Daytona Beach Habitat for Humanity Donates 2 New Homes

As part of a celebration with Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity on Dec. 19, Santa will deliver house keys to two families who will be moving into their new homes tomorrow.

Habitat for Humanity's Spruce Grove Project in New Smyrna Beach features nine building lots. Each of the nine new homes costs $113,000 and features approximately 1,100 square feet of living space. Four homes have been completed on the site and three more are planned. Approximately 1,000 volunteer hours per house have been logged, with homeowners expected to invest between 250-350 hours of sweat equity in their home. Formed in 1989, just two years ago the board of directors set a goal of building 12 homes per year.

Rosemary Walker, executive director for Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity, said all the homes built are Energy Star or Builder's Challenge certified, and will use less than 70% of the energy of a typical new home. She added that it usually takes about three months to finish one house before going on to the next one but the two new homes ready for occupancy on Dec. 20 took only two months.

To serve our local senior citizens and plan for resale, each Habitat home built is also designed to accommodate aging-in-place homeowners. "What this means is that the homes have no-step entrances, they feature roll-in showers, have ample turning radius for wheelchairs and each house has a covered porch," Ms. Walker said. "We don't want people to have to move out if they can't use their home when they older or get sick."

Financing homes through Habitat for Humanity comes from a variety of sources: the government's Housing and Urban Development, Volusia County, and from contributions from area businesses and individuals. "We also get financial support from sales in our thrift store," Ms. Walker said.

Qualified homeowners can expect house payments to be $500 a month or less with zero percent mortgages held by Southeast Volusia County Habitat for Humanity.

To find out more about this worthwhile volunteer effort, visit West Volusia Habitat for Humanity and Southwest Volusia Habitat for Humanity.

Sherry Armstrong, Realtor
386-679-3191
yourkeytothebeach@gmail.com
http://www.sherryarmstrong.com/