Success Stories

Homeownership Builds Community

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Homeownership is about so much more than a simple roof over one’s head. It’s also about community, which means finding a neighborhood that feels like home. 

For Shukri Yusuf, who arrived in the Seattle area from Mombasa, Kenya at 12, West Seattle has been home since 2004. Over the years, Shukri got married there, had a son, and became a single mother in 2020. She remained in West Seattle throughout where she teaches in a neighborhood public school, living with her parents as she saved for a down payment on her own home. 

The more she saved, though, and looked around Seattle for housing, the more she realized she was severely out-priced. She feared she would have to leave West Seattle, or even the state, if she was to find an affordable house for herself and son, Zayn. The idea of leaving her beloved neighborhood for a house she could afford in a place where she knew no one was a poor option and one she dreaded.

Shukri explored any and all possibilities in her search for a way to remain in the community and still have a home of her own. She considered getting a down payment grant for a condo, even though getting a condo anywhere close to her beloved West Seattle neighborhood was impossible. As she searched, she learned about Habitat for Humanity through the King County homeowner assistance website. With help from Habitat, she was able to purchase a newly constructed, three-bedroom home in West Seattle – the first home she’s ever owned.

Shukri and Zayn now live in their own home in the neighborhood they call Home. It’s just five minutes from the school where Shukri teaches. Zayn is growing up in a supportive community where he’ll have maximum opportunities to thrive. For Shukri, this means planting roots and growing herself in a safe place with friends and family to share life’s ups and downs. As she says, Shukri is finally Home.

“When you have a community that you connect with it can offer you support in all of life’s phases. I feel a part of the community that I have called home since 2004 and I feel supported through some of the tough times that I have experienced in the past … I see it as my duty to help and support others that need help in my school community.”

More than a house, a home of one’s own builds Community through a sense of belonging and pride in the neighborhood called Home. It’s a hidden legacy that comes with help from Habitat for Humanity.

AT&T Donates $10,000 to Habitat for Humanity SKC After Completing Monthlong Employee Volunteer Effort

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AT&T presented a contribution of $10,000 to Habitat for Humanity Seattle-King County on Wednesday, September 28 as 18 local AT&T employee volunteers worked with future residents to build housing at Highland Terrace in the Delridge neighborhood of Seattle. The six permanently affordable homes at Highland Terrace are expected to be ready in the summer of 2023.  The project will offer families earning less than 80% of Area Media Income two and three-bedroom units with easy access to nearby parks, schools, and transit. 

“We are delighted that AT&T has chosen to partner with Habitat for Humanity Seattle-King County on its month-long volunteer effort and are very grateful for the donation,” said Brett D’Antonio, CEO, Habitat for Humanity Seattle-King & Kittitas Counties. “It will take private, public, and non-profit sectors coming together to address our region’s housing affordability crisis and AT&T has proven to be a leader in the effort.”

The monthlong employee volunteer effort is a part of the AT&T Believes Washington initiative.  AT&T Believes is a company-wide, localized effort to combine employees’ passions and volunteerism with AT&T’s resources and relationships. 30 area AT&T employees volunteered with Habitat for Humanity of Seattle-King & Kittitas Counties on four different dates and locations in September, including at Highland Terrace, the North Bend Tyler Town construction site, and the Habitat for Humanity Stores in Bellevue and Southcenter. 

“AT&T employees jumped at the chance to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity of Seattle-King and Kittitas Counties,” said Carl Gipson, State President, AT&T Washington.  “These homes will be a source of security and peace of mind for their owners.  It was uplifting for our volunteers to work side-by-side with families to help build their future home.”

Habitat for Humanity Seattle–King & Kittitas Counties focuses its mission on building, repairing, and preserving permanently affordable housing and believes everyone deserves a decent, safe, and affordable place to live. With a current pipeline of 270+ homes in various phases of planning and construction, Habitat SKC is on track to surpass its ambitious goal of building and selling 1,000 cumulative housing solutions to low-income community members by 2025.

If your company would like to make a contribution and/or is interested in volunteering with Habitat for Humanity SKC, please contact Angela Appleton at angela.appleton@habitatskc.org

Critical Home Repair Spotlight: Sandra

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Sandra Browne is a single, 83-year-old woman whose grandfather was an enslaved person from the Deep South. In 1884, after slavery had legally ended in America, her grandfather moved to the Seattle area to escape racism and discrimination, and to search for better opportunities for his family and himself. Ever since, the family has lived and thrived in Skyway, a neighborhood nestled between Renton and Tukwila.

As age and weather began to take its toll on Sandra’s home, she reached out to Habitat’s Repair Program for assistance when she noticed her roof was leaking. Habitat worked with a roofer to replace her roof, repair water damage, and install new fascia and downspouts. Inside her home, Habitat also repaired the ceiling in her bedroom where the roof had leaked. There were many nights before the home repair where Sandra found herself so worried about her bedroom roof caving in from water leaks—which was a valid concern—that she slept in other parts of her home.

The repairs to her home have given Sandra more pride in her dwelling, as well as a sense of security and safety. She said it meant a lot to have her roof repaired, so she could go back to sleeping in her bedroom, where she feels the most comfortable.

Being able to sleep in one’s own bed should be a nonissue. For many homeowners, however, especially low-to-moderate income homeowners and older adults, critical repairs just like Sandra’s can go unfulfilled. Having the right partner resources is a critical link. Habitat’s Home Repair Program works with homeowners who need assistance with critical repairs that will ease health and safety issues and increase their quality of life in the home. The program helps keep low- and moderate- income homeowners not just safely in their primary residence, but also in the community they know and love.

Learn more about the program here. https://www.habitatskc.org/what-we-do/home-repairs/

Critical Repair Spotlight: Edna

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Edna is a senior living in White Center and is the primary caregiver for her disabled adult son. She contacted Habitat SKC with concerns about a tree on her property that was damaging her home and potentially threatening the foundation. Habitat’s repair team met with Edna to assess the project and scope of the work. In that process, it became clear that Edna was facing other challenges as well.

bathroom remodel

A water leak had damaged her upstairs bathroom, and leaked to the bathroom underneath it downstairs, which now an open ceiling. Due to arthritis, Edna wasn’t able to easily go upstairs to her bedroom, so she was sleeping on the downstairs couch. Lastly, the flooring in her living room and kitchen was deteriorating, making it difficult to maneuver and clean and also creating an unsafe and unhealthy environment for her and her son.

Through Habitat SKC’s home assessment, ways to intervene to improve the family’s quality of living were identified and planned. The repair team started by removing four large trees and replacing the walkway that was raised from the roots to remediate the risk of falling. The team reassembled the upstairs bathroom, including new drywall, flooring, and a door, while also replacing the drywall in the downstairs bathroom. The old flooring was removed in the living room and replaced with low-maintenance vinyl to create an even, level surface to prevent hazards. Lastly, Habitat installed an additional handrail throughout the staircase to help assist Edna in getting upstairs.

Are you or someone you know in need of critical repairs? Visit https://buyhabitat.org/home-repairs/ to learn more and to see if you qualify.

Homeowner Spotlight: The Gardner Family

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June 9, 2021

Gordon family photo

For the past several years, Emily Gardner and her two sons were living in a two-bedroom apartment in an urban neighborhood of Seattle. As a single mom, while she is lucky to have kept her job during the pandemic, her hours had been cut, and her rent and other necessary living expenses were taking everything she made and she has been unable to build her savings.

Additionally, the area in which they were living was becoming increasingly unsafe, and Emily’s boys – ages 15 and 13 – were becoming more and more uncomfortable walking outside by themselves. As you can imagine, this troubled her deeply – Emily knew she needed to figure out another living situation.

But once she got deeper into the conventional housing market, Emily realized that people were expected to waive contingencies and compete with all cash buyers. She watched as every possible home within her limited budget drifted out of reach and what was possible was very clearly not advisable – run-down condos with high HOA fees that would sink her into debt.

Emily did everything she could think of to uncover alternative routes to homeownership – she knew her kids needed better and that she was the only one who could give that to them. When she discovered Habitat, she was almost out of hope.

Watch the rest of Emily’s story.