Real estate
BY KAREN CHANEY
In addition to volunteers, skilled subcontractors are also utilized to build homes for Habitat for Humanity.
PHOTOS BY KAREN CHANEY COMMUNITY IMPACT
Q&A: Habitat Collin County CEO talks mission, goals Sam Lawrence said he has been building his relationship with Habitat for Humanity since he was a child when he went to a Habitat for Human- ity ReStore to source construction items his dad needed to build a house. In February, he was asked by the nonpro t’s board of directors to become the interim CEO. How many houses does Habitat for Humanity Collin County build in a year? We do about ve houses a year, but this doesn’t meet the need. To meet it you have to have part- nerships leveraging banks that are more interested in the a ordable housing market, and also we
have to create innovative ways to work with banks that aren’t just 0% nancing situations. We have to think of ways for banks to make money in this space so we can build multiple a ordable housing developments like The Cotton Groves in McKinney. How does a person qualify for a Habitat for Humanity house? They go through our family services process, which we opened back up as of July 1. We had homeowners sitting on a list waiting for [The Cotton Groves] to be developed. We have some people who’ve been on the list for three years. They ll out an application in person or online, and requirements are income based. What involvement do homeowners have in the process? They get to choose where they want to live if it’s available, or they can wait for a space where they want to live. They do not get to pick a speci c oor plan, but they do get to pick ooring, tile—things that make this house their home. We have three- and four-bedroom townhomes, duplexes and single-family homes.
Multiple Habitat for Humanity homes have been built in Collin County in 2024, including these two in Princeton.
Lawrence spoke with Community Impact about community bene ts the local nonpro t provides, nancials, demographics and more. This interview was edited for length, clarity and style. What is the purpose of Habitat for Humanity? Habitat’s mission is putting God’s love into action through people to build a community of hope. What are the demographics of Habitat homeowners? There’s really no pro le. Whoever applies and works through the process to have this dream for themselves can do it. When people look at a ordable housing, they think we’re helping people who made bad choices in their life, and they need this because they don’t have any other options. The reality of it is that barista over there needs a ordable housing. A lot of your remen, police o cers, small-business owners, local government workers are low- to moderate-income individuals.
Who pays for homeowners insurance and house upkeep? They do. Part of the bene t of working with Habitat is we provide nancial education for our homeowners. What happens to a Habitat home when the homeowner wants to sell? Habitat has rst right of refusal on any sell. If they [the homeowner] want to sell a home, Habitat has the right to purchase it back rst that way it stays in the a ordable housing market.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit communityimpact.com.
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