Alachua Habitat for Humanity Announces 167th Home Dedication

Press release from Alachua Habitat for Humanity

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The shared vision of Alachua Habitat for Humanity and their Alachua Women Build Chapter is a world where everyone has a decent place to live. With their house dedication taking place on Saturday, August 6, at 9:30 a.m., they will move one home closer to realizing this vision, celebrating their 167th home built in Alachua County and their 15th built by Women Build. Women Build is a group of dedicated, community-minded women who sweat together building Habitat homes and empowering other women in the process. 

The home was funded through the generous contributions of The Women’s Giving Circle of the Community Foundation of North Central Florida,  Dr. Kim Kazimour, Lowe’s, and numerous Women Build supporters. The construction of this home would not have been possible without the dedication of the 78 Women Build volunteers working tirelessly for seven months alongside the future homeowner. “We get a lot of joy sharing what we’ve learned with new women who are attracted to our volunteer program,” says Susan Vince, Chair of Alachua Women Build. “Not only do we build a home in partnership with a deserving local family, we also make woman-to-woman connections that last a lifetime.”

The construction of affordable homes is especially important in Alachua County where single-family home prices are escalating at a pace never experienced before, outpacing wages for many occupations, according to the Shimberg Center for Affordable Housing Studies. According to the Center, 1 in 3 Alachua County non-student households are cost-burdened, paying more than 30% of their income on housing.

Alachua Habitat for Humanity builds homes for families who have a need for housing, have demonstrated the ability to pay a modest mortgage, and are willing to partner through sweat equity volunteering. These homes are not given away, rather homeowners take on the responsibility of paying a mortgage they can afford. Their sweat equity requirement consists of 250 hours working on their own home, working on the homes of others, and attending homeownership and financial literacy workshops.