Habitat seeks land donations
Garland County Habitat for Humanity needs donations of land as it runs low on property for new homes, saying it expects to be out of locations by next year.
Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit organization that builds affordable housing for low to moderate-income families. This month, the organization is set to dedicate the 150th home it has built since it was formed in 1995.
“We have one lot that we haven’t built on,” Executive Director Cindy Wagstaff said, and Habitat is currently building on four other lots.
“We are facing running out of land next year,” she said.
“Our pace of construction outpaced our inventory,” Wagstaff said, noting this “speaks well of our construction crew.”
The organization is having “difficulty finding property with a clear title,” she said. “Issues have been that maybe the property was owned by a husband and wife (who are now) divorced. One would like to donate property.”
However, if the ownership of the property was not addressed in the divorce, the couple “technically still jointly own” the land, she said.
If the ex-spouse cannot be contacted, or will not approve the donation, Habitat cannot accept the land. This issue has come up several times.
“That’s been a difficult one,” Wagstaff said.
Other issues include if the land comes with “extensive back taxes,” or if the land already has a house on it, they can’t accept the donation, she said, noting, “We can’t refurbish older houses. There’s too many unknowns, and it kills us not to be able to do that.”
With older houses, Wagstaff said, they “really don’t know what’s going on behind the walls” which can prevent the home from being affordable.
It is also too expensive for Habitat to demolish existing structures on donated land, she said.
Land they are looking for, Wagstaff said, has access to both water and sewer, and is near to schools and grocery stores.
So far, all of the homes that Habitat has built have been within the city limits of Hot Springs. “One of the things we would like to do is expand our footprint,” she said, but “building out in the country presents some obstacles we haven’t been able to overcome.”
Outside of the city, houses “don’t have access to sewer or city water,” Wagstaff said, and rely on septic tanks and well water. The families that receive these homes “have not dealt with maintenance” of wells or septic tanks, “so right now, we need places with both sewer and water,” she said.
“Another factor is access to grocery stores. We don’t want to build in a food desert,” she said. “It would also need to be where school buses run. Most every place has access (to school buses), but that is one thing we look at, as well.”
Wagstaff said there are several benefits of donating land with the most obvious being “that vacant property won’t be sitting there unused, putting it back into production.” The new homes “would be generating revenue in the form of utilities and property taxes.”
If the donation comes before the end of the year, “you can write it off for 2020. By and large, it is tax-deductible,” she said.
Another benefit is that neighborhoods where Habitat builds tend to get spruced up.
“It’s real interesting, when we start building in a neighborhood, we start seeing home improvement,” Wagstaff said, noting new roofs will start going on to other houses. “We’re all just kind of inspired to fix up our place.”
Wagstaff said providing affordable housing, especially during the pandemic, is good for the city and provides stability for the workforce.
There are also numerous benefits for the people the houses are built for, she said, noting a new house offers a clean slate, stability, and can even improve the health of the families who move in.
Many of these families were previously living in “substandard housing,” Wagstaff said. “Mold tends to be a real big issue, (causing) health problems.” By getting these people into new, clean houses, “they are physically better.”
The families also help Habitat in building the homes. As they are a part of the process from start to finish, Wagstaff said “it gives them a much better understanding of how to take care of a home, and they know it’s built well.”
Those wishing to donate land can contact Habitat at 501-6235600.