organizational Development: Create thorough and sound policies, a sustainable organizational structure, membership program development and prudent financial/fundraising strategies.
Home Ownership/ Affordable Housing Program: Assess on-going housing needs, and build quality homes to meet those community needs.
Outreach: Education: Develop community outreach education strategies programs aimed at keep pace with land acquisition and home development goals. Recruitment of eligible applicants, ensuring equitable access to MHT programs. Fundraise: To match the BOLD vision and goals we are committed to.
Stewardship & Education: Match target resident applicants with MHT homes, providing lending and educational assistance to ensure success in home-ownership. Develop and enforce policies that define eligibility, and protect long-term affordability and quality of MHT homes.