No. Habitat Homeowners purchase their homes. Habitat Homeowners must earn a mortgage with SONYMA or another local bank that provides affordable monthly mortgage payments.

The initial mortgage payment is adjusted based on the family’s income. To maintain affordability, Habitat ensures that the monthly mortgage payment is less than 30% of the family’s monthly gross income.

Yes. Habitat Homeowners contribute $2,500 towards closing costs and the remaining down payment is paid in “sweat equity” hours.

Sweat Equity is your investment in Habitat’s work and mission; it is also an expression of your partnership with Habitat for Humanity. Once approved as a partner family, you must complete 500 hours of volunteer work for Habitat before you can move into your home.

Families earn “sweat equity” hours by helping build their own home, by volunteering in the community, and/or by attending homebuyer education classes. No construction experience is necessary to participate in the construction; our expert staff will guide families and volunteers through the building process.

Typically it takes 6-9 months to build the home, though there are a number of variables that contribute to how long it takes to complete a home.

Not exactly.  Once a family completes the application process and is selected by the Board of Directors as a partner family, they will be given site options if we have more than one lot available at that time.

Habitat will choose the design of the house in accordance with the size of the lot and available funding. No change in design will be considered unless a partner family requires structural modification for a handicapped family member. Homeowners may choose the shingle color, siding color, and in most cases the flooring.

No. In order to qualify for a home, a family must fall between 50% and 80% of the median income for the county area and have at least 2 years of verifiable qualifying income. For example, a family of four in Warren County would have to demonstrate that they currently have had a total household income between $27,900 and $55,800. All stable sources of income will be considered, including social security, disability, child support, etc.

No. Habitat for Humanity of NSWWC will look at the whole picture and really try to understand your situation. You will need to showcase consistency in your payment history.  However, we can also look at “alternative credit” such as rental history, utility bills, gym memberships and even Netflix.  Families with current or recent bankruptcies, foreclosures or judgments will need to wait a minimum of 2 years after discharge before applying and at that time we will consider the applications on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the specific circumstances that led to the situation.

Yes. Our staff is happy to talk with applicants about why their applications have been denied, and families are eligible to re-apply after six months.

No. Habitat for Humanity of NSWWC follows all Fair Housing and Fair Credit laws, which prohibit discrimination based on familial status. “Families” can be single people, married or unmarried couples, single parents, multi-generational, and everything in between.

In some cases, it is possible to transfer a Housing Authority Rental Voucher to a Housing Authority Homeownership Voucher. If a family applies to our program and is accepted, we will work directly with the Housing Authority to determine if it is possible.

At this time, we do not have an active repair program, but we can refer you to other organizations in the area. Rebuilding Together of Saratoga County provides home repair and renovation services to low-income homeowners, and Homefront Development Corp in Hudson Falls can provide minor home repairs for qualified residents.

As our affiliate name suggests, we build homes wherever we can acquire land throughout the Northern Saratoga (north of route 67), Warren and Washington County region.  Habitat is actively seeking opportunities in the following communities: the City of Glens Falls,  Mechanicville, Granville and Greenwich. We’d also consider building on a donated property throughout our region.

Possibly, you must be a first-time homebuyer as established by HUD (US Department of Housing and Urban Development) – Check here to see if you qualify.

If a homeowner decides to sell their home, they must notify Habitat and get the home appraised.  Habitat has the right to purchase at the appraised price. If Habitat decides not to buy the house, it may be sold on the open market.  However, most of the subsidies will need to be paid back. Habitat’s goal is to maintain a stock of affordable housing in the county.

Yes. A Habitat for Humanity of NSWWC mortgage works almost exactly like a traditional bank mortgage. Your family will be able to inherit the home as long as you take the necessary steps to plan for the future, as all homeowners should.