Eight Local Families are now Habitat Homeowners

Eight local families are now new homeowners thanks to partnering with Habitat for Humanity of Key West and Lower Florida Keys to build or renovate homes for their families.

On Saturday, December 4th, home dedication ceremonies were held at three sites in the lower Keys to commemorate this momentous occasion. The new homeowners received house warming gifts from the Habitat staff followed by some hear-felt words from Habitat Board members and the new home owners themselves. Several Habitat volunteers and donors were also there to join in the celebration.

It’s a familiar story in Key West and the lower Florida Keys -- residents and families living in cramped and sometimes unsafe conditions, working non-stop to barely pay the rent, settling for neighborhoods that are not necessarily ideal for children. It’s all too common here, as it is in many parts of the country and the world.

Habitat for Humanity of Key West and Lower Florida Keys, an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, is working to make a difference

We believe affordable housing plays a critical role in strong and stable communities. Habitat for Humanity

by helping local families build and improve places to call home.

“I was working so much and I wasn’t getting anywhere and I was real worried about my future, real worried” says Scott, a new homeowner at Moss Landing in Cudjoe Key, who is happy to have new home for himself, his roommate and his two dogs. “My life has improved so much, I can’t even tell you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Owning a home can seem like an unreachable dream to many Keys residents who feel priced out of this market and therefore excluded from the stability home ownership brings. “I’ve been here for 18 years and never thought I could buy a home,” says Sabrina, mother of three. “That’s the one thing I wanted to give my family.”

Home ownership is not just the American Dream, it improves children’s lives. Studies show that strong and stable households are foundational to child development and growth. Surveys of Habitat homeowners and their families show better financial health, parents who are more confident about meeting their family’s needs, and even improved grades for their children.

To qualify to partner with Habitat, families must demonstrate a critical need, the ability to pay an affordable mortgage payment (0% interest, no down payment) and a willingness to perform 350 hours of “sweat equity.”

“It’s just been a blessing,” says Sean, father and new Habitat homeowner. “The awesome part was just being able to contribute to the house and do certain things.”

Habitat’s construction manager, Dan Livingston, helps homeowners learn how to work on their homes. While they are earning their sweat equity hours, new homeowners are also learning valuable construction skills which will make home maintenance more affordable for them in the long run.

“Before right now, before I met Dan, I didn’t know anything about construction,” says Osly, a young father and

new homeowner. “So now I did everything in my house, so thank you, Dan!”

These eight families are happy to be celebrating the holiday season in their new homes and their new neighborhoods.

“This is the best neighborhood we’ve been in for our children,” says Andrea, a homeowner in Big Pine Key.

“We are so eternally grateful to Habitat,” says Joseph, another Moss Landing homeowner. “What a great group of amazing people. It really, really changed our lives.”