A southwest Tallahassee couple now owns a brand new home, thanks to Big Bend Habitat for Humantiy and its supporting partners. The regional Habitat has taken steps to make sure its homes remain affordable for their occupants.
What had been the site of an abandoned, 70-year-old shack at the corner of Roswell and Kidwell streets in southwest Tallahassee's Seminole Manor neighborhood is now the location of a brand-new home. Its happy occupants are Liilian Trosty and her son Arnold. For them, it's literally a real dream come true.
"My American dream! Thank you so much!" Trosty exclaimed after receiving the keys from Big Bend Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Antoine Wright.
With help from Publix and 2nd Harvest of the Big Bend, Wright said the couple now has a house they can afford.
"She's typically going to have a mortgage payment of less than $500. That's taxes and insurance included."
Florida property insurance rates have ballooned in recent years. But Wright said Habitat's no-interest 30-year home mortgages are structured to keep owner's payments affordable, even in in the face of inflation.
"When you think about you shouldn't be spending more than 30% of your income on housing, so if insurance, healthcare and transportation costs go up, you've got that slack built into what you're already paying."
Wright says a 40-unit Habitat development off Thomas Drive will soon be turned over to its occupants with more local housing construction in the pipeline.
