Salem Housing purchases vacant houses and repairs them with contracted services and construction supervision of sub-contractors, volunteers, and the families who will own the homes.

Families qualified through Salem Housing's homebuyer application process move into their home when the house meets BOCA code and HUD Quality Standards. The family signs a lease to purchase agreement and completes an Intent to Purchase Plan outlining the steps they will take to be ready to obtain a mortgage and purchase their home in no more than 2 years.

$50 is set aside each month toward closing and down-payment costs. Families pre-qualify with a local lender to affirm that the homebuyer preparation steps planned will result in homeownership. Families who come to Salem Housing pre-qualified may proceed immediately to purchase.

In addition to the funds reserved for down-payment and closing costs, down-payment assistance is available through Metro Housing Partnership. Down-payment assistance is focused on assuring that a home is affordable for purchase and that monthly payments are affordable for the buying family.

 What it takes to prepare a family and their home:
  One House / One Family (average investment)

Average Salem Home is 1,550 sq. ft. = $34.94 sq. ft. 

New Construction Average = $85.00 sq. ft.

Salem Housing will partner with or provide technical assistance to
organizations exploring housing development.

Partners include the City of Flint, Michigan State Housing Development Authority, Metro Housing Partnership, Bank One, Citizens Bank, Local Iniative Support Corporation (LISC), Chemical Bank, Genesee County Land Reutilization Council and corporate sponsors. Church and business partners are being sought to sponsor rooms within a house to increase affordability.

What is Sweat Equity?

Each family becomes a part of the team that repairs their home. Equity is a value one has in a property - and in Salem Housing's program, each family obtains this first value through the time and energy they and their friends put into the preparation of their home.

In the process of repairing their home, each family learns new skills and learns about their own home

Sweat equity tasks include clean-out, patch, paint, landscaping, working with Second Saturday Workday volunteers, and participating in the decisions on paint, carpeting, etc.

This is not nearly as simple as it sounds. Families who take on the task of changing an abandoned house into an attractive home and choose to become a part of revitalizing a neighborhood are very special people. They want to own a home. They want stable and affordable housing for their families and they are willing to work hard to get it. Most families are working full-time, have children, and often are going to school as well. Adding at least 20 hours a week for this kind of grubby work is very demanding.

How can others help a family with this work?

Second Saturday Workdays - bring lots of friends, learn new skills, and give a family a big boost! 10 people for 6 hours = 60 hours of contributed time! Reduces the cost of the house, helps a family obtain a good home, and builds community.

Let's Make A Difference

Church groups or teams from a company often partner with a family and Salem Housing to produce good housing and share the work load. Several youth groups and churches consider this a part of their life in Flint. Some will tell you that it is the way they give to others or the way they show the youth in their church that they can make a long-term difference in the lives and community around them. Want to talk to them about it? Call Salem for names and phone numbers.

WHAT IS A WORKDAY AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

Teams of volunteers work beside each family in repairing the home that they will eventually own. This process of many people repairing long vacant homes stretches the dollars and helps to create affordable housing...and it creates true community when many individuals work together. In short, we all feel the same when wallpaper falls in our face, when our child gets an A in algebra, when we must clean paint brushes, and when we can see the amazing difference of a battered house becoming an attractive home....we become a community. 

The involvement of both the families who will own the houses and many many volunteers is absolutely essential. Today there are more than 300 vacant houses in our neighborhood. Often these houses have been vacant a long time and are the problem that neighbors must solve to restore their block. A house that has been vacant for several years requires not only the major mechanical systems repaired but also a great deal of detail work and cosmetic work. This is very slow work and therefore would be very costly if the work were purchased. Working together, we make a huge physical difference and save many dollars...we keep the house affordable for a family of limited income.

Regular workdays are on the Second Saturday of each month. Salem Housing can - and often does - run a weekday workday for groups where that is a better choice for the group. If you choose to join us, you would contact Tasha Taylor, Salem Housing's Homeownership Coordinator as far in advance as possible.....if you expect to bring more than 10 people then we would like to schedule your group at least one month in advance. If a group is 10 or less, then two weeks is fine. We would like to know ages because if under 14, you need 1 adult for every 4 children , and an older teen group needs 1 adult for every 8 youth. A family may bring younger children and will be expected to teach and supervise them. We need to know about

Activities vary depending on what house we are working on and where it is in the repair process - you may be doing tear-out, drywall hanging, priming, painting, waterproofing, window repairs, yard work, etc. Our staff and regular volunteers who know how to do the task will work with your group....you do not need to know how to do the task but if you are bringing people with particular skills, we would love to know that and utilize those skills. We provide the materials and tools. When you call us, discuss lunch.....if your group can provide a light lunch for themselves, the family they are working with, and other workers, it stretches the dollars even further. If you want to bring juice and donuts for morning get acquainted time, that too is great.

We work from 8:30 to 3 and may be working at more than one house. We gather at the first house and get acquainted, learn about the tasks, meet supervisors, discuss safety, and accept our assignments...and then go to work. The first 45 minutes always feels rather like a dinosaur with many feet and no clear brain as we get ready to work in teams.....but soon all are working in small teams and making big changes. It is a great experience and we hope you will decide to join us

We have pictures, a video, and speakers available. Questions, please call ...and thanks for considering this kind of project as a part of your program.

Adding Power to the Hammers: A group might choose to obtain pledges from those not working on site ­ pay by the hour for time spent building or painting. Call 785-5340 for details on this way of creating additional affordable housing by paying for materials.

Grand & Grubby Fundraiser

Buy a bedroom - and fix it up! Or a bathroom! Or a kitchen!

For more information on the Grand & Grubby Fundraiser or to find out how your group, church, or business can participate call Jane Richardson at 810-785-5340 ext. 33 or by email: jrichardson@salemhousing.org

For more information about our Housing Restoration Department contact Raymond Hatter at
(810) 785-5340 ext. 34 or by email: rhatter@salemhousing.org.

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