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Our Impact

An intensive Impact Study of the Bay Area Habitat for Humanity service area will be conducted in the near future to show the value of the Habitat for Humanity program and its influence in the local community.

Please visit our Communities Served page to view the housing needs in each of the cities we are currently invested in.

For over 20 years, BAHFH has worked in partnership with these cities to stabilize and revitalize older neighborhoods by building new homes on vacant lots, increasing the values of these properties and putting them back on local tax rolls. The homes are built in partnership with responsible, hard-working families, thus increasing the number of influential and productive members in these communities.

Habitat for Humanity is a proven program in the fight against substandard living conditions. Our purpose is to ensure that everyone has a decent place to live. The Habitat for Humanity program also helps break cycles of multi-generational poverty for families through affordable housing. Families need stable, nurturing environments for their children to grow; according to Habitat for Humanity International, safe, decent shelter has been correlated with better school performance and less illness in children. By providing affordable homeownership opportunities, Bay Area Habitat for Humanity-Houston helps provide the stability and security needed for families to move from substandard living conditions to safe, sturdy, energy efficient, affordable homes. New and refurbished homes in older communities help to encourage the redevelopment of existing properties and raise property values and pride in these communities in general.

Housing improves health, has a positive impact on children, builds wealth and strengthens our community.

  1. Housing deprivation leads to an average of 25% greater risk of disability or severe ill health across a person’s lifespan. Those who suffer housing deprivation as children are more likely to suffer ill health in adulthood, even if they live in non-deprived conditions later in life. (Marsh: et al: 2000)
  2. The number of low income families that lack safe and affordable housing is related to the number of children that suffer from asthma, viral infections, anemia, stunted growth attributed to the lack of stable housing: 10,000 children between the ages of 4 and 9 are hospitalized for asthma attacks each year because of cockroach infestation in their home; and more that 180 children die each year in house fires attributed to faulty electrical equipment. (Sandel, et al: 1999)
  3. Children in bad housing have increased risk of viral infections and a greater chance of suffering mental health and behavioral problems. (Harker: 2006)
  4. Children of homeowners are more likely to stay in school by 7-9% and daughters of homeowners are less likely to have children by age 18 by 2-4%. (Green and White: 1996)
  5. Owning a home leads to a higher quality of home environment, improved test scores by 9% in math and 7% in reading. (Haurin, Parcel and Hurin 2002)
  6. Children who live in bad housing have lower educational attainment and a greater likelihood of being unemployed as adults. (Harker: 2006)
  7. Homeownership increases intergenerational wealth accumulation through improved educational achievement in children, which leads to greater earnings when these children enter the workforce. (Boehm and Schlottmann)
  8. Resident ownership is strongly related to better building security and quality, and to lower levels of crime. (Saegert and Winkel: 1998) www.habitat.org – U.S. Statistics and research
  9. Homeowners are more likely to be satisfied with their homes and neighborhoods, and are more likely to volunteer in civic and political activities. (Rohe, Vanzandt, and McCarthy: 2000)

Some Bay Area Habitat for Humanity internal statistics showing the impact that safe, decent affordable housing can have on families:

  • Since moving into their homes, eleven of our homeowners have sent their children to college.
  • In 2008, one of our homeowner’s sons graduated 17th in his high school class and received a full four year academic scholarship to Houston Baptist University.
  • One of our single mothers has sent all five of her children to Texas A&M University.
  • Three of our homeowners, all single mothers, have enrolled and graduated from college since moving into their Habitat homes; one is a registered nurse and two are school teachers.
  • Another single mom has gone back to school to get a professional certificate that will allow her to get a salary increase, an important factor in a down economy.
  • Three other homeowners have started their own small businesses; two have paid off their mortgages, sold their homes and moved to more expensive neighborhoods