I meet all the qualifications.  How do I apply for a home?

1. To apply for a Cincinnati Habitat home, you must first register on the Cincinnati Habitat Housing Database. To do this, simply complete the registration form or call 513-555-0192, ext. 305.



2. A representative from Cincinnati Habitat will contact you within one week to determine if you meet our minimum qualifications and will then add your information to our housing database.



3. Applications for Cincinnati Habitat homes will be distributed one to two times per year to every person registered on the Housing Database by either mail or at application meetings hosted by Cincinnati Habitat. Each person who registers on our housing database will be contacted when it is time to distribute the applications. You will not receive any information from us until it is time to distribute applications.



4. Each application must be returned to Cincinnati Habitat on time and with all necessary documentation included. The application will then be reviewed to determine if the applicant(s) meet the ability to pay criteria by demonstrating an ability to repay an estimated monthly mortgage of $400.00 (including closing costs, taxes and insurance). Your rental and credit history will be reviewed. Cincinnati Habitat will want to see that monthly debts have been paid on time. If any applicant has a "bad debt" item on their credit report that is over $500.00, they must provide a written payment plan with the creditor before their application will be reviewed.



5. All applications that meet the ability to pay criteria, must be interviewed at the applicant(s) home by a team of two volunteers from the Family Selection Committee. These interviewers will meet with the applicant(s) to determine their willingness to partner with Cincinnati Habitat during the building and purchasing of the home and also determine their need for simple, decent, affordable housing.



6. All of the interviewers will then meet and present a brief description of the applicant's housing need and willingness to partner. Each family will be scored on a scale of 1-5 on their ability to pay, housing need and willingness to partner. Their final scores will be weighted with 35% of their overall score based on housing need, 35% on willingness to partner and 30% on ability to pay. The family with the highest score will be presented to the Family Selection Approval Team for final approval.

Successful Children
Children of homeowners are 25% more likely to graduate from high school and 116% more likely to graduate from college

Stronger Families
Homeowners are 16% more likely to belong to parent-teacher organizations and 10% more likely to attend church

Stronger Communities
Homeowners are 28% more likely to repair or improve their homes.

Community Wealth
1% increase in home-ownership rates increases the value of surrounding homes by $800

Homeownership changes lives, strengthens families, and builds stronger communities.