Are you a family looking for your first home? If so, this homeownership opportunity may be what you are looking for.
The Habitat for Humanity homeownership program is designed to help families obtain affordable home ownership in the home they have available for purchase. Habitat for Humanity currently has one home available in Vermilion. The home is a bungalow-style home that has a kitchen, living room, dining room, 3 bedrooms, and a bathroom on the main level, but also has plenty of space in the basement for a family room. The home also features a large backyard according to Amber Lachambre, VP, Sustainability and Impact for Habitat for Humanity Edmonton. The home is located at 4717 48B Avenue and is within walking distance of downtown.
Lachambre stated that the house is available as the family who previously owned the home had utilized the buy-back program, where they sell the home back to Habitat for Humanity.
“When a family opts to exercise their buy-back program, they sell the home back to us and we then do some remediation and improvements to the home to spruce it up a little for the next homeowner to come in. The home has been on the market for a little while because we want to reach those who are well-suited for the program and the opportunity it presents,” explained Lachambre.
Purchasing a Habitat for Humanity home has many benefits for the potential homeowner such as no cash down payment; mortgage payments are based on 50 per cent of the appraised value of the house. For example, if a Habitat home is appraised at $300,000, the homeowner’s first mortgage is based on $150,000. Habitat holds the second mortgage interest-free for 20 years. The homeowner’s payments will not fluctuate over the course of each term, and homeowners gain access to shared market appreciation on their home upon graduating from Habitat home ownership (through the buy-back program), affordable payments with some properties around the $1000 a month mark, etc.
To become a Habitat for Humanity homeowner there are eligibility requirements. To be eligible to enter the program you must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident with a household income ranging between $45,000 and $75,000 a year (some flexibility on both sides); have a suitable credit score and the ability to qualify for a mortgage; your debt load should be low; one person in the household must be employed full-time; and the family needs to be able to volunteer 500 hours in the community.
“We don’t want an interested applicant to get hung up on the 500 hours as a reason not to apply, as this can be accomplished through things that individuals may already be doing to support their community. We encourage people to apply, and our home ownership team will work with them to help them get closer to home ownership,” commented Lachambre.
If you are interested in applying or would like to see pictures of the available Habitat for Humanity home in Vermilion, visit https://hfh.org/homes/4717-48b/