Habitat for Humanity’s Parry Sound chapter has their eyes on a property for a new build in town.
Doug MacDonald, Chair of the local chapter asked council on Tuesday for price or fee considerations to help make the project possible.
MacDonald says the Chapter is interested in a 56’ x 155’ building lot, filled with rocks, near 52 Emily Street. He says the chapter is in a position to build a single-family home for a family in need.
“We’ve done four [builds] locally up till now but COVID kind of stopped us. We started in 2011, the first one was finished on Eddy St. in about 2013. Then somebody donated a house to us, which we had to gut and renovate, that was in Seguin. Then in 2018 we finished a semi-detached in Parry Sound and that was the last one we did,” he says.
MacDonald says the group has to fundraise for all the money they spend.
“Everything’s gone crazy with land prices and building materials. This [new build], I’m going to have to sit down and try to put a budget together, but [the cost] is going to be fairly high. So, the cheaper we can get the property for, the better,” he says.
MacDonald says for the last decade, the group raises funds through a big garage sale every year over the Labor Day weekend [located] at Dunn’s storage. He says then they have a golf tournament in September.
As for what comes next, MacDonald says if the group can come to an agreement with the town on a price for the property the chapter could probably do some clearing this year and have shovels in the ground by next year.
He says the chapter does most of the construction themselves, and then pay a professional to do the electrical and plumbing.
MacDonald also says the organization also recently adjusted the way they operate.
“Originally people got their houses and they started paying the mortgage. And if they decide to sell, then they kept the equity that was built up in the house other than what the mortgage was. So, we changed that so if people want to sell the house then we have the right to buy it back for what we sold it to them in the first place,” he says.
The non-profit organization builds affordable housing and sells it to those in need with a mortgage that is whatever the house is worth on the open market. MacDonald says there’s no down payment, no interest on the mortgage, and Habitat holds the mortgage which he adds is geared to income, keeping it affordable.
He says there is a very extensive application process for anyone interested in these builds, with training programs that follows.
“Once we pick a family we put them through training on insurance, home ownership, budgeting, financial accountability and things of that nature,” he says.