Settled is a Minnesota-based nonprofit made up of a team of committed and curious families and individuals. We have developed the Full Community model — a research-grounded and biblically-inspired approach to healing chronic homelessness. We believe God has an answer to homelessness. He places the lonely in families.

We see a future where the local Church lives in Full Community with their homeless neighbors, modeling healthy relationships, purposeful work, and meaningful abundance, cultivating places where everyone has value, is celebrated, and functions according to their gifts to benefit the whole.  

Settled exists to help churches invite their neighbors permanently out of homelessness and into Full Community through intentional tiny home villages called Sacred Settlements. Each one is owned and operated by the worshiping community on their land with Settled by their side for the journey.

Sacred Settlements are intentional and permanent tiny home communities that surround people formerly homeless with meaning and purpose — something we all need. Each Settlement is owned and operated by an active worshiping church.

Sacred Settlements are distinct from typical Tiny Home Villages in that ⅓ of the homes are lived in by “Intentional Neighbors:” resourced people voluntarily living their lives alongside the formerly homeless as an extension of family.

With a severe shortage of affordable housing units nationwide, Sacred Settlements are a truly affordable solution that bridges the gap between emergency shelter and traditional development for a fraction of the price of both.  

Sacred Settlements meet the real needs of our neighbors coming out of chronic homelessness: simple, permanent homes within an intentional community environment.  

On church grounds, there are clusters of tiny homes, gardens, and seating areas. Within the church building itself is a Common Home where those living in the community can access laundry, restrooms, and shower facilities. There is also a community kitchen, living space, dining room, and workspace, which function as extensions of their home. Sacred Settlements can be built on former parking lots, odd-shaped parcels, and otherwise undevelopable corners of church land, bringing beauty and purpose to underused spaces.

A community, at a minimum, will be 3 homes since it is required that 1/3 of the homes be filled with an Intentional Neighbor. An Intentional Neighbor can be an individual, couple, or family - we have all 3 types living in Sacred Settlements.

The Common Home is a portion of the existing church building that is renovated to accommodate the community. Churches already have bathrooms; most have kitchens. Then it's just adding in showers and securing the offices and sanctuary for insurance purposes. This is a relatively easy and affordable way to provide community facilities.  

Yes. The use of religious land is federally protected.  Specifically, The Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) of 2000 protects religious land use from zoning discrimination. RLUIPA does not give any groups a free pass. Instead, the government has to show a "compelling interest" and use the "least restrictive means" if it puts a "substantial burden" on religious exercise.

In 2023, Minnesota passed our groundbreaking law which recognizes the right for faith communities to develop special housing for our poorest neighbors . Now cities and municipalities have a roadmap to permit and approve Sacred Settlements easier and faster. You can read a summary of the bill here.

The Full Community model rests on the philosophical assumption that the single greatest cause of homelessness is the profound, catastrophic loss of family. Full Community is an acknowledgment that homelessness in many ways is synonymous with heartbreak, and none can fathom the depth of human sorrow in the human heart. For one to come out of long-term homelessness, a Full Community model presumes that one must be invited into a community where there is restoration of the human heart. And, to experience homefullness (the sense of being settled and belonging) is to experience being fully and wholly known and loved, which are the inherent needs of every human being.

We also know that affordable housing is not affordable, nor is there enough to go around. In fact, each year more naturally occurring affordable housing is lost than is gained in our country. To make matters worse, there are virtually no subsidized housing options across metro areas, and nearly all the waiting lists are closed.  All of this scarcity is compounded by the fact that there is a <2% rental vacancy rate in most major cities.

In our hundreds of listening sessions with our neighbors living on the streets, we have learned that people experiencing homelessness find dignity in simple features such as a lock and key, privacy, and “a roof over my head when the snow comes.”  In fact, they prefer more housing be built with fewer amenities instead of the status quo that leaves people on the streets.

The benefits to them include housing with a rent they can afford, a supportive community, a non-institutional culture, and the opportunity to dwell in their own structure without shared walls in a place where they can belong and contribute.

Yes.  At Settled, the first Sacred Settlement was established in St Paul, MN in 2022 and serves as a model for addressing homelessness in a holistic way. To date, there are two fully established Sacred Settlements in Minnesota with several more churches across the nation at various stages of the development process.  

In addition to Settled’s model of Sacred Settlements, a similar organization called Mobile Loaves and Fishes has operated a thriving tiny home community called Community First! Village, occupying more than 50 acres with nearly 400 tiny homes occupied by friends who struggled to survive on the streets of Austin.  Settled and Mobile Loaves and Fishes are closely connected and continue to share best practices.

The Full Community approach is designed to address the root cause of chronic homelessness, which is the catastrophic loss of family.  There are five elements to a Full Community Model:

Intentional Neighbors: People who willingly change their current lifestyle to live life alongside formerly homeless neighbors. This helps heal the brokenness that can come from a tragic childhood.

Permanent Homes: Small, simple  homes are gathered together to provide safety and to help promote community. A quality, affordable home-base becomes a source of stability to build from.

Cultivated Places: The homes are placed on religious land that is carefully adapted to meet the needs of the community. These shared spaces present daily opportunities to connect with others.

Purposeful Work: Everyone in the community shares in the labor and is compensated fairly for their work. Work gives direction to life, providing a reason to get up in the morning.

Supportive Friends: Each person has one or more helpers to navigate services and to be supported with friendship. This helps restore a sense of trust in positive healthy friendships.

Each person has one or more helpers to navigate services and to be supported with friendship. This helps restore a sense of trust in positive healthy friendships.

Research demonstrates that the standard approach to homelessness (called “Housing First”), which focuses on providing shelter and professional services, often falls short, as it fails to address the need for integration into a supportive community. The model acknowledges that many experiencing long-term homelessness face unresolved trauma, making family-like support essential. We do this through five key elements that, when used together, provide a holistic environment in which individuals can grow and heal on the long journey toward wholeness.

Yes. Caring for the poor is central to the mission of the local Church. Planting a Sacred Settlement within a loving and active faith community works very naturally. Many churches have underutilized land and building space, helping to reduce overall development costs compared to new affordable housing models.  Further, churches are protected under a strong federal land use law that overcomes restrictive local zoning and not-in-my-backyard opposition. Finally, and most importantly, churches can offer unconditional and consistent love to our neighbors who have lost everything while learning as a church family how to live into a shared way of life.

No. To build a Sacred Settlement in partnership with Settled, church land must be used with an active worshiping community on-site.

Settled provides operating models, templates, best practices, training, and community design. Settled facilitates workshops and ensures the church is set up for success in each stage of planting and stewarding a Sacred Settlement.

Church provides the site, property management, supportive community, and communication to stakeholders (city and municipalities, neighborhood, church body) and provides some level of customization to common practice elements established by Settled.

Both participate in funding, partnership generation, and ongoing research and learning.

There are four stages to forming a Sacred Settlement: Discern, Plan, Build, and Steward. Each of the first three stages is estimated to take between 3 and 9 months to complete. After the Sacred Settlement is established, the Steward stage is an everlasting commitment to deepen relationships for everyone connected to the community. We are establishing permanent communities where we hope every person grows deep roots and enduring loyalty to one another and the land they live on. Learn more about the process here.

Yes. A community, at a minimum, will be 3 homes since it is required that 1/3 of the homes be filled with an Intentional Neighbor (note: an Intentional Neighbor can be an individual, couple, or family)

No. Over the years, Settled has found a way to create beautiful tiny home spaces for a fraction of the cost of traditional development. Each home can be sponsored and built by partnering churches, businesses, or families, inviting the community to participate in lifting our neighbors off the streets one home at a time.

Existing church buildings often need some modifications and renovations to accommodate the Common House for shared facilities. Because churches already have bathrooms and most have kitchens, the modifications are a matter of simply adding showers and laundry and securing the offices and sanctuary for insurance purposes. This is a relatively easy and affordable way to provide community facilities.  

There are four primary reasons Settled has chosen to utilize tiny homes in this model:

Cost-Effective: Tiny homes can be funded and built one home at a time, rather than raising a multi-million dollar capital campaign before anything is ever built.

Aesthetically Pleasing: They blend into residential communities.

Creation Care: Built to last and are energy-efficient.

Community-Oriented: Encourage pride and ownership among neighbors while offering customization capabilities. 

Yes. All homes are certified by third-party, nationally accredited inspectors, ensuring they meet high standards for year-round, permanent living adapted to any climate, suitable even for extreme weather. Homes are built just like new single-family home construction, with the same quality materials, durability, and longevity.

Yes. Tiny homes are designed to be heated and insulated, suitable for colder climates.

Yes. Each tiny home unit has a dry toilet.  The church provides access to its facilities for showers and laundry.

Two-thirds of the homes are lived in by our neighbors coming out of chronic homelessness. One-third of the homes are lived in by Intentional Neighbors, resourced individuals, couples, and families with a calling to live alongside the poor.  Everybody pays rent based on square footage of their home.

All churches planting Sacred Settlements know their neighborhoods and want their Sacred Settlements to be a neighborhood asset. Each host church sets its parameters regarding who it accepts into its Sacred Settlement, such as no sex offenders or violent criminal offenses. All incoming neighbors fill out an application, submit to a comprehensive state and national background check, are interviewed, and review the policies before being offered a home in the community.

“We have found healthy and beautiful relationships develop with our church community, including many young families with children and elderly adults,” says Sacred Settlement Mosaic Leadership.

Sacred Settlements employ the Full Community Model, which contains a full support network of the following people and groups:

Intentional Neighbors are volunteers from relatively healthy, happy backgrounds who have a calling and desire to live alongside the formerly chronically homeless. They function as equals in the Sacred Settlement with regard to paying rent, signing a lease, and abiding by the rules. Intentional Neighbors are committed to having a faithful presence in the community, creating margin in their lives for organizing family meals, games, walks, and celebrations with neighbors, augmenting the role of family.

Supportive Friends are lay volunteers trained to offer additional community assistance and friendship with the goal of building trusted relationships and connecting neighbors to the opportunities that will help them on their path to healing. They operate as advocates, mentors, and helpers for each neighbor to set goals, care for their medical needs, and be a safe space to support neighbors in their daily lives.

Supportive Community surrounds the Sacred Settlement, inviting the church to actively and creatively live a shared way of life together.

Supportive Network includes helping professionals, first responders, elected officials, and the surrounding neighborhood. Everyone has a role to play in creating and maintaining a thriving ecosystem. Sacred Settlements work hard to welcome the Full Community into the movement of caring for one another deeply.

Yes. Paying rent is one of the requirements of living at a Sacred Settlement.  Neighbors have opportunities to do Purposeful Work in order to earn cash or rent credit in order to help pay their rent.  Intentional Neighbors are also required to pay rent. Rent is determined by the square footage of the home.

Yes. All neighbors in the Sacred Settlement must abide by the civil law,  pay their rent, and follow the Community Guidelines that set quality standards for a safe, respectful, and beautiful community.

No. While Sacred Settlements are owned and operated by active faith communities, participation in the spiritual life of the church is voluntary for neighbors.

Yes. The Full Community model emphasizes community support to bridge gaps in accessing social services, fostering trust, and providing emotional support. Each Sacred Settlement partners with like-minded support agencies to connect neighbors with the opportunities that will help them on their healing journey. This supportive network includes helping professionals like social workers, trauma-informed therapists, and drug and alcohol counselors.

We also encourage local police, emergency responders, and firefighters to visit the Sacred Settlement routinely to build trusted relationships and a healthy ecosystem where everyone contributes to a thriving environment.

No. Research indicates that tiny home villages do not negatively impact property values or home sales. Furthermore, previous examples have shown positive community feedback.

Yes. Churches planting Sacred Settlements want their community to be known as a safe and beautiful neighborhood asset. To ensure this, all neighbors must follow the Community Guidelines, which is an agreement about keeping the community clean, respectful, and safe. This agreement is in addition to the lease agreement each neighbor signs, which contains a long list of policies that go into detail about the regulations and expectations of living there.

The Full Community model is deeply immersed in relationships that help guide neighbors towards wholeness and wellness in their daily lives. A robust structure is in place comprised of the following team of people:

Property manager who leads regular home walkthroughs and who cares for the property, cleanliness, and safety of the homes, land, church building, and community.

Sacred Settlement lead or couple who run weekly neighbor huddles and family dinners where rules are enforced and trusted relationships are built in order to create a sense of stability and security within the community.

Stewardship team of 5-7 people who operate like a board of directors to help support the community, create new policies, and enforce decisions that affect the health and safety of the whole community.

Intentional Neighbors who are living their daily lives in the community.

Supportive Friends who function as advocates, mentors, and helpers for each neighbor to set goals, care for their medical needs, and be a safe space to support neighbors in their daily lives.

Social service providers regularly check in with neighbors to support them in their care, benefits, wellness, and mental health.

Every neighbor in our community empowers other neighbors to follow the rules and keep the community safe.

Neighbors are allowed to stay in their tiny home for as long as they would like, provided they follow the rules and regulations set up by the community.  The homes are considered permanent and the neighbor becomes a member of the community. We hope our neighbors become settled, grow deep roots, and build enduring relationships over the long haul.

Yes. While the consequence depends on the infraction, actions may range from a fine to eviction.  While these measures are in place to ensure the safety and stability of the community, both research and experience have taught us that deep relationships are the most effective in ensuring people follow the rules due to the trust and daily interactions that take place. Neighbors want to honor those relationships and have responded well to the graceful truth of holding the line of the rules and policies.

There are many ways to get the answers you need or to lend your gifts and expertise at Settled. Get in touch here.

For volunteering opportunities, please fill out this form here.

For outreach opportunities in the Twin Cities area, please sign up here.