About the Headwaters Community Housing Trust
Headwaters is a community-based, not-for-profit organization committed to expanding the supply of permanent, below-market homes that working households are able to afford.
Next to Story Mill Community Park, Headwaters is bringing to life a neighborhood conceived by The Trust for Public Land and advanced by HRDC. With private investment and active support from local lenders, businesses, and the City of Bozeman, the Bridger View neighborhood includes 62 energy-efficient homes in a well-designed, walkable community.
Half of these homes are being sold at prices that more working residents can afford.
The housing market
Addressing an unmet need
You hear everyone say, “we simply need more housing supply.” In truth, supply alone will not solve the issue. Bozeman needs more homes priced at levels that locals are able to purchase or rent.
Community and business leaders recognize the challenge and want to help. Headwaters is addressing Bozeman’s unmet need by:
- Providing businesses opportunities to invest in housing their employees can afford.
- Supplying a pool of prequalified buyers so developers know high-quality, below-market homes will promptly sell.
- Creating permanently affordable homes worthy of city investment.
Headwaters is so needed. We are seeing people get pushed further and further out of Bozeman. Surrounding communities used to be relief valves, but now they, too, are struggling with surging home prices. As a result, many people are moving out of the state. These are the folks we count on every day when we go to the grocery store or to the doctor’s office, send our kids to school — people who are looking after our health and safety. Without this core, Bozeman will lose the character and strength we have all come to love. Having Headwaters facilitate housing that keeps our workforce here is critical.
Mark Meissner
ERA Landmark
Our Team
Headwaters is led by dedicated people who are strengthening our community and empowering individuals and families through homeownership.
Courtney Naumann
Stewardship Manager
Courtney has worked across the West for a decade building and facilitating programming for people connected to land through use, ownership, play, and spirit. Her expertise includes project management, technical assistance, systems-thinking, and public engagement spanning the conservation sector. As a fourth-generation Montanan, she’s rooted in strong commitments to social equity and cultivating spaces for connection. Courtney serves as the Vice President for the Northwest Community Land Trust Coalition.
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Courtney notes: “Fostering meaningful relationships is the cornerstone of Headwaters Community Housing Trust. Permanently affordable homes within reach for more people in the Valley is one step towards strengthening community resiliency and enriching sense of place as it uniquely exists for each of us.”
John Taylor
President
John moved to Bozeman in 1997 to attend and play football for Montana State University. Other than a few years away to continue his football career, John has called Bozeman home ever since. John is passionate about giving back to the community he, his wife (a Bozeman native) and 3 children love so much. John is thrilled to be a part of Headwaters’ efforts to expand Bozeman’s supply of homes that make it possible for more local residents to own a piece of their community.
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“Home ownership is part of the ‘American Dream,’ says Taylor. “Hardworking members of our community should be able to afford to live in the community they help to make so great. I am excited to play my part in making that a reality for as many people as possible.”
Marisa Owen
Vice President
Marisa is proud to call Bozeman home since 2015. As a volunteer board member for Headwaters Community Housing Trust, she is thrilled to bring both her corporate and entrepreneurial skill sets in making homeownership possible for more residents. Marisa has been a Realtor since 2017 and brings a critical perspective to the board. She is excited to bring forward a collaborative approach and strategize solutions that will affect our whole community.
In her free time, you can find Marisa exploring the rivers, trails, and slopes with her husband – a Bozeman native – son, and yellow lab Oscar.
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Marisa notes, “We have a vital workforce in Bozeman that keeps our community thriving who are finding it increasingly difficult to find housing here. Through strategic collaboration with other organizations, developers, and employers, I believe Headwaters Community Housing Trust can help address the needs of our growing population. I believe we have an important job ahead as a community to help more of our residents become homeowners in the town they love.”
Christine Walker
Treasurer
Christine is founder and principal of Navigate, LLC. She helps communities throughout the Intermountain West understand the true nature of their housing affordability challenges as a foundation for effective and durable solutions. She is valued for her broad and deep experience in the public, private and non-profit sectors, a combination that gives her uncommon insight into how each of these sectors view housing development and what is needed to bring them together in successful projects.
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Walker says, “I’ve seen firsthand how lack of housing options can hollow out a community. Headwaters can make a major contribution to Bozeman’s prosperity by bringing local government, businesses, and developers together to scale up development of housing that locals can afford.” She adds: “I’m also excited about Headwaters because it can help assure investments are protected by providing stewardship of below-market homes so that they remain affordable for generations.”
Hunter Brewster
Secretary
An Arkansas native, Hunter is thrilled to now call Bozeman home. Hunter and his wife Sarah purchased a Headwaters home in the Bridger View neighborhood in the spring of 2023. Hunter started working in Bozeman for Simms Fishing Products. Now he manages e-commerce sales for Daniel’s Gourmet Meats while also pursuing a degree from MSU. He is not afraid to roll up his sleeves and make things happen, having started a landscaping business at age 14. When he’s not working or studying, Hunter enjoys snowboarding and skiing at Bridger Bowl, spending time with family, camping, fishing, and traveling.
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Hunter says, “Joining the Headwaters board will allow me to give back to this organization that helped us find footing in an ultra competitive market. Long term local housing stewardship is an essential solution in this community and I am proud to be part of that effort. The people that live and work in this beautiful place deserve the chance to invest in a home here. Headwaters is making that possible for working folks like me.”
Andrea Kavert
Board Member
Andrea states: “It just doesn’t seem feasible now, moving to Bozeman.” Andrea came to Bozeman to attend MSU, intending to return to the Flathead Valley. When she fell in love with local trails, she decided she wanted to make Bozeman her home. But even with a good job, the housing market was beyond her reach. Ultimately, she bought a home through a community land trust. Today she serves on Headwaters’ Board of Directors.
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Kavert reflects, “I have friends who left after graduating because they didn’t see any future in staying here. They didn’t think they would ever be able to buy a house. Having a positive personal experience finding below-market housing thanks to a community land trust, it’s a great privilege to work towards providing similar opportunities for more people in our valley.”
Carson Taylor
Board Member
Four years after setting his gavel down at Bozeman’s city hall, Carson’s sleeves are still rolled up and his eyes brighter than ever. The former mayor and school board member now pours his passion about Bozeman into leading Headwaters’ efforts to facilitate creation of below-market housing that young families and longtime residents alike can purchase.
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“You want people to own a piece of the community that they live in, and live in the community they work in,” Taylor explains. “We’re working to provide homeownership opportunities and to inspire mixed-income neighborhoods where kids all go to the same school together whether their mom or dad is the bank manager or the bank teller. I see that as important to Bozeman.”
Janay Johnson
Board Member
Janay grew up in the Midwest, but has called Bozeman home since 1992. Most of her professional life has been spent in development and leadership roles for local nonprofit organizations. Janay is currently the Executive Director of the Bozeman Public Library Foundation, where she led a successful $5.6M capital campaign to renovate the Library. She is thrilled to contribute to the effort to keep Bozeman affordable and attainable for its workforce. She enjoys spending time outdoors skiing, hiking, and camping.
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Janay offers, “What happens to a community when all the young, educated professionals leave because they can’t afford to live there? We need creative, common-sense solutions to housing affordability to preserve the character and diversity of Bozeman. As a resident of Bozeman for over 30 years, I’m proud to contribute to the long-term viability of the community by serving on this board.”
Mindy DeCosse
Board Member
A Bozeman native, Mindy grew up in the housing industry and studied architecture at MSU. Following 13 years with local design/build firms, Mindy now manages the Community Land Trust and Down Payment Assistance programs at HRDC. She volunteers extensively and loves sharing her knowledge of the building industry to help others find or build their next home.
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Mindy notes, “Working in the housing industry for years, I’ve watched housing become less and less accessible. I’m looking forward to connecting people with solutions to our housing problems.”
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Housing affordability is at a critical juncture. It is a community-wide problem that requires community-wide participation. By supporting the Headwaters Community Housing Trust today, you can be part of the solution.
