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| Partner
Family Criteria |
| HFHGL
always looks forward to welcoming and working with
new partner families. Our organization is as much
about people-building as it is about house-building!
While
homeownership is an exciting thought, HFHGL cautions
potential partner families that the process can
be lengthy, that it can require lots of hard work,
and that no one step guarantees a home. There
are several requirements that partner families
must meet in order to successfully own their own
homes through HFHGL.
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Current,
annual income falls between 25 to 50 percent
of the area's median income. The Family Selection
Committee considers the income of the applicant(s)
and the total income of all people who will
live in a house. Income must be documented
by federal tax returns. |
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25%
of median income |
50%
of median income |
| 1 |
$14,725
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$29,450 |
| 2 |
$16,825
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$33,650 |
| 3 |
$18,925
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$37,850 |
| 4 |
$21,025
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$42,050 |
| 5 |
$22,700
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$45,400 |
| 6 |
$24,400
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$48,800 |
| 7 |
$26,075
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$52,150 |
| 8 |
$27,750
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$55,500 |
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| Source:
Department of Housing and Urban Development,
www.huduser.org.
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Current
living conditions. |
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Ability
to make a down payment of $500. |
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Ability
to make monthly mortgage payments not exceeding
33 percent of gross income. |
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All
partner families must be willing and able to contribute
"sweat equity"
-- or a set number of volunteer hours -- as part
of their participation in the HFHGL homeownership
program. Every Habitat affiliate has different sweat
equity criteria.
HFHGL sweat equity
requirements are: |
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A
commitment of 400 hours for partnered homeowners
or 225 hours for single homeowners. |
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Sweat
equity hours are logged and actively tallied
during the homeownership process. Each entry
must describe the nature of the hours contributed
and must be signed by either a committee member
or a member of the Board of Directors. Sweat
equity hours will be verified and processed
and progress reports will be mailed to the
partner family on a regular basis. |
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Each
adult applicant must complete a minimum number
of sweat equity hours per month to remain
in good standing (typically 12 hours per month).
Since the program is a partnership effort,
families are expected to work on their houses,
even if they have completed their sweat equity
hours. |
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least two-thirds of sweat equity hours must be completed
working on HFHGL building sites, helping to construct
the partner family's own home, or the homes of other
partner families. However, the following activities
can be used to fulfill the remaining one-third of
sweat equity hours: |
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Contributing
to HFHGL operations, such as office tasks,
helping with fundraising efforts, or staffing
a HFHGL event. |
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Attending
first-time home buyer or homeownership classes. |
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| Partner
families may engage friends and/or relatives to
contribute a maximum of 100 hours towards their
total sweat equity. These friends and/or relatives
must be identified prior to entering into an agreement
with HFHGL. Partner families may not solicit hours
from volunteers who happen to be working on the
construction site. HFHGL staff, volunteers, and
members of the Board of Directors cannot donate
sweat equity hours to a partner family.
If
a member of a partner family is deemed to have
a physical condition that prohibits him or her
from participating in physical work, the Board
of Directors will determine on a case-by-case
basis whether exceptions to the sweat equity policy
should be made.
Partner
families are not
allowed to move into their homes until sweat equity
requirements have been fulfilled. |
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| Race,
ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, marital
status, age, source of income, familial status,
handicap, or sexual orientation will not be considered
in the selection process. |
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| I'm
Interested.
What's the Next Step? |
| For
more information on applying to become a Habitat
for Humanity of Greater Lowell partner family, fill
out and submit our Partner
Family Interest Form. |
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You
may also print out the Partner Family Interest
Form and mail it to:
Habitat for Humanity
of Greater Lowell
Family Selection Committee
66 Tadmuck Road, Suite 5,
Westford, MA 01886 |
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