Ground Lease

At the time of purchasing a Village home, every buyer will also sign a ground lease for the use of the property.  Buyers will own the home, but the University will continue to own the land in perpetuity.  Due to various legal and taxation issues, the term of the lease is still under consideration, but will probably be between 35 and 99 years, and probably be renewable. 

(Actually, the ground lease it will be a ground sub-lease, as the University has leased the entire site to University Enterprises.  UEI has, in turn, assigned it responsibilities under the sub lease to University Enterprises Development Group, sponsors of the development.)

The ground lease accomplishes many things:

• It defines the legal lot boundaries of the specific homesite.
• It defines the eligibility criteria and prioritization system for potential Village residents.
• It is integrated with the mortgage documents, so that if a home should be repossessed by the lender, it will not be sold outside of the University “family.”
• It establishes the homeowner’s membership in the homeowners’ association.
• It assigns maintenance responsibilities either to the homeowner or the RVA.
• It replaces CC&Rs (Convenants, Conditions, and Restrictions), often used in a market development, addressing such issues as use of the home, access to community facilities, sub-letting, remodeling criteria, and nuisance behavior.
• It defines the resale price formula and resale process, in a manner fair to sellers, while maintaining affordability for new buyers.
• It establishes procedures for handling Village residency impacts of resignation, death, retirement, or foreclosure.

An additional monthly fee will cover community maintenance costs.  University Enterprises Development Group and/or the Village homeowners’ association will provide functions and responsibilities similar to a condominium homeowners association.

The Ground Lease language and the costs of land use and community maintenance fees are still being developed.  Details will be posted here when resolved.