Politics & Government

South Shore Habitat for Humanity Offers 'Beneficial' Solution to Affordable Housing Need

South Shore Habitat builds an affordable home for the community by bringing the community together.

South Shore Habitat for Humanity has been helping communities build affordable homes for families in need for 25 years and is offering Medfield a “beneficial” solution to its affordable housing need.

“The production of affordable housing from the state is 10 percent,” said Martine Taylor, executive director for South Shore Habitat. “We want to help [Medfield] get to that. We are not the only solution to meeting the affordable housing need but we certainly are a solution to that problem of delivering affordable housing to the community.”

Taylor said while South Shore Habitat cannot bring Medfield 500 homes, it can provide several benefits to the community while helping the town reach its 10 percent.

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“Part of what we often look for when we come into town is donated land,” Taylor said. “There are pieces of property and inventory within towns that lay dormant and don’t have any housing on them … we want to be able to help you put those back on the tax roll.”

The Benefits of a Habitat Home in Your Community

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South Shore Habitat provides benefits that other developers cannot to a town adding affordable housing because of the community’s role in the development.

“You cannot get a developer to come in and build housing any cheaper than what you can get with Habitat,” Taylor said. “The reason that happens is because you as a community are building that house by using volunteers and local businesses and individuals in the town.”

With volunteers playing a crucial role into the development of these homes, there is a sense of community that welcomes the family to town while building a home the community wants. The Habitat welcomes anyone willing to help out.

“We recently did a house in Medway and we had over 70 people participate from Medfield,” said Taylor. “The more you integrate a family into the town, the more they come to town government and the more they value the town and give back.”

Selectman Mark Fisher got involved with a Habitat project last year and spoke highly of the experience.

“Obviously a great program,” said selectman Mark Fisher. “I participated in one … Habitat had a building in Dorchester last year and it’s a great program. It’s wonderful to be involved.”

As for cost benefits to the town, the homeowners of a Habitat home pay taxes to the town.

“This is a benefit to the town … to take some of these properties that are vacant right now [and build Habitat homes],” Taylor said.

The mortgage, which is set at 20 years with no interest, is paid to Habitat, the lender, which goes back into the program for other homes to be built.

“[The families] do pay their mortgages,” Taylor said. “The mortgage comes back into our program to fund the future building of homes.”

The homeowners also give back to the community through the Habitat’s program, “the down payment and sweat equity.”

“[The family] comes in and must give us anywhere between 250 and 500 hours of community service, building the home along side of you,” Taylor said. “In the private sector there’s a value attributed to volunteer labor. When you add that up at 500 hours, that really comes down to somewhere between $10,000 and $20,000, which is most peoples’ struggle with trying to be a first-time homeowner.”

Habitat also protects itself and the town from homeowners “cheating the system” through what it calls a “perpetual deed writer.”

This means that if a family moves after building the Habitat home, the deed follows the house on sale and it would be perpetual.

“People cannot come in looking for an affordable house, build it and then turn around and sell it,” Taylor said. “It would always remain on the town’s inventory. … There is a maximum resale price that is based on the area medium income, so there’s a calculation. While there will be a small capital improvement over the years, the idea is that it is still sold at an affordable rate.”

Types of Homes Being Built in the Community

Taylor said Habitat offers communities “multiple versions” of homes to build in the community, depending on the town’s zoning and preference.

“Our goal is to come into a community and fit in,” Taylor said. “If we are building in an area that has all Colonial homes, we have a Colonial design. We have a Cape design and we have a Modern Ranch.”

Habitat homes are three bedrooms, 1.5 bath, and on average are 1,300 square feet, according to Taylor. Homes are also built energy-efficient, which is appealing to a community like Medfield that is taking town-wide efforts to become more energy efficient.

“We try to keep certain specifics in mind [when building homes],” Taylor said. “We are not coming into a community trying to be the exception to the rule. We want to come in and build a house the way you would want things to be built.”

Taylor said on average, Habitat looks for lots over 5,000 square feet to build, depending on the town’s zoning and looks to have town sewer if available.

“Our largest single cost to the home is usually the excavation and bringing in a septic design,” Taylor said. “Those are the services we often have to hire.”

To underwrite costs, Taylor said Habitat seeks and encourages kind donations and help from local businesses. 

“Our mission is to be able to deliver this house at cost to the family and reduce our costs from donations and volunteer involvement,” Taylor said. … “On average, we will have between 500 and 800 people work on the home. It’s the local businesses, it’s all of you [in town], and it’s town government. It’s the community rallying together and the support of bringing a family a home.”

Types of Families that Move in to Habitat Homes

Taylor explained the families purchasing Habitat homes are people in need of adequate shelter and are not “poor” or “without shelter.”

“For example, we just closed on our 51st home in Stoughton,” Taylor said. “It was a fourth generation family that had been in public assistant housing raising their child who has muscular dystrophy. They are now living in a home with widened doorways, a handicap ramp and the ability for that child to live and grow safely in the home.”

Getting Involved in Medfield

The meets monthly in Medfield and invites the community to join the conversation as it is currently looking for available land in Medfield to build on.

“While we service 35 communities, our Local Partnership Committee meets in Medfield to talk about our next project, to solicit and to actively look for land,” Taylor said. … “We know there are several properties that have been on the docket here in Medfield such as Hospital Hill and perhaps Pound Street. We are asking [the town] to consider us.”

The to help underwrite costs.

“I went to a fundraiser a few years ago and it was very enlightening,” said selectman Ann Thompson.

Medfield resident Elizabeth La Rowe of Wheelwright Road, , said she was in favor of Habitat as an alternate solution to affordable housing needs in town.

“I think it’s a great way to approach affordable housing and welcome people into the community and have the community involved and have a sense of planning on how these homes are built,” La Rowe said.

Taylor added as the town of Medfield continues to discuss its 40B housing need with its residents, she hopes South Shore Habitat will not be an afterthought in those discussions.

“Perhaps in a partnership and dialogue, we can give you an opportunity to build while we are talking about some of these bigger projects,” said Taylor. “There are multiple solutions to the affordable need.”

For more information on South Shore Habitat, visit their website at www.sshabitat.org.


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