Southwest Austin - Dripping Springs Edition | July 2024

Real estate

BY DACIA GARCIA

Austin Habitat seeking housing applicants, volunteer support Despite recent policy changes in an eort to increase housing options, the city of Austin contin- ues to struggle with housing aordability. Austin Habitat works toward providing aordable housing options for residents in Bastrop, Blanco, Caldwell, Hays and Travis counties. Austin Habitat’s Angel Leverett, director of mar- keting and communications, and Mike Viesca, vice president of marketing and communications, spoke to Community Impact about their latest search for applicants for the homebuilding program. What’s Austin Habitat's role in the community? Mike Viesca: We play a very big role in providing aordable homeownership options. That’s really the biggest thing that we do, especially right now, when, it’s getting very expensive to live in Central Texas, especially in the greater Austin area in the metro; we have houses that are starting at very high prices. But because of Austin Habitat’s mission to provide aordable homeownership options, we’re able to get more people into homes. [Habitat has] built 500 homes so far in the Austin area; how many do you hope to build in the future? Angel Leverett: So, in 2021, we celebrated our 500th home. So that took us from 1985 to 2001, we hit 500 homes, and then from that point to today, we’ve done 70 homes. So we’re just scaling a lot quicker than we ever have before. As an organization, our seven-year target is to provide 1,000 homes through Austin Habitat and our sister organization Home Base, where we partner with

Austin Habitat for Humanity volunteers help construct homes for the homebuilding program.

COURTESY AUSTIN HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

there might be an opportunity for you six months from now with Austin Habitat. What are ways people can get involved? MV: We have volunteer opportunities for people to assist us. If it’s not on-site building a home, it’s also through our ReStores. We also bring people in to help with that, whether it’s sorting through goods or pricing merchandise, that kind of thing. And of course, donations, right? We’re always look- ing for support there because all of the money that Austin Habitat raises is local. So it all stays here.

builders and developers to either help them in consulting with their aordability projects or take that on, and bringing in folks from our pipeline to ll in their developments that have aordability components with people that are involved with Austin Habitat. What advice do you have for Austin residents who think being a homeowner is unattainable? AL: Biggest advice is that no matter where you are in your homeownership journey, contact Austin Habitat. Go to [our website], and just look at our requirements. And if you’re on the cusp, whether you’re a little less of our income requirements, or a little over, things change from year to year, and so maybe your credit score is almost there. Or, maybe you don’t even know where your credit score is. Fill out the form. Let our team reach out to you. Just because you can’t get a home today or next month,

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit communityimpact.com .

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