The Legacy Land Program

Your Land. Nanaimo’s Legacy.

Transform your property into a permanent foundation for affordable housing.

For many long-term landowners, a property is rarely just a line item on a balance sheet; it is a repository of history, effort, and identity. As these individuals look toward the future, the motivation to see their land serve a "higher purpose"—such as conservation, social housing, or community parkland—often stems from a desire for legacy over liquidity. After decades of stewardship, the prospect of seeing a pristine forest subdivided into a dense housing tract or a historic family farm paved over can feel like a erasure of their life’s work. By dedicating the land to a charitable cause, owners ensure that the character of the landscape remains intact, effectively "locking in" their social values for generations to come.

Beyond the emotional connection, there is a profound sense of civic responsibility that develops after watching a community grow around a piece of property. Transitioning their land to another purpose allows them to address their sense of the greater good, offering a permanent site for lasting public benefit. This transition often provides a unique psychological satisfaction: the knowledge that while their personal tenure is ending, the land’s utility is expanding to benefit thousands of others, transforming private wealth into a public treasure.

The Vision: Why Partner with NCLTS?

Many Nanaimo families have owned land for generations. As the city grows, the pressure to sell to the highest bidder is immense. The Nanaimo Community Land Trust Society (NCLTS) offers a different path:

  • Perpetual Protection: Your land will never be sold for speculative profit. It stays in community hands forever.

  • Immediate Community Impact: Your property becomes the literal ground for a teacher’s first home, a senior's garden suite, or a family's duplex.

  • Significant Tax Benefits: As a registered charity, we provide tax outcomes that can often rival a market-rate sale while supporting a cause you believe in.

Ways to Give

Outright Donation (Fee Simple):

 Donate your property and receive a charitable tax receipt for 100% of the appraised Fair Market Value.

The "Bargain Sale" (Split-Receipting):

Sell your land to the Trust at a price below market value. You receive cash for your needs, plus a tax receipt for the "gift" portion, which can offset your capital gains.

Retained Life Estate:

Donate your home now but continue to live in it for the rest of your life. You receive a tax receipt today for the "remainder interest" of the property.

Bequest (Legacy in Your Will):

Designate the NCLTS as a beneficiary in your estate planning.

Donations

Immediate financial support is the catalyst that transforms desires into actual homes for members of our community who are priced out of the private market. Monetary donations provide the critical flexible capital needed to secure land parcels before they are lost to speculative development, pay for essential architectural and permitting fees, and leverage government funding. Learn how your financial gift directly funds the foundation of sustainable, community-driven affordable housing in the Nanaimo region.

Bargain Sales

Donating buildable land or existing residential property is perhaps the single most impactful way to address the local housing crisis. By directly gifting property to NCLT, you remove one of the primary cost barriers to developing new homes—the price of the land itself—allowing us to focus resources entirely on construction and permanent affordability. Explore how your visionary land donation can become the site of a profound, intergenerational legacy of community stability.

Life Estates

Planned giving offers a powerful avenue to integrate your long-term charitable vision with your estate planning, ensuring NCLT’s mission thrives for decades to come. By including NCLT as a beneficiary in your will, life insurance policy, or retirement plan, you make a significant commitment to the future viability of permanently affordable housing on Vancouver Island. Discover how a carefully structured bequest solidifies your dedication to community equity without affecting your current income or financial security.

Become a Member or Donate Today!