|
Hinton is getting a down payment on new affordable housing thanks to its first ever Habitat for Humanity home that is set to break ground in September.
Construction on the duplex that will house two families is just weeks away, and Habitat for Humanity’s northern development co-ordinator Dave Zimmel said it will be the first of many.
“We are now ready to proceed with building the first Habitat for Humanity home,” Zimmel confirmed.
The house will be built at 358 and 360 Boutin Ave. on land donated to the charity by the town of Hinton. The building and development permits have all been applied for, and Zimmel said they should be approved by August 26. That means the project could be underway as early as September 1.
The Habitat for Humanity project started when a group of concerned Hinton citizens approached the charity at their office in Edmonton about building homes in the small town. Because Hinton isn’t large enough to support their own branch, the group became Friends of Habitat for Humanity, which allowed them to start soliciting donations and canvassing the community for labourers and materials to build the home.
Once the home is built each family will purchase the home at market value with no-interest loans, and their payments will be 25 per cent of their income. The house will be paid for when it is built, and the two families’ mortgage payments will go into a fund that will eventually be spent on building new homes in Hinton.
“This will be one of many future Habitat homes,” Zimmel said of the Boutin Ave. location.
Families chosen to live in the homes are those that could not qualify for a mortgage and have an income between $32,000 and $54,000. Each family’s current living situation is also assessed, and they can be moved up the waiting list if their home is too small for the amount of people living in it, or if it’s too expensive.
“(It) gives them the step up,” Zimmel said. “Instead of paying half your paycheque on rent they now actually get to put that towards paying for their own home.”
The homes also do not require a down payment, but each family must put 500 hours of work into the construction. Zimmel stresses that the homes are not given away.
“They don’t receive free homes,” he said.
Each year the family’s income tax return will be assessed, and the mortgage payments are kept at a rate of 25 per cent of their income if it goes up.
“If their income goes up, their mortgage goes up,” Zimmel said. The families also have to make a minimum payment to stay in the home.
One thing Zimmel notices is that once a family has been in a home for a few years, their income often goes up because they have a roof over their head and can take time off to go to school and upgrade skills.
“They don’t have the same pressures,” Zimmel said.
Without a permanent home, lower income families often find going back to school difficult.
“They’re in a position where most of their monthly paycheque goes to just putting a roof over their head,” Zimmel said.
Habitat for Humanity is active in over 100 countries, and Hinton is one of many smaller Alberta communities that are receiving new housing options for families in need.
“We’re pretty excited to start the program,” Zimmel said, adding that Hinton was the first community to come to them and request a project be started.
“Affordable housing is an issue that isn’t just a large urban centre issue,” Zimmel said, lamenting the fact that the charity can’t help everyone. “Unfortunately we aren’t able to build enough homes for all the families in need.”
The first few weeks of construction will be undertaken by skilled labourers. Following the initial foundation work, volunteers will be needed to complete the entire building. Zimmel hopes the families will be in the homes before Christmas.
“It would be a nice Christmas present if we could have them moved in by Christmas,” he said.
Volunteers looking to help out can contact Hinton’s volunteer co-ordinator Dawn Scholze at 780-865-5162.
“We should be ready for volunteers the first few weeks in September,” Zimmel said. |
