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Habitat for Humanity
woodsrunner
Member Posts: 5,378 ✭✭
I was watching the news and there was a story about them
foreclosing on a house that they built. A spokesman for them
said the family defaulted on their loan on the house.
I always thought the houses that they build were gifted to
low income families. The spokesman explained that each family
enters into an agreement to pay for the home. Then Habitat uses
that money to build more houses. I assumed they were funded by
donations.
foreclosing on a house that they built. A spokesman for them
said the family defaulted on their loan on the house.
I always thought the houses that they build were gifted to
low income families. The spokesman explained that each family
enters into an agreement to pay for the home. Then Habitat uses
that money to build more houses. I assumed they were funded by
donations.
Comments
This morning I'm in home improvement mode. While driving into the next town to pick up my new custom made (odd size) storm windows, I drive past the Habitat for Humanity house built a few years ago. The dumpsters in the driveway are as big as the house. They're gutting the place already. About six months ago the place got boarded up , now H.U.D. is refurbishing the place. When this house was being built I was working 3 jobs to get the money to buy my house. I worked to the point it caused me health problems. All I knew is I wanted my own place. A place where all my toys could have a place of thier own. A garage so I could have another bike and maybe another antique car resto project. I spent years looking for a place, had a few heartbreaks too. Finally I make friends with a real estate salesman who is just starting out. He introduces me to a sympathetic mortgage manager with a local bank. I beg them to hold up the hoops and let me try to jump through them. Finally after years of people laughing at me, telling me a single guy doesn't need a house, I wouldn't be able to keep it up, etc. I finally have a place of my own. It's not without sacrifice, five years ago I'd be sitting down at the shooting range on a day like today. Today I spend most of the morning rebuilding 92 year old windows. What's got me pi$$ed off today is some damn liberal feel good group could come in tomorrow and buy the non conforming wetland lot from the town down the street, and build a house a third the size of the others on the street. Then give it to someone who has niether the knowledge or devotion to keep it up. I say give it because the house down the road was sold to it's former owner for $40,000.00 with a special subsidised mortgage. I'm just glad I don't own any of the $100,000.00 houses that surround it.
Well lunch is over, I've got a lawn to mow before it rains. Thanks for letting me spout off folks.
Woods
Otherwise, you'll show your ignorance.
Merc
NO! You may not have my guns! Now go crawl back into your hole!
****************************************
"Tolerating things you may not necessarily like is part of being free" - Larry Flynt
gimme a break.
barto
the hard stuff we do right away - the impossible takes a little longer
Anomalies occur in any study.
SIG pistol armorer/FFL Dealer/Full time Peace Officer, Moderator of General Discussion Board on Gunbroker. Visit www.gunbroker.com, the best gun auction site on the Net! Email davidnunn@texoma.net
Dont (spoff) it this time its true........
You have to be totaly in the gutters to get help (not halfway in )
JD
Good...? , Bad...? Who cares ? as long I am the one with the the gun.....
cbxjeffIt's too late for me, save yourself.
I can recall the newspaper article about the woman they sold it to well. She was in her late 30's, never married, mother of two. She worked in a local soap factory that had already announced it's gradual shutdown over the next few years. A union shop with a very low scale, top wage was less than $9.00 an hour. They were closing mainly because they were being harrassed out of business by the NYSDEC and the EPA. With no means of getting to a better job situation this woman was set up to fail. The first thing that was a good sign was when the lawn stopped being mowed. A lawn mower is nearly a weeks wages for someone at that pay level. She was set up to fail. No decent job, no means of getting to one if she could find one. I don't recall a car ever being in the driveway and I drive by the house twice a day going to and from work. Two mouths to feed besides her own and because of that limited ability to take a second job when things got tight.
Maybe these things work better in a less rural more developed area. I hope so. Actually this house was some inspiration to my own efforts in the begining. Maybe her failure is disapointing to me because I followed it so closely.
Woods
Edited by - woodsrunner on 07/28/2002 12:22:19
cbxjeffIt's too late for me, save yourself.
Best!!
Rugster
Lord Lowrider the LoquaciousMember:Secret Select Society of Suave Stylish Smoking Jackets She was only a fisherman's daughter,But when she saw my rod she reeled.
I have worked with Habitat on a few houses. But have often woundred if the recipents would be better off if the money were spent on educatio or finding better paying jobs. Or even providing transportation to jobs.
If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. But if you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime.
TOOLS
It is obvious that he knows absolutely nothing about HFH from the comments that he made. Thats all...........
HFH is a great group. I've donated tools to them from my tool store. I don't agree with their views on religion, but that is no biggie. To each their own.
Merc
NO! You may not have my guns! Now go crawl back into your hole!
****************************************
"Tolerating things you may not necessarily like is part of being free" - Larry Flynt
I do know they have pretty strict income requirements and they limit the dollar value of your assetts (car, etc) when considering you as a candidate. I know they require the recipient of the house to have sweat equity in it. In this case the skills gained in helping build the house weren't enough to assure the ability to keep the house up.
My problem isn't with the concept but it has some serious flaws in this case. It's really hard for me to believe that someone could be practicaly handed this house, and it could end up in it's current condition so soon.
As a condition of my getting my mortgage I had to go to a class. In that class I was taught that forclosure proceedings couldn't take place in this state until 18 months of payments were missed. I was also told in that class that in the case of a forclosure it took an average of a year to be evicted. To be out of this house last fall, this person would have had to have started missing payments almost from the start.
Woods
As far as HFH goes, all the houses I've seen around here built by them are whole communities. They build dozens of houses at once in a neighborhood. They usually level out a large lot and build about 20-30 houses at once. I haven't seen any individual houses built in existing neighborhoods. All in all I think they do a good service by helping out those that need and want the help...but I guess there will always be some low life that just wants a free ride.
Alex
I thought they were a housing group, never heard anything about religion associated with them. Care to expound? Are they Devil worshipers? Do they sacrifice goats? Are they a CULT??? What is it?
Quod principi placuit legis habet vigorem.Semper Fidelis
Bahahahaha........(yes Christians fit the definition of a cult, look it up).
Seriously.....they are big on prayer and all that. Not my cup of tea. I'm spiritual, not religious. Huge difference.
BUT, they are still a good group, and I have no problem with them doing all that.
You guys that have all those derelict houses must have some really crappy HFH leaders in that area (picking crappy people for the houses). The HFH houses here are in excellent condition, and people keep them up nicely.
HFH requires the new owners to put in so much "sweat equity" here. That means they work their butts off on the house when it is being built. Not sure if the HFH in other areas do this. Doesn't sound like it. Sweat=pride.
Merc
NO! You may not have my guns! Now go crawl back into your hole!
****************************************
"Tolerating things you may not necessarily like is part of being free" - Larry Flynt
tool babe
Main Entry: cult
Pronunciation: 'k<
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: French & Latin; French culte, from Latin cultus care, adoration, from colere to cultivate -- more at WHEEL
Date: 1617
1 : formal religious veneration : WORSHIP
2 : a system of religious beliefs and ritual; also : its body of adherents
3 : a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious; also : its body of adherents
4 : a system for the cure of disease based on dogma set forth by its promulgator
5 a : great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book); especially : such devotion regarded as a literary or intellectual fad b : a usually small group of people characterized by such devotion
- cul?tic /'k&l-tik/ adjective
- cult?ish /-tish/ adjective
- cult?ish?ly /-lE/ adverb
- cult?ish?ness /-n&s/ noun
- cult?ism /'k&l-"ti-z&m/ noun
- cult?ist /'k&l-tist/ noun
- cult?like /-"lIk/ adjective
[/code]
"Just my opinion."
Please don't misunderstand me. I had no intention of trashing a whole group. I was meerly venting about a couple wrongs I observed.
I have a problem with the lot. You have to understand where I live we have a very loose soil almost sand. I am very close to lake ontario, because of that we are only a short distance from the water table. These wet areas when filled and built upon frequently turn into sink holes. The laws that are there to prevent them from being built upon are to prevent serious problems. But, in this case it appears someone was able to pressure the authorities to issue a building permit where nobody else would ever get one.
The location was less than ideal. If you are going to require that someone have minimal assetts and limit the value of thier automobile, it would be wise to place them a little bit closer to ammenities or public transpotation.
And Yes I'm REALLY REALLY upset that someone could destroy something for whatever reason. Someone tried to help someone out and got repayed by that person trashing it.
I too consider myself Christian. I had an experience ten years ago that left me without a doubt about God. I don't worship as often as some because I've yet to find a denomination I was comfortable in. I can understand your health problems. I can tell you this, if you were in these parts, there is a carpenter that can no longer work. He goes around building ramps for people who need them. He gets his materials by cleaning up construction sites. He is a cancer survivor and keeps busy building ramps for people. He is also one of my uncles. As I said in my first post, I have some work related health problems. I'm now stuck staying at my current job and continuing to get sicker or quit and go somewhere else. The problem is my health has deteriorated to the point that, if I leave this job, I'll never get insurance again.
Woods
SO! What !
400 million cows can't be wrong ( EAT GRASS !!! )
Toolbabe was realy trying to get on Mercs case.
We understand your feelings, And pretty much feel the same. Charity is so short sighted. Every body wants to give a hand out. And not a hand up. One of my bigest problums is at holidays. Thay make a big deal out of the Thanksgiveing and X-mas dinners. Then after thay get all of this attension. and feel real good about themselvs, Thay for get about these people untill next year. Who feeds theas people the rest of the year?
Every body wants to give a handout. It makes them feel good. Not a hand up. It makes the receiver feel good.
Last year a lady with MS called me about a ramp. It seems that the church she had been attending brought her a ramp that had been taken off of another house. Thay unloaded it in her yard and proudly proclaimed (we brought you a ramp) then got in there cars and drove away. That was all thay need to do to feel good about themselves.
Even though this was a Christan organization. I dont hold this behavior aginst God. It was the people and human nature. Not Gods Will! Someday God will ask them what thay have to say about there actions. What will thay say? I took that ramp to her house. What you wanted me to put it up to? I helped with the Thanksgiveing dinner. You wanted me to help feed them on other days too?
If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime.
Your Uncle sounds like a good man. I would like to shake his hand. It is wounderful that some one will put themself out like that to help out someone in need. Like I pointed out most only give whats comfortable. He will be put into our prayers also.
TOOLS
Tool Babe