Homeownership with

Sumter Habitat

Sumter Habitat for Humanity partners with qualified families and individuals like you to provide comfortable, high-quality homes with affordable mortgages.

For households throughout the US, owning a home provides a stable foundation for building a better life - from increased financial stability and improved quality of life to creating a sense of home and community involvement.

About our homes

Sumter Habitat believes everyone deserves a safe, comfortable place to live and this is reflected in the thoughtful design, craftsmanship, and expertise that we put into our house plans.

Sumter Habitat's Program currently includes:

New build, single-family detached homes
Recycle homes - previously built single-family Habitat homes purchased, refurbished, and resold to the next Habitat family
Senior Cottage homes

Learn more about our Senior Cottage Homes

Learn more about our Traditional Homes

Making affordable homeownership possible

In Sumter's real estate market where home prices, interest rates and down payment requirements are all rising, achieving homeownership might seem like an impossible dream. At Sumter Habitat, our Homebuyer Program can help families and individuals who live in Sumter County turn their dream of owning an affordable home into reality.

Benefits of owning a Habitat home include:

Improved quality of life through financial stability
An opportunity to build wealth through home value appreciation
Affordable mortgage payments that fit your budget
Below market interest rates

Becoming a Habitat Homeowner

Step 1

Pre-Application

When the cycle is OPEN: complete and then schedule an appointment to return the Pre-Application with all required documents (see Documents section on Pre-App page) to the Habitat office. Habitat will review your pre-application and income documentation. If any required documents are missing, the pre-application will be returned without consideration until all required documents are submitted.

Step 2

Formal Application

If your income meets eligibility guidelines, you will come to the Habitat Office for a full application meeting. You will be told what other important documents will be needed.

Step 3

Home Visit & Good Faith Hours

The Selection Committee will visit you at your home to meet you and see where you are currently living. Afterwards, you will be asked to complete ten (10) “Good Faith Sweat Equity Hours” at our Construction site or ReStore.

Step 4

Selection Committee Review

Your application and all documentation will be reviewed by the Selection Committee and presented to the Board of Directors.

Step 5

Board of Directors Approval

After completing the application, supplying all requested documentation, and review by the Selection committee, your application will be presented to - and approved or denied by - the Board of Directors of Sumter Habitat for Humanity.

SUBMISSION OF PRE- OR FORMAL APPLICATION DOES NOT GUARANTEE APPROVAL.

Important note: the entire timeline from pre-application submission to board approval could take up to 5 months. Time from pre-application submission until you close on your home could be up to 2 years.

Need for housing

Sumter Habitat's vision is a world where everyone has a safe, affordable place to live and the need for housing looks different for everyone.

Overcrowded or Substandard Housing

overcrowded is defined as

more than 2 children sharing a room
2 children of opposite genders sharing a room
children sharing a room with adults and/or multiple adults sharing a room

Cost-burdened

Paying more than 30% of your gross monthly income (pre-tax) on rent

Unstable Housing

Public housing, housing assistance programs, or renting a room from a friend or family member

Credit score must be at least 575

Cannot be a homeowner at the time of application

Ability to pay

The ability for you to afford your mortgage is essential to qualifying for a Habitat home. We want you to thrive and flourish in your new home for years to come.

To financially qualify for Habitat’s Homebuyer program:

Income must be stable, and applicants must have annual income of 50-80% of HUD’s Area Median Income guidelines. See chart below for these guidelines.
Two years of continuous employment; you must be at your current job for one year.
No more than $2,000 delinquent debt (past due accounts, collections, judgments, liens, and/or repossessions) at the time of application.
No more than $10,000 in medical collections.
No more than 40% of maximum available credit limit in outstanding (revolving) debt excluding car loans, student loans, and other secured debt.
Bankruptcy must have been discharged for at least two years for Chapter 13 and three years for Chapter 7 at the time of application.
Must meet our minimum Debt-to-Income Requirement that allows you to afford all monthly debts with more than 12 months of payments remaining, along with an estimated mortgage payment.

We encourage all applicants to pull their FREE credit report from www.annualcreditreport.com before applying so you are aware of your debts and what may be barriers to becoming pre-approved for the program.

General Income Guidelines

These are subject to change, and having income within these guidelines does not guarantee eligibility.

Senior Cottages

Traditional Homeownership

Willingness to partner

Purchasing a home through Sumter Habitat doesn’t require a down payment. Instead, Habitat families agree to partner with Habitat by:

Performing 300 Homebuyer in-Process (HIP) Volunteer hours, which includes construction hours, ReStore hours, education hours, and community engagement opportunities.
Living in Sumter County for at least the last 12 months.
Being willing to live within Sumter city limits in the Habitat homes available.
Committing to a drug-free community.

Please note that this is not a comprehensive list of requirements and are subject to change.