Building Our Legacy
Who We Are
Highlands County Habitat for Humanity, a locally run affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, is a part of a global nonprofit housing organization operated on Christian principles that seeks to put God’s love into action by building homes, communities and hope.
Our Mission: Seeking to put God’s love into action, Habitat for Humanity brings people together to build homes, communities and hope.
Our Vision: A world where everyone has a decent place to live.
Why Housing
About half of low-income families in Highlands County use more than 50 percent of their income for rent due to the high cost of housing. This forces families to regularly choose which life necessity they’ll put off this week – rent, food, transportation to work, or medical care. Without affordable and stable housing, these families can’t break this cycle and prepare for the future.
A Habitat home is the stepping-stone to a bigger life plan for many of our families. They’ve put sweat-equity into building their own home and conquered financial-planning courses with us, bringing more self-confidence and a sense of achievement. Once in a stable home, they often find more time and energy to better their future through education, training or a job change.
Our Approach
Partnering with our community, Highlands County Habitat for Humanity, brings community volunteers, corporate donors, civic organizations and faith groups together to build affordable homes for struggling, low-income families and individuals throughout our community.
We partner with families struggling to find a decent, affordable place to live and work together toward a long-term solution. Those who qualify purchase a Habitat home after completing educational classes that prepare them to handle home finances and upkeep. They dedicate 250 to350 sweat-equity hours into building their home and education; working hand-in-hand with community volunteers and our construction crew. It’s a community problem with a community solution. And we can’t do it without you.
Some people are surprised to find out that we don’t give houses away. We require families to invest in their homes by working on the construction site, and attending courses on financial planning, debt management and home maintenance. The family purchases the home with an affordable, no-profit mortgage and an affordable monthly payment. That level of engagement creates and builds a solid foundation for personal success.