Dr. Suess

"And will you succeed? Yes indeed! Yes indeed! Ninety Eight and Three Quarters guarenteed!"


Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Requirements

Pearls and Dreams

I thought I'd put a quick post about the requirements we had to fulfill.

*You have to put $50 a month on the FIRST for 10 months for the escrow account.
*500 hours of volunteer work to Habitat for Sweat Equity.
*A 10 month class of Money Management class. Two nights a month. With homework.
*A will is required.
*30 year interest free mortgageYou buy the house from Habitat who finances the house with an interest free mortgage. The purchase price of the house is fair market value for the house. The only difference in the cost of the house is that there is no interest in the loan (which is HUGE).
You must pass a credit check, however, if you are on the borderline, when you take the credit check, then when you take the money management class, they will help you get it straightened out.

There is no grace in their requirements. Minimum of 15 hours of sweat equity a month ... you get one month that you don't meet it ...and the second month you're out of the program. Not 2 months in a row, 2 months in the whole time you're getting your 450 hours. 15 hours doesn't seem like much on paper. But, when you're sick, and it's not easy to find that 15 hours to give. I found out doing the sweat equity just exactly why it is that I'm on disability.

If your escrow payment is not in by midnight on the first, it will be refunded, and you start the 10 month over again. When my mom was in the hospital on November 1st, we remembered the payment at 2 AM on the 2nd of November. We were surprised when the check for May through November's escrow account was refunded to us and we had to begin our 10 month process over again in December. It was 2 AM ..just 2 hours late, and before office hours opened, and with definite reasons to explain. Not good enough.

If you miss more than 2 money management classes you were out. You'd have to start those over again. While I didn't miss any of them (and I was quite sick in some of them.) there was one lady that had surgery and had to start them over 3 times. She, like me, has many health problems and has had to go through the process through the skin of her teeth and prayers of her friends. She'd miss three classes because of medical reasons, and have to start over again. She finally made it through when she took the class with me.


There was nothing easy about getting through the program. When we saw the requirements on paper, it didn't seem that difficult. However, going through it, I understand why the executive director said that no person who gets a Habitat House is given a thing, they've worked for every nail, layer of pain and pc of sheet rock that they will own.

6 comments:

  1. sorry I called you a turkey.
    (((Pk)))

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  2. This is wonderful.

    I am so glad/happy/ecstatic/proud/amazed for you.

    This is good.

    later...

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  3. great news! I am happy for you : ) thank you for explaining exactly how Habitat For Humanity works. I did not know anything about the program other than it gives houses to families that need them. Now I know better, the houses are earned and paid for. Congratulations!

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  4. its puts a new slant on going to the bank and asking for a mortgage we were lucky enough to be able to do that but only after eight years of marriage and moving to a less than affluent area.
    We still miss our first home that we built, but barn said it so well the house you have has been earnt by blood sweat and tears and what a hugely sweet reward to you and your husband and children.
    What we would like to see is the house as its being built each stage we think that would be pretty awesome.

    sa'de

    P.S thanks for the great reply to amelia and each time we post on your blog we will add our name in future, thanks for recognising we each have a name thats pretty amazing also

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  5. sa'de ... I think that was my friend Wanda that left that comment. She is an amazing woman. When she figures it out, she's going to be unstoppable!

    She and I have signed our comments to each other the same ... with trouble or Trouble ... so we may have left some confusion ...

    We've got this nickname thing going ...see ... we've decided that we're actually the same person in 2 bodies ... or twins 12 years apart or something like that.

    She's Trouble with a capitol T
    and I'm trouble with a lower case t...

    We're both Rumblebuffin. 1 and 2 (I'm 1, she's 2)

    We're both Bubbles (don't ask, please don't ask lol) no distinction ...

    um ... any of those nicknames will cause us to break down in laughter in front of our pastor who will look at us like we've lost our marbles.

    Rumblebuffin is one I need to post about. It's got a cool explination.

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  6. This is fantastic! Thanks for sharing it with us! :o)

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