GREENFIELD — Before July, Greenfield resident Hannah Heineman “really never thought” she would own a home.
Then she won the Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity’s lottery system, effectively guaranteeing her an affordable house in the neighborhood where she and her son Gabriel have lived for seven years.
“I still am sort of like, ‘Am I really going to own a home?’” Heineman said, a week after Habitat for Humanity hosted a kickoff celebration at the construction site of her new Birch Street home on Aug. 6.
That event commemorated not just the build of Heineman’s new home, but it also marked the start of the 60th home Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity has built in Hampshire and Franklin counties, and its seventh in Greenfield. The Pioneer Valley branch of Habitat for Humanity has existed since 1989, building affordable homes for low-income families.
“Our home buyers do become taxpayers in a town, but their house that they buy has a limited resale price, so it remains affordable in perpetuity,” explained Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Megan McDonough. The organization relies on grants and donations from individuals and businesses.
Greenfield’s adoption of the Community Preservation Act also means that 1% of city property taxes go toward affordable housing, historic preservation and open space projects.
“Housing has been one of the important buckets” for the Community Preservation Committee since the CPA was adopted in 2020, according to committee Vice Chair Becky George. The committee contributed $15,000 to the Birch Street project, and has worked with Habitat for Humanity in the past.
Applying for a house through Habitat for Humanity is a long and detailed process. First, three broad requirements for prospective families must be met: a housing need, a willingness to partner with Habitat for Humanity and an ability to pay an affordable mortgage. To demonstrate housing need, an applicant must earn less than 60% of the area median income. The willingness to partner comes down to filling out a long application.
“The reason the application is fairly long is we’re looking at that ability to pay an affordable mortgage,” McDonough said. “So we also have minimum income standards and we do pull credit reports. We’re looking not for a perfect credit, but for someone that’s not going to be overburdened by debt and not be able to pay a mortgage.”
Once those requirements have been met, applicants enter a lottery system. About 20 people entered this house’s lottery. Heineman found out about the lottery by attending a neighborhood meeting held by Habitat for Humanity at the construction site, which happened to be close to where she currently rents.
“It would be a dream come true to be able to own a house in the neighborhood [where] I’ve raised my son already,” Heineman said of her mindset after hearing about the opportunity.
After filling out the application, Heineman, a single mother who works with people with disabilities, qualified for the lottery. Originally, she was picked second.
“When I found out I was second, I was kind of devastated,” Heineman said, a chuckle in her voice after the fact. A couple weeks after being told she was second and that she would not be getting the house, Habitat for Humanity called her, saying that the first-place winner had dropped out due to complications.
“They called me, and they’re like, ‘You still want this house?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah!’ I was so excited,” Heineman said.
Building a Habitat for Humanity house relies on volunteer labor, including from the future homeowner themselves. Heineman has to contribute 250 hours to the build, which she does on weekends. A licensed construction supervisor oversees the volunteer workers. Habitat for Humanity expects the build will be completed by next spring.
Several local co-ops banded together for this project. The PV Squared solar company has been partnering with Habitat for Humanity for more than a decade, and worked with the Austin Design Cooperative from the beginning to ensure that the building plans would be as solar-friendly and energy-efficient as possible.
“The sixth principle of cooperative values is that we support and promote our other co-ops,” said Brittany Hathaway, marketing and outreach specialist at PV Squared.
Greenfield Cooperative Bank and its Northampton Cooperative Bank division are also contributing to the project by providing $10,000 and planning a build-day at the end of August. Workers plan to show up to help with the construction efforts.
Heineman’s son, Gabriel, is overjoyed at the thought of a new home.
“He can’t wait,” Heineman said. “Even though he’s younger, I’m excited to get him involved in some of the choices we get to make … and just to have a place that’s just for us, you know? It’s just volatile to be a renter all the time.”
Gabriel gave his mother a pep talk before one of her Saturday volunteer shifts. “He’s like, ‘You’re doing awesome, mom. Keep going,’” Heineman said.
At those volunteer shifts, Heineman has found a strong community of people.
“They’re really amazing, they’re very knowledgeable,” she said.
Some volunteers are retired from the construction business, some have done remodeling work on their own homes, and some are younger and looking for volunteer opportunities.
“I see in the future that I will probably want to work on other people’s houses, too,” Heineman said. “Once you have that experience, and you’re helping somebody get a home, that is like the opposite of war, you know what I mean? You’re building community and working around other people who care about that.”