We are Habitat for Humanity
East Bay/Silicon Valley
We know that affordable homeownership can transform a life, shape a community, and change the world. We do more than believe in change. We build it.
THE NEED
Unstable housing can:
- Lead to overcrowded and substandard living conditions
- Cause health problems such as asthma and depression
- Hinder a child’s performance in school
- Leave little to no money in savings for a family’s future
WHY HOMEOWNERSHIP?
Education
Homeownership offers the stability families need to build self-reliance and a strong foundation for future success. Homeowners are able to escape the anxiety of rent hikes and eviction threats, investing in themselves and creating a legacy for their families. Homeownership gives families with limited incomes the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty.
Homeownership is correlated with a host of positive success indicators:
- Children of homeowners have higher educational attainment.
- Young children of homeowners see higher achievement in math and reading, and exhibit fewer behavioral problems.
- Teenaged children of homeowners are more likely to stay in school.
- Homeowners’ children have higher lifetime annual incomes.
Health
Dr. Megan Sandel of Boston University School of Medicine puts it in stark terms: “A safe, decent, affordable home is like a vaccine. It literally prevents disease.” Indeed, for many Habitat homeowners, their Habitat home is a radical departure from their previously overcrowded, hazardous, or substandard housing.
Studies have shown that stable, affordable housing is closely tied to health:
- Families with affordable housing options are at a lower risk of lead poisoning and exposure to mold and other allergens, which can trigger asthma
- When a family pays a high proportion of its income toward housing, health suffers as less income goes toward healthy food and health care expenses.
- The instability of renting can be disruptive to health care. Children without stable housing are more likely to use costly emergency services.
Homeowners report greater life satisfaction, self-esteem, perceived control over their lives, and physical health.
Stability
In a challenging and unstable housing environment, families with limited incomes are often the most vulnerable to the whims of the market. These hardworking families face a daily, monthly struggle to meet their housing costs, while contending with a fear that an eviction, a rent hike, or simply an unanticipated expense will mean displacement.
For families like these, a stable, affordable place to call home means:
- The ability to put down roots in a community
- No disruption in schooling
- An investment in themselves – in their savings, in their education, in their retirement, in their passions, in the generations to come.
Community
Homeowners have a refuge from the whims of an unpredictable rental market. As homeowners move less frequently than renters, they have the opportunity to become more deeply integrated into the fabric of a community. Homeownership lends greater stability to a neighborhood. Homeowners are more likely not only to build strong, stable lives for their own families, but for their communities as well.
Homeownership has strong connections to community:
- Homeowners spend more time and money in maintaining their homes, contributing to the value and image of a community.
- Homeowners are shown to be more involved in their communities, with a higher likelihood of volunteering.
- Homeowners are more likely to be politically active.
A SOLUTION
How we work
We invest in people. We empower people – hardworking people with limited incomes – to invest in themselves. Habitat homeowners purchase their homes through a nonprofit mortgage and receive financial counseling to ensure they are prepared for successful homeownership. Through a range of innovative, sustainable, solution-oriented programs, we make affordable homeownership a reality for more people.
Every $1 Invested
Generates $20 in our Economy
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