At this stage, our communities will be building wealth, both from improved agriculture and from productive, specialized businesses. But what developing communities lack the most is a means to quantify that wealth in something tangible: a legally titled home. Having a proper title to one's home brings a vast range of benefits, and increases one's responsibility. A property title can be collateral for a homeowner to take a loan to start or improve a business or get an education; by the same token, if that homeowner wants to remain a homeowner he'd better make his payments on time.

The development world is widely aware of the benefits that property ownership can bring to the poor. But we're the first organization to realize how those benefits can be multiplied if the property itself is stylish and attractive. With the help of prominent architects and the solid philosophy of New Urbanism, we've developed building and town plans that are adaptable, low-cost, and beautiful. Our town plan centers around universal live/work buildings that anchor walkable communities with an emphasis on communal spaces and minimal environmental interference.

When community members are prepared to take on a modest mortgage, the Foundation will bring in its cement mixer, a truck, and pour-in-place concrete molds. The buildings can be erected quickly and easily by unskilled laborers, but with our designs they have the potential to look fabulous. Therefore, the value of these homes will escalate rapidly, unlike the typical cookie-cutter project one might expect from a housing development organization. Because the residents purchase their homes at cost, every dollar that their properties appreciate is a dollar in their pockets. In effect, they make money from nothing.

As this stylish neighborhood grows physically and economically it will attract more people to leave their urban slums and return to their rural roots. That means more construction jobs, more new entrepreneurial businesses, and more eager consumers. In a relatively short period of time, we'll have transformed a group of farmers struggling to survive into a thriving mixed economy. But the town's progression will have been entirely based on the choices of the community members themselves. We provide kits, designs, and education, but the fate of the town is entirely in the hands of the locals. This means the town will be sustainable and self-reliant. They won't have to look to government, NGOs, or aid for help. They'll know how to help themselves.