By Michael Howell
Last week community members gathered at 511 6th Street in Hamilton to break ground on the latest home being built by Habitat for Humanity Ravalli County. Jennifer Larson and her two children, Aksel and Emma Mitchell, were chosen by the non-profit organization to be the owners of the new home.
Executive Director Mike Kibler summed up the HHRC mission in one simple statement, “We are part of a global ministry and our mission is to have a world where everyone has a decent place to live.”
Selection Committee member Bill Goslin described the qualifications that must be met by prospective new homeowners who want to take advantage of the program. First, the applicant’s family must be living in inadequate housing conditions. This may include the family being burdened by excessively high rent, over-crowding, structural problems with residence and/or inadequate utilities.
Habitat homes are not free and the applicant family must be able to pre-qualify for a 30 year, no interest Board of Housing loan. The applicant’s income alone must be sufficient to pay for the mortgage as well as things such as utilities and a $250 down payment. Income need not be job-related, but may include disability, alimony or child support.
The applicant must also be willing to participate in the Habitat program as a partner in building the family’s home and those of others. Five hundred hours of “sweat equity” is required once an applicant has been board approved and must be completed before move-in. Two hundred and fifty of those hours may be completed by friends and family of a single-applicant family. The applicant is required to complete 40 hours per month following acceptance into the program and at least 100 hours at the construction site actually building the family’s home.
Larson met the loan requirements and has already put in 80 hours working as a volunteer for Habitat on other projects. She is also lucky to have a lot of family members ready and willing to pitch in and help.
“We’ve been praying for this for five years,” said Larson. She said that before they were notified that their application had been accepted she would drive by the empty lot with her kids at least four times a week to pray and dream about owning their own home.
“This is an amazing opportunity that we might never have had if it wasn’t for Habitat for Humanity,” said Larson.
Besides its home building program, HHRC also participates in the nationwide program called A Brush with Kindness that helps low income homeowners who struggle to maintain the exterior of their homes. It uses local volunteers, donated materials, and no-interest loans to make improvements and repairs that help low-income homeowners continue to live independently and securely in their homes. It is part of Habitat’s Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative. This initiative is a holistic approach, assisting communities as well as families. It is designed to revitalize the appearance of the neighborhood, encourage connections within the community, and help preserve affordable housing stock.
As with the building program, participants must own their own homes and are selected on the basis of need, ability to repay a no-interest loan, and willingness to partner with Habitat. Payments made by the partner family are placed in a revolving fund to help Habitat for Humanity’s A Brush with Kindness serve others in need. Recipients must be unable to afford, or unable to complete, improvements due to age, disability or circumstances.
Volunteers are always needed and anyone interested in participating can be put to work in one fashion or another, according to Kibler. Anyone interested can get more information by calling Habitat for Humanity Ravalli County at 375-1926, or via e-mail: RavalliHabitat@yahoo.com for more information.