Two two-bedroom condos at The Brant in downtown Lafayette are close in size, yet one costs about $789,000 more than the other. On the cheaper one, a recorded covenant links future value to how much Contra Costa County households earn, not to what Lafayette homes sell for.
That covenant explains the program. At The Brant, the City of Lafayette's below-market-rate ownership program doesn't sell a discounted share of Lafayette's housing market. It sells a home whose resale price follows county income data from the day you buy until the day you give notice that you plan to sell.
The Clause That Sets Your Selling Price
Most guides to affordable homeownership start with income limits. At The Brant, the part that matters most over time is Section 12 of the inclusionary housing covenant recorded on these homes. It says the most an owner can receive on resale is "the lesser of (i) the Indexed Price of the Home; or (ii) the Fair Market Value of the Home."
The covenant defines the Indexed Price this way:
"the Owner's Base Price, increased by an amount equal to the percentage of increase in the Median Income from the date of the original purchase of the Home by the Owner to the date of receipt by the City of the Owner's Notice of Intent to Transfer"
"Median Income" means the Contra Costa County median income, adjusted for household size, as published by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, or HCD. The index isn't the Consumer Price Index, and it isn't a home-price index.
Here's how the resale cap is built, step by step:
- Start with the owner's base price, for example $511,046 for a moderate-income two-bedroom.
- Measure the percentage change in HCD's Contra Costa County median income between the purchase date and the date the city receives the owner's notice of intent to sell.
- Apply that percentage to the base price.
- Add any allowed upward adjustment for substantial permanent improvements the owner made after buying, if they meet the covenant's conditions. Subtract any adjustment the covenant calls for to cover correcting code violations or deferred maintenance.
- Compare the result to the home's fair market value. The lower of the two numbers is the cap.
To show the math with a made-up number: if county median income rose 10% between purchase and notice, the indexed price on a $511,046 home would be about $562,150 before any improvement adjustment. What Lafayette condos sold for in those same years wouldn't enter the calculation. If market values fell below the indexed price, the market value would set the cap instead. Over time, the owner's equity can grow only as fast as county incomes do, while the owner still carries the risk of a market decline.
Two Prices Under One Roof
You can see the size of the trade by putting the units side by side. The figures below come from the current HouseKeys drawing notice and from Lennar's community page for The Brant, which shows no publication date and was captured for this post in October 2026. Lennar notes that its prices and features may change.
| Unit | Type | Approx. square feet | Price | Approx. price per sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| E107, E207, E307 | Moderate-income BMR, 2 bed | 1,177–1,179 | $511,046 | about $434 |
| E310 | Market rate, 2 bed | 1,325 | from $1,299,880 | about $981 |
| E208 | Market rate, 3 bed | 1,865 | from $1,742,880 | about $935 |
The BMR two-bedrooms list at about 44% of the price per square foot of the market-rate two-bedroom. The same page lists overall pricing at The Brant from $822,880 to $1,912,880. The city's June 19, 2026 announcement put monthly HOA dues for the BMR homes at $825.52.
So the discount is large and real on the day you buy. It's also what pays for the covenant in the section above. The program's design makes the low entry price and the income-indexed resale cap two parts of the same deal.
What the Covenant Asks of You While You Live There
The income index sets your eventual selling price. The covenant also sets how you can use the home's value in the meantime. Under the agreement recorded at The Brant:
- Occupancy: Owners must move in as their principal residence within 60 days, live there at least 10 months of each calendar year, and certify occupancy to the city every year.
- Renting: Leasing the home requires the city's prior written approval and a substantial hardship. The lease can run no longer than 12 months, and the tenant must be income-qualified and pay an affordable rent.
- Refinancing: Any refinance or new lien needs the city's prior written consent. Total secured debt is capped at the greater of 90% of the current restricted resale price or the remaining balance on the first loan. Negative-amortization loans aren't allowed.
- The city's option: When an owner sells, the city may buy the home at the restricted resale price or assign that option to a public agency, nonprofit or eligible buyer.
The refinance rule follows the same logic as the resale formula. Borrowing is measured against the restricted price, not against what the open market might pay. The home's market value never becomes money the owner can reach, whether through a sale or a loan.
The restriction also renews. Lafayette's inclusionary housing ordinance requires for-sale affordability terms of at least 45 years and says the term restarts on resale. The Brant's covenant runs until 45 years after the agreement date or until an approved transfer to a buyer who signs a new city resale agreement, whichever comes first. In practice, each compliant sale passes the home to the next income-qualified household under a fresh restriction.
Who Can Enter the Fall 2026 Drawing
The Brant has 10 BMR homes among its 66 condominiums. The project covenant lists six moderate-income units, two low-income two-bedrooms and two very-low-income one-bedrooms. The six moderate-income units break down as two one-bedrooms, three two-bedrooms and one three-bedroom. The city announced the moderate-income offering on June 19, 2026, with two-bedrooms at $511,046 and three-bedrooms at $579,675. By July 10, it said applications were open through HouseKeys, which runs the buyer process.
The current round is Drawing 570 on the HouseKeys page for The Brant. Its notice lists three moderate-income two-bedrooms: E107, E207 and E307. The original deadlines have passed. As of mid-October 2026, HouseKeys was taking late entries and file submissions through October 15, 2026 at 5 p.m., and applicants ranked under the original deadlines are processed first. The current posting doesn't list the three-bedroom unit.
The Drawing 570 notice lays out the eligibility rules:
- Income limits: HCD's 2026 Contra Costa County moderate-income limits apply. Examples are $156,300 for a two-person household, $175,800 for three and $195,350 for four.
- Household size: Two-bedroom homes require at least two people, with no maximum.
- Income counted: Income from every household member age 18 or older counts.
- What isn't required: There's no first-time-buyer requirement, no asset limit and no city preference in this drawing. Actual income from assets still counts, and lenders may set their own requirements.
- Selection: Entrants are ranked in a drawing and processed in rank order, subject to an eligibility review.
The city's general affordable housing page shows a 2023 income table. The 2026 HCD figures above are the ones this drawing uses.
Why This Model Will Show Up in More Lafayette Buildings
The Brant isn't an isolated case. The city's major development projects map already lists BMR condos at Woodbury Highlands, with 15 of its 99 units, and at Town Center III, with 7 of 62 for-sale condominiums. Lafayette Park Terrace has 3 of 18, and Blue Oak has 3 of 20.
The rules behind those numbers recently got wider. Ordinance 697, adopted July 28, 2025, replaced the city's earlier inclusionary chapter. It now applies citywide to any project adding at least two homes. It generally requires 15% of units to be inclusionary. In multifamily for-sale projects, 9% go to low- or moderate-income households and 6% to very-low-income households. Projects with 7 to 20 for-sale units can make all their inclusionary units moderate-income.
SFGATE reported in July 2026 that the original 2016 ordinance covered only downtown for-sale housing. The same article says the Terraces of Lafayette, a 315-apartment project on Deer Hill Road with 63 below-market units, is a rental project and isn't expected to break ground until 2027. For now, Lafayette's affordable ownership options are condos like The Brant's, and each one comes with a covenant that works the same way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a BMR owner at The Brant gain anything if Lafayette prices rise? Only indirectly. The resale cap grows with Contra Costa County median income as published by HCD, plus any qualifying improvement adjustment. If local home values rise faster than incomes, the owner's maximum resale price doesn't follow them.
Can an owner sell to anyone they choose? No. The city holds an option to buy at the restricted price or to assign that option to a public agency, nonprofit or eligible buyer. Any sale to an eligible buyer happens at or below the restricted resale price.
Is "moderate income" 110% or 120% of area median income? Lafayette's code defines moderate income as up to 110% of area median income but allows the higher state limit where it applies. The Drawing 570 notice points applicants to HCD's county limits, and HCD's 2026 moderate-income category goes up to 120%.
If you're deciding between a covenant-restricted condo like the ones at The Brant and a market-rate home elsewhere in Lamorinda or the Tri-Valley, the Aliloupour Real Estate Team can lay the numbers side by side with you. We'll go over the resale formula, the HOA dues and the comparable market-rate options, so you know what each path gives you before you commit to one.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
