Providing opportunities for low-income residents of Boyle Heights & East LA
Secure housing for our community
Preserve quality and affordable housing for future long-term residents
Combat community deterioration in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods
Fideicomiso Comunitario Tierra Libre (FCTL) is a non-profit 501.c.3 organization serving as community land trust that aims to provide opportunities for low-income residents of Boyle Heights and East Los Angeles to secure decent and permanent affordable housing.
Nuestra Tierra, Nuestra Libertad
Fideicomiso Comunitario Tierra Libre depends on your support.
Please consider donating today.
Amidst our work, we are guided by the hopes and struggles of our community—captured in the spirit of this poem:
La Esperanza del barrio
Es la de un fideicomiso
Proteger tierra y vivienda
Es un mayor compromiso
Protegiendo a inquilinos
Que no sean desalojados
Por un sistema podrido
Que ya nos tiene cansados
~ Margarita González
Co-Founder of FCTL
This verse echoes the urgency of our mission.
We fight not just to build homes, but to protect families from displacement and challenge a broken system that prioritizes profit over people.
Ultimately, community ownership is not just about securing land and housing—it is about reimagining our relationship to land itself. It is a practice of stewardship rather than ownership, an effort to manifest alternative ways of living beyond the speculative housing market. Even while operating within an inequitable private property system, we are building the foundation for a transformed future—one in which cooperative housing, mutual support, and healthy living are the norm.
As we continue to grow, so does our knowledge and commitment to challenging the status quo. We refuse to accept the extractive logic of speculative real estate. Instead, we choose to be architects of a new housing ecosystem—one built on solidarity, resilience, and self-determination.