Changemakers is a column that highlights the work of local nonprofit organizations serving Athens County.
Habitat Southeast Ohio recently expanded to 13 counties, offering much more than just building homes.
On a rainy day in August, Jay (his middle name) showed off his new home in Athens County. He had owned the property for about 10 years, but he was previously living on it in a 160-square-foot tiny house.
The new home is tidy and well coordinated; furniture from Ikea matches the floor and counters. A full bookcase sits next to the couch and a 55-inch TV sits across the spacious living room.
His tiny house did not include most of the amenities in his current home. Coming in at roughly 1,000 square feet, the newly built house has two bedrooms, one bathroom, closets for storage and a laundry room with a washer and dryer – and all appliances came with the home.
“It is amazing to be able to do my laundry whenever the heck I want again,” Jay said..
Jay showed off the back porch, where he sits in the morning with a cup of coffee and looks out at the forested part of his property, plus the fruit trees he planted years ago and the beehive he keeps.
“They let me turn the house around,” Jay said, referring to a rotated floor plan that placed the covered porch on the back of the house instead of the front. “They” in this case is Habitat for Humanity of Southeast Ohio, whose mission is to transform the lives of individuals and families in Southeast Ohio through affordable housing.
Jay’s is just one of 14 houses Habitat Southeast Ohio has built in the past year in an eight-county region. Working as a custodian in Athens, Jay simply doesn’t make enough money to afford a traditional mortgage.
“I think it’s just really important that things like [Habitat] exist, especially in the world that we live in right now,” Jays said. His 30-year mortgage through Habitat is at 0% interest, meaning he only pays the $120,000 cost to build the home. This keeps his monthly mortgage at around $500.
Additionally, the home and appliances are all very energy efficient, keeping down the cost of utilities.
“I don’t make a lot of money as a custodian, but I make enough to afford this,” he said.
His new home has even inspired Jay to start taking better care of himself. He now regularly exercises and has given up fast food. He plans to put a garden out back on top of the new septic system.
“I don’t plan on ever leaving here,” he added.
Habitat Southeast Ohio has built 170 houses since its first home was built in 1994 in Athens County. Scioto Valley Habitat joined Habitat Southeast Ohio in August.
“Ultimately, we are going to continue to grow our mission until everybody has a simple, decent, affordable and safe place to call home,” Kenneth Oehlers, Habitat Southeast Ohio’s executive director, said.
In addition to 14 houses built in the past year, Habitat rehabbed two homes and “recycled” two others, meaning, home ownership changed in two Habitat-built homes. In total, several hundred people and counting have been housed.
Photo courtesy of Kelsi Snider / Habitat Southeast Ohio.
Going beyond home building
And while most people know Habitat for its home building program – low-income homeowners contribute “sweat equity” and help build their own homes, plus additional required volunteer hours – Habitat Southeast Ohio is doing much more than building homes.
The Millfield-based nonprofit offers a micro-lending program, where participants can borrow up to $2,000, repayable in two years with 0% interest.
The revolving loan fund allows Habitat to lend up to $30,000 per year. Oehlers sees this as an alternative to predatory payday loans.
“They get trapped in a cycle. The cumulative interest rate ends up being in the hundreds of percents,” he said.
Additionally available is Community Renovations and Repairs, a social enterprise created by Habitat Southeast Ohio, a business whose profits are reinvested in the mission of Habitat. CR&R operates as a home repair business that serves seniors, people with disabilities and others who need affordable home renovations like wheelchair ramps, or repairs.
Habitat’s Home Repair & Care Training Center is based at the Millfield campus and offers classes and workshops to the public that train participants in carpentry, electricity and plumbing so that they can maintain their own homes, saving money on contractor fees.
Through a collaborative partnership with the Survivor Advocacy Outreach Program and Vitruvian, Habitat is currently working to finish the interiors of 3D printed homes in Chauncey. One of the homes will provide temporary housing for people waiting for their Habitat homes to be completed.
“You have people who are temporarily displaced through no fault of their own,” Oehlers said, pointing to examples like month-to-month leases, natural disasters or home contaminants, like lead.
Recently, Habitat launched two neighborhood revitalization programs, including one with the Athens Westside Community Association. Habitat is working with WCA to create a 5- to 7-year plan to improve the neighborhood.
Oehlers is thankful for funders who support these innovative initiatives, making Habitat Southeast Ohio one of – if not the most – innovative Habitat chapters in the nation. The Sugar Bush Foundation and the Athens County Foundation are two of these funders.
“Ken is an incredible leader and innovator, and Habitat is an important partner in our community,” Kerry Pigman, ACF executive director said.,“We’re proud to support Habitat, to invest in their ideas, and to give them the space to try new approaches that grow directly from what they are seeing and learning in the community.”
Habitat has been one of the many community partners participating in the Housing Security Co-Create Group, facilitated by ACF. “Habitat brings such an important perspective to Housing Co-Create,” Pigman said. “They understand what it takes to help people move toward safe, stable housing, and they bring years of hands-on experience doing that work in our community.”
Grants, however, make up a minority of the organization’s roughly $4 million annual budget (in addition to a current $2 million capital campaign). Most of the funding comes from two sources: Habitat Southeast Ohio’s ReStores in Athens, Lancaster, and Zanesville plus proceeds from the Community Renovations and Repairs business.
Individual donations help, but more importantly, individual volunteers are critical for keeping costs down.
“We consider volunteering as a donation to not only our homeowners, but also to our organization,” Oehlers said. “If you can’t donate money, donate time or talent and help us build more houses for people in the community.”
“The important thing is to get involved,” Oehlers said. “Even if it’s not with Habitat, be engaged and involved in your community. There are tons of nonprofits in our community that need the help, the support and the confidence to continue doing what they’re doing. And they’re all doing good work.”
