subject: Allison Moe With Denver's Habitat For Humanity [print this page] Interviewer: Hi, I am Mark Eibner with Metro Brokers TV. We are here today with Allison Moe, and Allison is one of the Superintendent Project Managers for the Habitat for Humanity project, and we are here at the Bales Townhomes and Allison, welcome.
Allison Moe: Thank you, hi.
Interviewer: How are you doing?
Allison Moe: Well I am good, just a little painting.
Interviewer: So, tell us about this project here. This looks a little larger than some of the projects I have seen you guys involved with in the past.
Allison Moe: It's actually, it's the biggest project that we have ever done here in Metro Denver. It's going to be, when it's completed, 24 town houses. The houses range in size from two bedroom up to four bedrooms. All of them have a one-car garage. So, it's a big undertaking for us, but we have managed to have anywhere from 50 to 100 volunteers everyday, so it's a, all of this has been done in about three and half months.
Interviewer: Well, that's amazing. I did notice when I drove up today that there's more people here than I have ever seen on any type of project you guys have been involved with.
Allison Moe: Yeah, yeah. On some Saturdays, especially when the weather is good, we have had as many as 120 people working out here, you know, which can seem overwhelming, but as long as you get them all into their little tasks doing their things individually, everything seems to run really smoothly.
Interviewer: Well, how long have you been involved with Habitat now?
Allison Moe: It will actually be five years this summer. I did two years with the AmeriCorps program, which is a national service program working with Habitat, and then I have been on staff with Habitat here in Denver for almost three years.
Interviewer: So, looks like you enjoy what you are doing?
Allison Moe: I do, I do, it's fun.
Interviewer: I think another thing I might want to share with the audience out there is, there are mortgages here on this home, but they are all interest-free mortgages, aren't they?
Allison Moe: Yeah. What we do is, we sort of see Habitat as a way to help families up. We don't want to give anything to them; we want to create a sense of responsibility in ownership in what they have. So, we charge our families the cost for us in building these houses, which is cheaper than normal because of all the volunteers that we do get, and to help make it happen, and then it is an interest-free mortgage, and they pay 25% of their income. So, their mortgage terms can range from 20 to 30 years, sort of depending on the size of the family and how much they are making.
Interviewer: You know, it really is a very cool program and I understand all the members or all the recipients do have to give some volunteer time, too, right?
Allison Moe: Yeah and that's actually publicly the most unique thing about Habitat and the biggest part of their commitment. Yeah, they are paying for their homes, but before they can even move in, they have to do 250 hours per adult in the family, so as many as 500 hours for two people, you know, and that's coming out almost once a week for an entire year. They have to find babysitting for their kids, sometimes they have to take a day off from work, whatever it is, but that's an important part we feel of the whole process for them, to see what goes into their house to understand who it is that's coming and helping make this affordable house a possibility.
Interviewer: Yeah, absolutely. It's a hand up, like you are saying, instead of a hand out.
Allison Moe: Yeah, exactly.
Interviewer: Well, Allison, once again very nice seeing you and we appreciate everything that Habitat for Humanity does, thanks.
