On Fayetteville Road, a new two-bedroom townhome lists for $250,000. Off Moreland Avenue, south of East Atlanta Village, a new two-bedroom has asked more than $350,000. At The Trust at East Lake, the lower-priced homes go to buyers through a drawing. Buyers get income-certified and pre-approved for a mortgage first. Then each home goes to one lottery winner, and a backup winner is named in case the first falls through.
The price gap and the lottery have the same cause. Atlanta Land Trust owns the ground under these homes, so the buyer pays for the house and not the land. Because price no longer sorts buyers, something else has to. That arrangement also follows you to the day you sell.
The paperwork comes before the drawing
The project's Get Started page lays out the steps in order:
- Attend an Atlanta Land Trust Community Information Session. ALT calls this the first step, and its 2026 session page says you get an application link after you score 10 out of 10 on a follow-up quiz.
- Submit two years of tax returns and W-2s, three months of pay stubs, and three months of bank statements, plus records of any other income.
- Wait 7 to 10 business days for an email confirming your AMI percentage. That email also lists ALT's preferred lenders.
- Get pre-approved with one of those lenders and send the letter to ALT and the project's sales team.
- Enter the lottery. "A winner will be chosen for each unit as well as a backup winner."
- If you win, you have 7 days to review, sign and submit your earnest money.
Step six is the one that catches buyers. With a market-rate purchase, you tour, decide and then gather your money. Here the order is reversed. Your income review, your lender and your earnest money all need to be ready before the drawing, because the week after you win is for signing, not for comparison shopping.
The financing rules are fixed as well. ALT's Resources page lists approved homebuyer education providers, and all prospective buyers must complete homebuyer education. According to ALT's FAQ, buyers must use an ALT-approved lender. Everyone on the application must live in the home and have their income verified, and nonresident cosigners aren't allowed.
The discount is the dirt
Here are the two closest comparisons, side by side:
| The Trust at East Lake | Array, off Moreland Ave. | |
|---|---|---|
| Two-bedroom price | $250,000 (2BR/1.5BA) and $270,000 (2BR/2.5BA) | $351,760 (2BR/2BA, 988 sq. ft.), August 2026 |
| Land | Leased from Atlanta Land Trust under a 99-year ground lease | Not a land trust home |
| How a buyer is chosen | Lottery after AMI review and pre-approval | Builder sale with incentives |
| Income tag | Homes tagged for 100% or 120% of AMI | No AMI tag listed |
| Monthly extras | Ground lease fee and repair reserve | $160 HOA dues |
Array is McKinley Homes' townhome community on the old Moreland Plaza site south of East Atlanta Village. In August 2026, Urbanize Atlanta reported that the entry two-bedroom included a two-car garage and that its price already reflected a $20,000 builder incentive. Qualified buyers using the preferred lender could also get $12,500 toward closing costs. Comparing asking prices, a two-bedroom at The Trust at East Lake costs roughly $80,000 to $100,000 less. After Array's $12,500 closing-cost help, the gap is still about $69,000 to $89,000.
That difference is about what land costs in-town. GPB reported in 2023 that removing the land could take $75,000 off a $300,000 home. For comparison, the metro Atlanta median sale price in September 2026 was $416,000, according to the Atlanta REALTORS market brief. That figure covers single-family sales across 11 counties.
At East Lake, the land was donated. The CF Foundation gave the two-acre site in 2022, and the East Lake Foundation, the Bank of America Foundation and the TOUR Championship helped fund the commitment to keep all 40 homes affordable. With that subsidy built into the price, the price can't be what decides who buys, so the lottery does.
What you give back when you sell
As ALT explains it, the buyer owns the house and leases the land from the Trust. The East Lake Foundation's project announcement describes the ground lease as running 99 years, renewable, and able to be passed to heirs. When you sell, a resale formula sets your price, and ALT uses two:
"One permits homeowners to realize 25% of the appreciated value of the home, and the other uses average income growth to determine how much equity a homeowner can realize."
Here is how the first formula works on paper. Say a home's appraised value rose $40,000 while you owned it. Under the 25% formula as ALT describes it, $10,000 of that increase would count toward your sale price, and the rest would stay with the home so the next buyer also pays a below-market price. Under the second formula, your gain tracks how fast area incomes grow, not how fast prices grow. ALT's public pages don't say which formula applies at The Trust at East Lake, so ask for the ground lease before the lottery, not after.
Any equity you build by paying down your mortgage is the same as it would be on any other home. What the formula limits is the jump in market value. In-town Atlanta has seen that jump do much of the work of building wealth. Here it is shared with whoever buys next.
Monthly costs follow the same idea. A December 2025 Georgia Tech study of ALT reported that each owner pays a $35 monthly ground lease fee and a $55 contribution to a repair reserve, which funds small maintenance loans. Those figures describe ALT's homes in general. Confirm the East Lake amounts in the lease.
The home also has to stay your primary residence. You can't rent out the whole home, though an owner who lives there may rent a bedroom if local rules allow. ALT sets no minimum or maximum length of stay.
Whose income fits which home
Every listed home carries an AMI tag. The 2BR/2.5BA at 697 Fayetteville Road is marked 120% of AMI. The two-bedroom homes at 721 Fayetteville Road, at $250,000 and $270,000, are marked 100%.
ALT's posted income table is labeled Fiscal Year 2025 HUD Income Limits, with a HUD effective date of April 1, 2025, and ALT began using it June 1, 2025. Under it, the 100% limit is $91,400 for two people, $102,800 for three and $114,200 for four. The 120% limit is $109,680 for two people and $137,040 for four.
HUD's FY2026 income limits for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area set median family income at $117,800. The FY2026 80% limit for a four-person household is $94,250, up from $91,360 in ALT's posted table. If your income is close to a cutoff, the number that counts is the AMI percentage in ALT's step-three email, not any table you work out yourself.
These are working incomes. A three-person household earning $100,000 is above many subsidized programs, but under ALT's posted table it fits a 100% home here. ALT says buyers can also get down payment assistance through Atlanta Housing, Invest Atlanta and Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership, and it recommends discussing those programs with an approved lender during pre-approval. ALT's listing page says Villages of East Lake residents get priority for this project.
How much is still to come on Fayetteville Road
The project is in its second phase. According to the East Lake Foundation's 2025 annual report, the first eight townhomes were finished in 2024. The second phase, with eight duplexes and four townhomes, started in 2025, and all 40 homes are expected to be finished in 2027. The report also says a resident of The Villages of East Lake has become a first-time homeowner at the Trust.
When ALT posted its November 14 open house, Phase 1 had one home left: Unit 101, a 2BR/2.5BA at $270,000. Phase 2 had homes at $250,000 and $270,000. ALT runs these open houses as a series, and its calendar lists another for February 27, 2027. Because the remaining homes will come in stages through 2027, getting certified now puts you in line for the drawings as each stage opens.
Quick answers
Can I buy a Trust at East Lake home with cash or through a non-approved lender? ALT requires buyers to use an ALT-approved lender. It sends the list after you submit your application.
What happens if I win the lottery and can't close? Each home has a backup winner as well as a primary winner, so the home moves to the next buyer.
Can my children inherit the home? The East Lake Foundation's announcement describes the ground lease as inheritable and renewable, with a 99-year initial term.
Does the resale formula apply forever? ALT says its restrictions are meant to be permanent. It resells the same home to buyer after buyer, which keeps the home affordable for every future owner, not only the first.
This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Before you sign, read the ground lease and resale terms with your own attorney, lender or tax professional.
If you want help reading a ground lease, comparing a land trust home to a market-rate townhome, or getting your income documents and pre-approval ready before the next drawing, The Sly Team runs buyer intake and lottery preparation for this kind of purchase. Get started with The Sly Team.
