Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity

Habitat homeowners are required to attend eleven homeowner education classes. While raising walls and swinging hammers alongside volunteers is the most visual part of our work, Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity engages in many activities that not only help make homeownership opportunities possible, and new homeowners successful, but also protect our mortgages and affordable housing program. 

Before purchasing homes through Twin Cities Habitat, all potential homeowners are required to complete eleven homebuyer education workshops.  These classes cover a range of homeownership responsibilities, including: money management and budgeting, mortgage and financial literacy, home maintenance, home safety, being a good neighbor and caring for the environment.

Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity’s comprehensive homebuyer education program provides our families with a better foundation of knowledge than the average first time homebuyer.  For the life of the mortgage we remain available to homeowners to address questions or challenges as they arise.

Once our families are in their homes, our Home Visitors meet quarterly with them throughout the first year. The Home Visitors serve as a connection between Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity and the families by following up on the construction process, providing guidance in home maintenance, and helping the homeowners enter the new world of homeownership.

Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity manages additional programming that helps low-income families keep their homes.  The Mortgage Foreclosure Prevention Program offers assistance to residents of South and Southeast Minneapolis, as well as all Twin Cities Habitat homeowners, regardless of where they reside in the metro.  The program provides counseling, negotiations with lenders, and financial assistance. 

The spike in foreclosures and high-interest refinancing nationwide is reaching epidemic proportions among low-income families.  The good news is that the foreclosure rate among Habitat families is less than 2 percent.  Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity is working to protect our Habitat families and educate them about making good financial decisions.