Cape Fear Habitat will review your application and will be in touch within 30 days. You may receive a call, letter, or email for clarifications. County records will be checked to verify you own your home and are up-to-date on taxes. Background checks will be run, and our Finance Department will review for income and financial eligibility.
The Repair Program
Restoring Hope for Safe, Comfortable Homes
The Home Repair Program at Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity makes essential repairs to owner-occupied homes. This helps preserve the home’s value and allows families in New Hanover, Pender, and Duplin Counties to remain in the homes that they have owned, often for many years.
What started as an effort to repair homes after Hurricane Florence blossomed into a permanent program that assists lower-income homeowners with necessary critical repairs.
Common Repair Services
Homes are assessed for risks to health, safety, and the viability of the home as a long-term asset for the family.
Common repairs include:
- Rehab of kitchen and bathrooms
- Flooring and drywall replacement
- Addressing plumbing and electrical issues
- HVAC repair and replacement
- Ramps, grab bars and aging in place modifications
- Roofing
- Storm recovery
Qualifications
Eligibility
- You must own the home on public record, be current on property taxes and have lived in the home for at least one year (unless temporarily displaced due to critical repair needs).
- The home must have critical needs for repairs that puts your health or safety at risk. For aesthetic home updates and renovations that are not critical to your health and safety, please contact your preferred home remodeling professional.
- The home must be located in New Hanover, Pender or Duplin County.
- Your home must be approximately 1,500 square feet or less.
- You must be unable to afford to repair the home yourself. The total household annual gross income must fall below 80% of the median household income for households of the same size in your county (see maximum household incomes in the chart below).
CHART FOR MAXIMUM HOUSEHOLD INCOMES PER COUNTY:
Income limits are effective as of April 2024 and change annually.
- The house must not be located in a flood zone.
- Manufactured homes, mobile homes, and trailers are considered on a case-by-case basis. For these homes, we can usually help with roofs, decks, ramps (for accessibility), HVAC and hot water tanks.
- For storm-related critical repair needs, the home must have been uninsured or underinsured at the time of the storm. All FEMA and / or insurance awards must be remitted to CFHFH if not already used to make repairs on the home. Documentation of use may be required.
Partnership
Homeowners partner with Habitat in the following ways:
- We ask that you provide required documentation to accompany the application. You will need a copy of your State issued photo ID, Social Security card, proof of all income for everyone in the household, and tax returns for the past 2 years, if you file.
- We will ask you to agree to a well-defined Scope of Work contract for requested and approved repairs before moving forward with the work.
- If applicable and based on affordability and Scope of Work, we may ask you to share in the cost of repairs on a sliding scale.
- We ask that you work with our staff to create a personalized plan to complete partnership hours, with activities based on ability. This could include writing cards, meeting with our team for a short interview to share about the impact of our Home Repair Program, providing water to volunteers, making calls to friends who may also need repairs on their homes, volunteering with a place of faith, school, or an approved community organization. Friends may help the family with activities.
- We will ask that you keep appropriate homeowner’s insurance and stay current on property taxes once repairs are completed.
- You will be asked to allow photos of the job and sign a media release for grant reporting and program awareness purposes. We will work with you on only sharing information that you’re comfortable with and that it is done with the utmost respect for you and your home. We are happy to do this in such a way that your identity is protected, if needed.
- We ask you to understand that Home Repairs are completed by Cape Fear Habitat’s dedicated volunteers.
Application Steps
Step 1: Complete An Application
To request an application be mailed to you, please call 910-762-4744 or email info@capefearhabitat.org. Please specify that you want a REPAIR application and provide your name, address, and phone number.
Once you’ve turned in the application, it will be screened. You may receive a phone call to clarify items on your application, or an email or letter requesting
additional documents. From the point of receiving your application you should hear from us within 30 days via phone call or letter.
You may receive a request for more info. The sooner you get the information to us, the sooner your application will be processed.
Step 2: Application Review
Step 3: Construction Assessment
Our Construction Department will call to schedule an assessment where staff will review structural damages and potentially take pictures to document damages. They will not determine eligibility at this time. The Construction department will submit either an estimated job cost or denial within about 2 weeks of assessment.
Be Ready To…
▪ Keep your appointment window (appointments are 30-45 minutes).
▪ Have all pets confined
▪ Identify all damages to assessors
Step 4: Financial Review
If at any point in the process your project is deemed ineligible you will receive a letter of denial which will include referral information to other assistance agencies.
Step 5: Agreement Meeting
An agreement meeting will be held to discuss scope of work, cost, repair terms, partnership requirements and repayment plan, if any. You will only be asked to pay what you can afford on a sliding scale. This meeting will also discuss whether you need to vacate the property or remove belongings based on the scope of work. You have two weeks to review the agreement and sign. Any lump sum payment, insurance or FEMA funds would need to be remitted at this time or prior to work commencing. Checks can be made payable to Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity.
You are under no obligation to use the REPAIR program and nothing will be charged to you until an Agreement is signed.
Step 6: Work Begins
Construction staff will contact you regarding scheduling. Please keep in mind that this is not an urgent repair program and there may be a waiting period depending on our repair case load. You may be asked by the Development Department for an interview or photographs in order to report to donors or complete grant requirements. Staff will meet with you to sign a Certificate of Completion.
You have 30 days from the time work is completed to complete your Partnership Hours, if applicable. Staff will meet with you to complete final paperwork. Insurance would need to be in place at this time.
Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity conducts business in accordance with Federal Fair Lending Laws.
From House to Home
Homeowners Share Experiences with Habitat's Repair Team
