How We Select Our Partner Families

By Sharon Olsen and Liz Gall
October 26, 2000

Each time we begin to build a Habitat house in one of the seven towns in Connecticut’s Northwest Corner, we also begin the process to choose the family who will become our next Partner Family. The process is managed by our Family Selection Committee (FSC), which is composed of six Board members as well as the head of one of our current Partner families

The FSC follows guidelines set forth by Habitat for Humanity International. These guidelines are centered on three considerations:

  • Affordability
  • Need for Adequate Shelter
  • Willingness to Partner

Affordability

To be eligible for consideration, a family must earn enough income to afford a Habitat mortgage but less than the amount needed to qualify for a conventional mortgage. In the last selection process, we used a range of $20,000 to $40,400 for a family of four (click here for revised selection criteria), adjusting this range up and down for larger and smaller families. The affordability range is reset each time we start a house, depending on then-current economic conditions.

The low end of the affordability range is determined using typical affordability guidelines such as those published by the Housing and Urban Development Administration and Fannie Mae. The high end of the range was set referencing Fannie Mae’s guidelines for affordability for conventional mortgages. A second source is the median income level for Litchfield County. As a practical matter, we rarely use the high end of the range since enough of our applicants fall toward the lower end of the range.

To determine which of the applicants fit our criteria, we ask them to submit a good deal of financial information. We also conduct a credit check and we study the applicants’ debt-to-income ratios. The partner family must have a reasonable credit history, though Habitat recognizes that families applying for Habitat homes may have faced difficult situations that have affected their credit ratings.

Need for Adequate Shelter

Next, we consider the conditions of the applicant’s current housing situation. This includes whether the family lives in housing in adequate condition. In the Northwest Corner, with the few rental properties available only at high rents, an important issue is whether the family can find housing large enough for the family’s size at rents that can be afforded.

Willingness to Partner

The long-term relationship Habitat undertakes with its Partner Families involves significant responsibilities on the part of the Partners. They must participate in the building of their house through "sweat equity;" they will be paying us a mortgage for 25 to 30 years; and we hope that they will be contributing members of their communities.

Therefore, during the selection process, we seek families who will live up to these responsibilities. We review how complete/timely the applications submitted are, how cooperative the family is, and how well they appear to understand our sweat equity requirements. Also important is the quality of applicant family’s relationships with their prior landlords.

Timeline

Our process begins with the announcement that we are open to receive applications that we have published in the local newspapers. Local churches, other religious organizations, and social workers also help us to reach out to the greatest number of possible applicants. Because we build about one house a year but have many applicants, families who have applied before, but have been unsuccessful, may re-apply.

We set a deadline for receipt of the applications. We do not open the applications before this date, nor do we accept applications after this date. Fair Credit rules require that we make our decision within 30 days of the opening of the applications, and we adhere to these rules.

We choose three to five families using our selection criteria. We then interview these families in their homes. Finally settling on one family, the Committee then recommends them to the Board of Directors, which has final approval responsibility.

That night, we have the happy task of calling the chosen Partner Family and telling them the good news.

 

 
  Page last updated 12-12-2004