Terry Bibbins, our Army Veteran, is next in line to purchase a Manatee Habitat Home with a zero % interest loan. These zero % interest rate loans are one of the key factors in making our homes affordable!

Prior to being next in line to purchase, our homeowners have to run the gauntlet; not really but they do have to complete 300 hours of sweat equity, complete financial proficiency classes, start and add to a savings account and more.

Our volunteers STILL do the vast majority of the building. We only bring in contractors for things like the electric, HVAC and plumbing. Volunteer hours account for half the value of the houses we build! Unfortunately we have been seeing huge increases in material costs since the pandemic arrived. We are paying as much at 25% more for the same materials. As you know, that means we have to raise an additional 25% to complete each house we build.

Shana Edwards, Blonetha Calvo, Carmen Padro, Ketty Nieves, Yvette Vazquez, LaShawnte Lee and the Hernandez-Cooper families are all enrolled in our Home Buyer Program and working to complete their financial courses, add to their savings accounts and complete their 300 sweat equity hours. We need to raise the funds for these homes prior to building them. Please take a look at these seven amazing families and think about making a contribution to helping us build their homes. http://manateehabitat.org/success-stories/ will take you right to all the family stories!