SAN ANTONIO (November 17, 2023) – Homeowners of Riverside Terrace, a manufactured housing community located in the Mission Historic District, are now the owners of their community and have changed the name to Mission Trail Community Association.
"San Antonio is demonstrating what it means to preserve all types of affordable housing for all of our residents,” said City of San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg. "We are ensuring families have ownership, investing in the health of this community with resources to address critical needs, and protecting neighborhoods from displacement."
The community was at risk of displacement prior to the City of San Antonio’s 2022 Affordable Housing Bond $3 million award to purchase and convert the neighborhood to a resident-owned community (ROC).
“Saving the land has been the most important part of this process,” said Valerie A. Valenzuela, Board Operations Director for Mission Trail Community Association. “There’s a lot of history that is associated with our neighborhood and our community has been here a long time. If we didn’t have this community, where would we go? There is nothing else like this that is affordable.”
Financing for the resident purchase totals $6.15 million from four sources, including the equity contributed by the Members of Mission Trail Community Association.
Primary funding sources include:
- The City of San Antonio: $3.85 million
- The San Antonio Housing Trust: $750,000
- ROC USA® Capital: $1.55 million
“We are very pleased to join with the City of San Antonio and the homeowners to secure this land and this community,” said ROC USA® President Paul Bradley. “I remember when a large community in San Antonio closed and displaced so many just more than a decade ago. To be a part of this public, private and community response is deeply fulfilling.”
The financing package will fund the $3 million purchase and a comprehensive infrastructure repair and replacement project.
"Through the Affordable Housing Bond, we are seeing important investment in District 3," said Phyllis Viagran, City of San Antonio District 3 Councilmember. "This increase in funding helps families within the Riverside Terrace community rightfully own the land where they live and collectively making decisions for their community by their community."
Before the Mission Trail purchase, residents owned their homes but not the land beneath them. This arrangement is typical in most manufactured home communities, and it can leave homeowners vulnerable to frequent rent increases and unfair eviction, risks that can increase when the properties are put on the market.
"The partnership with the Mission Trail Community Association creates new homeownership opportunities in manufactured home communities for families," said Veronica Garcia, Director of Neighborhood and Housing Services for the City of San Antonio. "This initiative is in alignment with the City’s Strategic Housing Implementation Plan (SHIP) to increase housing stability in our neighborhoods. This partnership demonstrates our efforts to mitigate displacement and ensure long-time residents benefit from community-wide investments."
By purchasing the community and operating it as a cooperative, homeowners vote on major decisions like community rules, infrastructure projects and lot rent.
“This is what community empowerment looks like,” said Pete Alanis, Executive Director of the San Antonio Housing Trust. “My hat is off to the Mission Trail residents who decided to come together as a cooperative to preserve and protect their community. I trust this Co-op will become a model for other manufactured home residents looking to take control of their futures.”
It is this last piece that has put a spotlight on resident ownership of manufactured home communities as one solution to the affordable housing crisis. On average, ROCs raise site fees at a fraction of the rate of investor owners. For homeowners in Mission Trail, this long-term affordability means long-term stability.
“ROC USA Capital is very pleased to be working collaboratively with the City of San Antonio and San Antonio Housing Trust toward the financing of the first Resident Owned Manufactured Home Community (ROC) in San Antonio. The financial commitments of each of the three Lenders are critical to the ultimate success of Mission Trail Community Association for the low- and moderate-income homeowners who live there,” said Michael Sloss, managing director of ROC USA® Capital. “We look forward to strengthening this public-private partnership with the City of San Antonio and San Antonio Housing Trust to both meet the needs of the homeowners at Mission Trail and homeowners in other manufactured home communities in San Antonio for many years to come.”