The Housing Problem - Habitat For Humanity

One group dedicated to solving the housing problem one house at a time was the brainchild of Millard and Linda Fuller, who formed Habitat for Humanity International with a group of supporters in 1976. The purpose of this worldwide Christian service organization is to provide simple housing for the needy, built by volunteers assisted by the future homeowner. The homeowner assumes an interest-free, thirty-year mortgage, and materials are funded through donations and fund-raising activities. The idea is to give people assistance accompanied by responsibility.

By March 2005 Habitat for Humanity International had built more than 175,000 houses that sheltered one million people worldwide. Homes in developing countries may cost less than $1,000 to build while the average house in the United States can cost up to $46,600. Not all houses are new; the organization also restores older homes. Many volunteers travel to other countries to build homes. The most famous volunteers, former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, made their first work trip in 1984 to New York City, sparking widespread interest in the movement. An annual event since that time, the week-long Jimmy Carter Work Project built more than fifty homes in Benton Harbor and Detroit, Michigan, in June 2005.