HARRISBURG, Pa. — Several Habitat for Humanity affiliates on Tuesday called on lawmakers at the State Capitol to invest more funding into affordable housing and home repair.
Representatives from 11 Habitat affiliates said legislators need to secure and increase funding for programs that promote more equitable access to affordable housing and critical home repairs.
"Home prices have risen in Pennsylvania the fastest they’ve risen in the history of the Commonwealth in the last four years -- it’s gone up 40%,” said Andrew Szalay, the President & CEO of Lebanon Habitat for Humanity.
Habitat for Humanity leaders and homeowners who went through the Habitat Homeowner program asked lawmakers to increase funding for programs like the Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Fund and Whole Home Repairs.
Szalay said that Pennsylvania lawmakers should use homes with potential but need a little more work to be suitable homes for Pennsylvanians.
“What Pennsylvania needs right now is 90,000 more homes," said Szalay.
Malik Davis, from Philadelphia, said he always aspired to own his own home when he graduated from college. He also told FOX43 that the process of becoming a homeowner was daunting due to the pandemic and inflation.
“It was very scary," he said. "It was at the height of the pandemic rush, so a lot of the prices were inflated for homes, but also it was just the process of assuring that you’re getting a good home."
Davis said with the help of Habitat for Humanity, he will own his own home this coming summer.
He also told FOX43 that even though he’s only 26 years old, he wanted to make sure that his family would be set for years to come.
Davis told lawmakers that the choices they make will have a lasting impact on many lives.
“If we have strong homeownership, we have a strong economy, and essentially we can take care of not only ourselves but our nation as a whole,” he said.
This is the first time Habitat for Humanity has lobbied lawmakers for more support and funding.
Habitat for Humanity has proposed the following:
Whole Homes-Repair Program (WHR):
- The Habitat for Humanity coalition supports funding the WHR program at $50 million for FY25 and identifying a permanent funding source. The fund was capitalized through an initial $125 MM in ARPA funds and $50 MM was originally allocated to FY24 but has not yet been released.
PA Housing Affordability & Rehabilitation Enhancement (PHARE):
- The Habitat for Humanity coalition supports increasing the PHARE funding cap by $40 MM over four years and specifically raising the PHARE cap to $70 Million for FY25. In FY24 the funds were capped at $60 MM, yet realty and transfer taxes yield more revenue that could be utilized for the program.
Neighborhood Assistance Program Tax Credit (NAP):
- The Habitat for Humanity coalition supports increasing NAP tax credit allocation from $36 MM to $72 MM annually and making updates to the existing program. The NAP tax credit program offers an avenue for private companies to support non-profit housing and community development projects.
Smart Land Use for Increasing Housing Affordability:
- The Habitat for Humanity coalition supports smart land use policies promoting affordable housing access. There are currently several House and Senate bills being reviewed that would result in increased housing supply through policies that maximize land use in denser and transportation-rich areas while also bringing down the cost of development.
Homeownership Units Production:
- The Habitat for Humanity coalition asks for consideration for funding of Habitat-like production of Homeownership Units in the Pennsylvania budget. Several other states like New Jersey have passed similar policies that allocate funds specifically to homeownership production.
Download the FOX43 app here.