June 20, 2011 (Shirley Allen)
Four non-profit organizations will receive $26.7 million in “sweat equity” grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to produce at least 1,500 affordable homes for low-income individuals and families.
As part of HUD’s Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP), these grants are used to purchase land and install or improve infrastructure and requires homebuyers to contribute a minimum of 100 hours of “sweat equity” on the construction of their homes and/or the construction of homes of other buyers participating in the local self-help programs.
The “sweat equity” involves the homebuyers participation in the construction of the house they are purchasing (or another buyers house) which can include such activities as assisting in the painting, carpentry, trim work, drywall, roofing, and siding for the house.
The “sweat equity” and the labor contributed by the homebuyer and volunteers, who contribute their time and labor, significantly reduces the cost of the housing.
The four non-profit organizations who received funds were Habitat for Humanity, $15,369,750, Community Frameworks, $7,361,863, Housing Assistance Council, $3,131,489, and Tierra Del Sol Corporation, $866,898.
Congress first appropriated SHOP funds in 1996 and has provided over $360 million to create more than 23,000 units of affordable housing.
Tags: HUD, SHOP, affordable homes, sweat equity, low-income, home construction
Source:
HUD
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