05/15/2024
Wow! GREAT response from our post last evening! We haven't posted for a while. Marshall County Habitat got hit with a double whammy a couple of years ago: first, Covid made it pretty much impossible to get a group together to do anything, and then the tornado blew material prices so high that we simply couldn't afford new construction. Prices tripled, almost overnight. Well, the cost of the materials is what drives the price (and thus the payments!) of the homes we build. So, we've been focusing on other things. But now we're back, and we find that we have no applicants. Several of you DID ask some really good questions, though, so I'll try to answer some of them here.
Q 1. Does Habitat give houses to people who need them?
A 1. No. Habitat does not "give" people homes. We partner with qualified but underemployed people (usually families) to BUILD their own homes.
Q 2. What IS Habitat, anyway?
A 2. Habitat for Humanity is a Christian Mission whose sole concern is helping qualified applicants build their own safe, decent, affordable housing for themselves and their families.
Q 3. How do I know if I qualify for partnership?
A 3. You need to call or e-mail our Family Selection and Support Chairman, Judy James. Contact info is elsewhere on the page. But basically, you have to have a job, you cannot have overwhelming debt, and you have to be physically and mentally capable of participating in your own build. We provide some labor and a lot of advice, along with all the materials, but you'll be doing most of the work.
Q 4. So, how does the money part work?
A 4. You fill out the application and return it. If the numbers work (and there IS some paperwork--everything has to be verified and so forth) then you'll meet with members of the Board of directors and we'll work out a contract, pick a floorplan, figure out a payment, etc. If everything is good, we'll sign the contract and go to work. We provide the materials and some of the work, you provide most of the work (your own and your friends and family). When it's done, we hand you the key and you start making monthly payments until the materials and overhead are paid for.
Q 5. What's that about overhead? I don't like that.
A 5. I don't blame you. I don't either. But there ARE some things beyond materials that we have to spend: permits, inspections, electricians, plumbers, things that are required. We DO all that, but you'll have to pay for it. Actual costs, spread out over 20 years or so, but the expenses DO have to be paid. We don't make a profit and we don't get paid. Your payment will be calculated based on the actual expense to build the house. We are allowed to charge a small interest amount in order to cover this, but so far, we have not, and we don't intend to.
Q 6. How many houses have you already built?
A 6. Habitat for Humanity Marshall County has built 17 houses and re-habbed several more. We've been doing this here in the County since 1980.
