Family Selection Committee Reviewing New Applications

Reviewing applications for a Habitat House and interviewing prospective homeowners are just a couple of the Family Selection Committee's responsibilities.

There are three criteria for eligibility for selection: the family must be living in substandard housing; the family must be able to pay for the house; and the family must be willing to partner in "sweat equity" (actual labor in the building of their home and others) with HFH Newton.

This dedicated group must ascertain that the application is completed and all the necessary information is submitted. After this step is completed, home visits must be made by the committee. Using the substandard housing guidelines from Habitat International, the present living conditions are evaluated. A credit check is then performed to insure the family is capable of paying the interest free mortgage.

When this process is completed for the applicants, the eligible families are then presented to the Board of Directors for selection. The identity of the applicants is not revealed. Rather, they are assigned numbers. This insures that the family or families chosen are the ones most in need. These families are then notified of their acceptance.

We want to thank this committee for their dedication and hard work in completing this vital step towards home ownership.