Habitat for Humanity: Putting Families Into Homes
By Teresa Ambord
One house at a time, Habitat for Humanity (HFH) has as a goal to "eliminate poverty housing and homelessness from the world, and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action."
You've no doubt heard of HFH. It was started nearly three decades ago, in 1976 by Millard and Linda Fuller. They've built more than 175,000 houses around the world, and made safe, affordable shelter available to over 900,000 people.
Is This a Handout Program?
Not at all. It is true that the families who get HFH homes probably wouldn't be able to afford them without this program. It's also true that the houses are paid for with no-interest loans. But, besides an affordable down payment and paying off the mortgage, the recipient families invest hundreds of hours of labor, or "sweat equity," to get their homes. In general, the mortgages are for periods of seven to 30 years.
The other labor involved is volunteer, and the money and materials to complete the homes are donated. The mortgage payments made by recipient families are used to build or rehabilitate other Habitat houses, around the world.
How Much Does a Habitat Home Cost
Incredibly, some of the houses cost as little as $800 to build in developing countries. In the United States, the average Habitat house costs about $46,600.
You Can See Some Examples of Habitat Homes by Visiting This Site:
Habitat Headquarters
The HFH headquarters is in Americus, Georgia where training and support are initiated. Volunteers are always needed at the headquarters, and those who arrive there from out of the area to work may be able to receive housing and a stipend.
All volunteers must be at least 18. Applications are carefully screened to find people whose skills match the needs of the organization. When a match is found, the would-be volunteer is contacted for a phone interview to discuss where help is needed.
Interested in Volunteering?
How Donations Work
Donations can be made to HFH in general, and that money is used wherever it is most needed, including administrative costs. But if a donation is designated for a particular project, it is used only for that home.
If you'd like to donate to HFH, click here:
You can click on the link below to see the most recent giving report of HFH and a video message by the founder, Millard Fuller.
At the Local Level
In local communities, the work of HFH is accomplished by local, independent affiliate nonprofit organizations. Each affiliate does its own local fund raising, selection of building sites and recipient families, home construction, and mortgage arrangements.
Affiliates are expected to "tithe" ten percent of their contributed funds to the headquarters, in order to finance other building projects. In 2001, the tithed funds amounted to $9.04 million. HFH spreads across 100 countries (including each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico) having more than 2,100 active affiliates.
Find Your Local Affiliate Here: