The real decision at Stanwood Crossings, Portage's city-led workforce housing neighborhood, comes years after you close. When you sell, your price is set by a formula. According to the City of Portage's buyer FAQ, "the sales price will be determined by the percentage change in the AMI rate from the time of purchase compared to the time of sale." AMI means area median income. What you can sell for is tied to what households in Kalamazoo County earn, and what nearby houses sell for doesn't enter into it.
You still get to sell, and your price can still go up. It just goes up on a different track than the homes around you. For many first-time buyers, that track may be the best deal in Portage. For others it won't be. The rest of this post is about telling which one you are.
How the resale cap actually works
The Portage Community Land Trust owns the land under every Stanwood home. You buy the house and lease the homesite on an 89-year ground lease, estimated at $50 a month. The lease fee can change over time to cover the trust's administrative costs. The FAQ says there's no HOA on top of the lease.
Your maximum resale price starts with what you paid. That number gets multiplied by the area median income at the time of sale divided by the area median income when you bought. Approved improvement credits are then added on top.
Here's a hypothetical. Say you buy at $226,000, and family AMI is 3% higher when you sell than when you bought. Your cap would be about $232,780 before any credits. If AMI rose faster than that, your cap would rise faster too. Whatever the market does to comparable Portage homes over the same years has no effect on the number.
Selling works mostly like a normal sale, with one important exception. You can list with a local Realtor or with the land trust. Your buyer has to apply to the trust and meet its financial requirements, and then signs a new ground lease. So your buyer pool is limited to income-qualified households. City documents counted 400 interested buyers in March 2026, and 100 of them had already finished the required homeownership classes.
Improvements earn partial credit, and timing matters
This is where buyers coming from conventional homeownership get caught off guard. In a typical sale, a new kitchen shows up in your asking price. At Stanwood, the land trust's Qualified Capital Improvements policy decides how much of that kitchen counts toward your cap. The trust also has to approve the project before you start.
| Improvement type | Credit added to your resale cap | Time limit |
|---|---|---|
| Track A: kitchen remodels, bathroom wet-area remodels, irrigation | 50% of the actual dollar amount | None stated |
| Track B: listed major-system upgrades | 25% of the actual dollar amount | Only if you sell within five years of completing the work |
| Track B after five years | No credit | Expires at five years |
In practice, a pre-approved $20,000 kitchen remodel would add $10,000 to your cap. A $10,000 qualifying system upgrade would add $2,500 if you sold within five years and nothing if you sold later. A few more rules apply. You have to notify the trust within 15 business days of finishing the work. Work paid for with grants or forgivable loans earns no credit. For something like solar panels, only your net cost after rebates or tax credits counts.
Some owners will still remodel because they want to live with the result. Just plan those projects as quality-of-life spending, since most of the money won't come back to you at sale.
What you get in exchange for the cap
The discount at purchase is real, and it's large. MLive reported in March 2026 that building a Stanwood home costs $301,724 to $358,818 this year. Homes are listed 25% below that cost, which puts phase-two starting prices at about $226,000. Portage City Manager Pat McGinnis put it this way to the Michigan Municipal League: "If it costs [$325,000] to build it, that home is going to sell for $400,000. And here we are offering it for $275,000."
The city paid for that gap with Brownfield Tax Increment Financing, ARPA funds, Kalamazoo County housing millage dollars and down payment assistance. McGinnis described "five different grants at work." The resale cap is what keeps that public money working for the next buyer. McGinnis described the model as letting owners "appreciate your investment... just doing it at about 75 percent," with "affordability baked into it, forever."
So you're trading a lower entry price for slower, more predictable growth in your equity. Your monthly payments still build ownership of a new house, and your exit price is mostly known in advance. What you give up is the market upside on the land and any home-value growth that outpaces local incomes.
Why the tradeoff stands out in Portage right now
The answer depends on the alternatives, and Portage's new-construction pipeline has very little in the middle.
| Project | Location | Homes | Reported pricing | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanwood Crossings | Between Austin Lake and West Lake, east of Portage Road | 42 planned | About $226,000 starting, phase two | Third phase of nine houses authorized Aug. 11, 2026 |
| Oakland Farms No. 4 | Near Oakland Drive and Shaver Road | 21 planned | Not reported; No. 3 started in the $500,000s | Final plat approved Aug. 25, 2026; state approval still needed |
| Firestone Site Condominiums | 4221 Zylman Avenue | 49 proposed | About $425,000 to $750,000 | Preliminary approval July 21; final city approval still needed |
For comparison, the Greater Kalamazoo Association of REALTORS reported a $308,000 median single-family sale price for Kalamazoo County in August 2026, with 259 closed sales, 2.2 months' supply and 23 days on market. That's a countywide figure, since city-level Portage numbers weren't publicly posted. Even so, it shows the pattern. Stanwood's new homes come in below the county median, and the market-rate subdivisions in the pipeline start well above it.
McGinnis has described the gap directly. "Some of the neighborhoods that are coming online are very high-end," he said. "But I think we've got a bit of a shortage in that middle area." Portage's new Residential Unified Development Ordinance, adopted 4–3 on June 23, is the city's longer-term response. The draft presented that night called for a Residential Neighborhood district allowing accessory dwelling units and limited duplexes, though not on lakefront lots. The adopted version was amended, so check the final code text before you count on any specific lot rule.
So a household earning 80% to 120% of AMI has two realistic options in Portage today. One is an existing home near the county median, bought at market price with full market appreciation. The other is a new Stanwood home bought below cost, with appreciation tied to incomes. A new market-rate home in the city is likely out of reach.
Costs that apply to every Portage owner
The ground lease is the only cost unique to Stanwood. Everything else applies to any owner in Portage, so leave it out when you compare options and include it when you budget:
- Water and sewer: Since July 1, 2026, usage is billed at $4.01 per 1,000 gallons for water and $7.66 for sewer, on top of quarterly base charges of $27.53 and $41.26 for a standard 5/8-inch meter.
- Trash: Portage's single-hauler service started March 1 at a reported $14.04 a month for the first year, with optional yard-waste service at $10.50 a month. Voters kept the system on May 5, and the contract rate rises 4% a year.
- Property taxes: County voters approved an early-childhood levy and a transit increase in August. The early-childhood levy is 0.5 mills, and the transit levy rises from 0.3124 to 0.36 mills. Together that comes to about $55 a year per $100,000 of taxable value, starting with the 2027 levies.
Qualifying and getting in line
Stanwood is owner-occupied only. Buyers must earn between 80% and 120% of AMI. The 2026 chart sets those limits at:
- One person: $59,040 to $88,560
- Two people: $67,440 to $101,160
- Three people: $75,840 to $113,760
- Four people: $84,240 to $126,360
- Five people: $91,040 to $136,560
The city's FAQ PDF still shows the 2025 chart, so go by the current eligibility page. Your income is checked when you buy. If it rises later, that doesn't affect your right to stay.
To start, contact the City of Portage for a preliminary application. Its interest form lists acceptable credit, a down payment and proof of income as requirements. MLive reported that buyers must complete Kalamazoo Neighborhood Housing Services' $65 homebuyer education course before mortgage preapproval and consult an attorney. KNHS runs the course as a two-day workshop.
As of the Michigan Municipal League's June 1, 2026 report, four homes were sold and occupied and two were on the market. AVB builds four plans: the Ash and Birch ranches and the Cedar and Dellwood two-stories. Ask the city which homes are available now, because that June count is out of date.
A Few Direct Questions
Can I rent out my Stanwood home if I move? Stanwood is described as owner-occupied only, so plan on selling when you leave.
Can the $50 ground lease go up? Yes. The FAQ says the fee can be adjusted over time for the land trust's administrative costs.
Does the formula guarantee my price goes up? The published formula ties your price to the change in AMI. It doesn't promise a minimum return, and the public materials don't spell out every indexing detail. Before you sign, ask the land trust for the full ground lease.
If you're deciding between a Stanwood home and a resale near the county median, it helps to put both options side by side: what each costs to buy, what each costs to own, and the most each could sell for in five or ten years. Mary Noneman can walk through those numbers with you and help you read the ground lease and resale terms before you commit. Contact Us when you're ready to compare.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
