Apply for a Home

How to Apply

To apply for the Habitat homeownership program, you must attend an information meeting to receive an application. The application provides us with information on your employment history, income sources, level of debt, and other factors affecting mortgage qualification.

Meetings are held twice each month in the Meeting Room of our Habitat ReStore located at 755 Culver Road, near East Main Street in Rochester. To receive a notice with the dates of our next meetings, please call our office at (585) 546-1470, M-F from 9-5.

Or, click here to view details and a schedule for our montly information meetings. Click here to view our homeownership brochure which contains additional program details.

Eligibility

Families who meet our income guidelines, demonstrate a need for decent, affordable housing and who have a minimum of credit and debt issues will be referred to our Family Selection Committee. Volunteers interview applicants to determine their level of need, willingness to become partners in the program, and their ability to repay the no-interest mortgage.

Families with incomes lower than 60 percent of the median for greater Rochester are eligible to apply. (For example, income for a family of four may not exceed $39,900). Families must be willing to live in the City of Rochester in neighborhoods that are undergoing revitalization. Our homeowners are pioneers who are committed to working together to improve the safety and livability of their communities.

We fully support the Equal Housing Opportunity Act and follow a nondiscriminatory policy of family selection.

Selection process

1. Once we receive your application, we request a credit report, then we contact you. Habitat staff will work with you to develop a plan to resolve/repair credit issues if your family appears otherwise eligible for the program.
2. Representatives from the Family Selection Committee will meet with you to review your application and important information such as income and budget. You may need to provide additional details to supplement the information in your application.
3. Upon approval of the committee, your application is sent to our Leadership Council for approval. Once approved, your family may begin building the 450 hours of "sweat equity" (volunteering to build Habitat houses).

Sweat Equity

Once you have been approved for the program, you may begin your sweat equity hours on our construciton sites. You may discuss with our Housing Services Coordinator some ways to acquire volunteer hours through a church, school or other not-for-profit organizaiton.

We also provide a way for your younsters not yet old enough to work on the building site to contribute sweat equity hours. Read about our Building With Books program, developed by volunteers from our Youth Committee.