HFHCC is a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing ministry seeking to eliminate poverty housing, and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. Habitat invites people from all walks of life to work together in partnership to build houses with families in need.

Habitat for Humanity is not a charity or a give-away program. Habitat for Humanity builds houses with Citrus County families in need. Volunteer labor is used to build houses to keep building costs low for Habitat families. Partner families pay a small down payment and a monthly mortgage payment. They also invest hundreds of hours of their own labor-sweat equity-into building their own houses and the houses of others. HFHCC is the mortgage lender, therefore as Habitat homeowners pay their mortgages the money goes into a revolving fund that helps build houses with other families right here in Citrus County. HFHCC gives 10 percent of contributions to help build houses in other parts of the world.

Since our founding in 1993, HFHCC has increased the number of houses we build every year. We have been blessed with the support of benefactors from neighborhood Churches, Businesses, and other Organizations, as well as many partners and volunteers in our community. In order to meet the prevalent need in Citrus County, we need to grow substantially. Our goal for the next 2 years is to increase our builds to 9 to 15 per year. Our homes are located in Inverness, Crystal River, Homosassa and Hernando. Individuals and groups from around the county donate their time, skills and energy to help build the houses.

In Citrus County it costs an average of $75,000 to build one house. The typical house built by HFHCC has approximately 1,173 square feet of finished living area. Most houses have 3 bedrooms and 1 3/4 baths. These houses do not have garages or carports. They are affordable to low-income families because there is no profit included in the sale of the house and no interest charged on the mortgage. HFHCC finances the mortgages over 30 years.

We attain the money to build our homes through fund-raisers throughout the community, and money from churches and other religious congregations; businesses and corporations; grants, organizations and individuals. In the past couple of years we have been blessed with several whole house sponsorships, allowing us to grow even more quickly, meeting the needs of our community. Habitat for Humanity does not accept government funds for the construction of new houses or for the renovation or repair of existing houses. Habitat does accept government funds for the acquisition of land for streets, utilities and administrative expenses, so long as the funds have no conditions that would violate Habitat's principles or limit its ability to proclaim its Christian witness. The Habitat for Humanity of Citrus County, Inc. affiliate is comprised of a volunteer board and committee members who serve without pay. We are people from different religious groups, diverse backgrounds, and economic levels in the community. We invite people from all groups in our community to participate, such as representatives from families in the community of need, professionals, schools and associations, churches, big and small businesses, other community development agencies in the area, and ordinary citizens.

We handle both the construction and administration of the program. The local volunteer committees and staff are responsible for selecting families, and planning, organizing, and supervising the work. The homeowners and volunteers contribute to the building of houses.