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What
is Habitat for Humanity? |
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Habitat
for Humanity International is a nonprofit, ecumenical
Christian housing ministry. HFHI seeks to eliminate
poverty housing and homelessness from the world,
and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience
and action. Habitat invites people of all backgrounds,
races and religions to build houses together in
partnership with families in need. |
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How
does Habitat for Humanity work? |
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Through
volunteer labor and donations of money and materials,
Habitat builds and rehabilitates simple, decent
houses with the help of the homeowner (partner)
families. Habitat houses are sold to partner families
at no profit, financed with affordable, no-interest
loans. The homeowners' monthly mortgage payments
are used to build still more Habitat houses. Habitat
is not a giveaway program. In addition to a down
payment and the monthly mortgage payments, homeowners
invest hundreds of hours of their own labor -- sweat
equity -- into building their Habitat house and
the houses of others. Qualifying families purchase
their home at cost. They must take an interest-free
mortgage which they pay back over 20 years. |
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How
does Habitat for Humanity find/buy houses and property? |
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In
many cases, cities and towns will donate or sell
town-owned property at a discounted price to Habitat
for affordable housing. In addition, sometimes houses
in need of repair and renovation will be donated.
When those resources are exhausted, Habitat will
buy property or homes in need of repair using money
raised through donations or mortgage payments of
current Habitat partner families. |
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How
much does a Habitat house cost? |
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Housing
costs vary throughout the country, and the world,
for that matter. For Habitat for Humanity of Greater
Lowell, the cost of building a home averages between
$125,000 and $150,000. Habitat homes are affordable
for low-income families because there is no profit
included in the sale price and no interest charged
on the mortgage. |
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How
are Habitat partner families selected? |
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Families
in need of decent shelter apply to local Habitat
affiliates. The affiliate's Family Selection Committee
chooses homeowners based on their level of need,
their willingness to become partners in the program,
and their ability to repay a no-interest loan. Every
affiliate follows a nondiscriminatory policy of
family selection; neither race nor religion is a
factor in choosing the families who receive Habitat
homes. |
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What
must a family do to become a Habitat partner family? |
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Partner
families are selected based on several criteria.
Families must demonstrate financial need, have an
ability to make monthly mortgage payments and a
$500 down payment, and commit to volunteering up
to 400 hours of volunteer labor on their own home
or other Habitat projects, among other things. |
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What
happens to a partner familiy's mortgage payments? |
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A
Habitat partner family's monthly mortgage payments
become part of a revolving fund, which is used to
acquire property and build more homes for more partner
families. |
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What
if a partner family wants to move out of their home? |
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The
contract a partner family signs gives Habitat the
first option of buying the house back from the partner
family. The partner family does not lose money in
the process. HFHGL seeks families that are willing
to make a long-term commitment to living in their
homes. |
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What
towns does HFHGL build in? |
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HFHGL
builds homes in Bedford, Billerica, Burlington,
Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Dracut, Dunstable,
Lowell, Reading, Tewksbury, Tyngsboro, Wakefield,
Westford, and Wilmington. |
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Who
can volunteer with HFHGL? |
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Anyone
can volunteer in a variety of ways! |
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Can
I volunteer with HFHGL if I don't live in the HFHGL
service area? |
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Volunteers
from any town are more than welcome to volunteer
with HFHGL; however, volunteers can search for the
Habitat affiliate most conveniently located to them
by going to the Habitat
affiliate search engine. |
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Do
volunteers need to have special skills to work at
a construction site? |
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Nope!
People of all skill levels are welcome to help on
site. HFHGL site supervisors provide safety and
job training on the day of a build. Site supervisors
work to find the most appropriate tasks for volunteers
to do based on the volunteer's skills and comfort
level. |
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What
days are volunteers needed? Can I work on the weekends? |
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HFHGL
construction and building normally occurs on Tuesdays
and Saturdays; however, there are also plenty of
volunteer opportunities that do not involve being
on the build site. Check out our current volunteer
opportunities. |
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Can
volunteers work on site for a half-day, or for a
few hours? |
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Yes.
Volunteers that plan to work less than a full day
should make a note of this when they sign up. Failing
to do to may deprive another volunteer of a building
opportunity, so be considerate! |
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Do
volunteers need to bring their own tools? How about
lunch? |
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Tools
are provided by HFHGL; however, if volunteers are
more comfortable using their own tools, HFHGL recommends
that volunteers make sure the tools are labeled.
This will ensure the tools do not get lost or damaged.
HFHGL is not responsible for any misplaced or damaged
tools.
Lunch
is provided for volunteers. Should volunteers
have any special dietary needs, or prefer to bring
their own lunches, HFHGL asks that they make a
note of this when they sign up.
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Can
youth help build? |
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Youth
who are 16 years of age and older may help build
on a construction site; however, there are a number
of other ways that younger people can help. Youth
can design and make site signs, window boxes, birdhouses,
and other design elements that make a house a home.
They can also help run a fundraising event or do
public speaking at their church or school. |
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What
can I do other than help build a house? |
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There
are a number of other ways volunteers can help HFHGL,
besides building. Volunteers can bring their expertise
or talents to one of the HFHGL committees, prepare
lunch for people on site, or simply provide donations
to help HFHGL continue its work! |
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Does
HFHGL accept donations of old or unused building
materials? |
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Currently,
HFHGL cannot accept donations of old or unused building
materials, appliances, or home furnishings -- we
do not have the capacity to ensure the quality of
these items and we simply do not have the storage
space! In some special cases, when the timing is
right during a construction process, HFHGL may accept
certain standard, unused building materials at its
discretion. |
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