An applicant in a red shirt writing in a notebook.

Apply for a Habitat house

Thank you for your interest in becoming a homeowner with Habitat. Below, you’ll learn about Habitat’s homeownership process and family selection qualifications.

Habitat manages the homeowner selection and application process at the local level, through our locations in communities across the U.S. We follow a nondiscriminatory policy of homebuyer selection and are accountable to mortgage lending laws.

Habitat does not give away houses; instead, future homeowners partner with local affiliates and volunteers to build or rehabilitate a home and pay an affordable mortgage.

Habitat is committed to providing low- and moderate-income households the opportunity for affordable homeownership. A home is considered affordable when you pay no more than 30% of your income toward rent or mortgage.

Learn more about our homeownership process:

  1. Qualifications: Check out our Habitat homeowner qualifications to learn who qualifies for a Habitat home. 
  2. Partnering with Habitat: This guide describes how future homeowners partner with Habitat.
  3. Financial education: Homebuyers complete financial education before owning a Habitat home. These courses help prepare homeowners to successfully manage their new mortgage, personal finances and savings.
  4. Step-by-step process: See our step-by-step overview of the homeownership process from application to closing.

Our vision is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. A decent and affordable home is life-changing — read how owning a Habitat home has positively affected economic, health and education outcomes for millions.

Ready to apply?

Reach out to your local Habitat to learn more about the process.