Habitat for Humanity East Bay

Founded in 1988, Habitat for Humanity East Bay's mission is to create successful homeownership opportunities for families with limited incomes by building sustainable housing and revitalizing neighborhoods.

How do you help people in my community?

Habitat for Humanity East Bay merged with Mt. Diablo Habitat for Humanity in April of 2007 in order to better serve both Alameda and Contra Costa counties.  By combining our expertise, strengths and reducing our duplicate administrative costs, we believe that we can serve more low-income families throughout the entire East Bay as one affiliate.  Though we have combined our resources, our mission and commitment to East Bay communities remains the same:  Habitat for Humanity East Bay creates successful homeownership opportunities for families with limited incomes by building sustainable housing and revitalizing neighborhoods. 

Livermore:

Habitat for Humanity East Bay completed a “green” 22-home development on a 2-acre site located on East and Hayes Avenues. The homes will be owner-occupied 3- and 4- bedroom homes for working families. Lot and private yard sizes will be typical of what is currently being built for market rate homes in the Livermore area, with common areas as appropriate. This development incorporates green building techniques, maximizing energy efficiency and sustainability.  The houses were awarded a score of 95 (50 is needed to be considered green) by the GreenPoint Rated organization.  GreenPoint Rated is a program of Build it Green, an independent Californian organization that removes the guesswork from evaluating a home's green features, allowing home buyers to compare newly built homes on a level playing field. 

In the spring of 2000, Habitat for Humanity East Bay was contacted by the City of Livermore and by an alliance of faith organizations from the Livermore area about building homes with their assistance in Livermore. Several volunteers from the faith groups worked with city staff and a local realtor to locate vacant sites. They located a lot at 4218 East Avenue. Habitat completed acquisition of the properties on East Avenue and Hayes Avenue totaling over two acres!

East Oakland:

When complete, the Edes Avenue development will contain 54 new homes, just 1/2 a mile from our 40-home development on 105th Avenue, in the Sobrante Park Neighborhood of East Oakland. The homes in progress are two story wood frame construction homes, similar to other East Bay Habitat developments. The total cost of the development is projected to be $6 million. The goal is to maintain or exceed the level of sustainable, "green" features of recent projects, and the site plan has been designed with this in mind.  The site in East Oakland is a candidate to be LEED ND (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Neighborhood Design), a national rating system that grades a combination of green features and smart growth. 

Alameda:

This .43 acre development on Buena Vista Avenue will contain 8 new homes when completed as a partnership between Habitat for Humanity and the Alameda Development Corporation.  Construction is scheduled to begin at the fall of 2007 and be completed in approximately one year.

Bay Point:

The Bay Point development will contain 9 homes, composed of 2-, 3- and 4-bedroom single family detached homes on 1.2 acres of land.  This will be Habitat East Bay’s first “green” development in Contra Costa County complete with solar panels and other environmentally friendly design features.  The development is projected to begin at the start of 2008 and volunteerism will begin around June of 2008.

Why do you need my support?

Habitat for Humanity East Bay is rated a Four-Star charity by Charity Navigator for responsible use of donor funds.  According to Charity Navigator, the foremost non-profit donor rating organization, a Four-Star rating "means your supporters can be assured that your charity is worthy of their trust and commitment."  Currently, we use about 11% of donated funds for administrative costs, which means that your donations go where they are needed most – towards building more affordable homes and helping low-income families. 

Habitat for Humanity East Bay relies heavily on private contributions. Donations from individuals provide nearly 30% of the annual contributed income needed to build homes for Habitat families. Now, more than ever, we need your support to help us expand our building capacity, to reach even more families.

By donating to Habitat for Humanity East Bay, you are also helping families in other countries. HFHEB donates 10% of its unrestricted funds to a partner affiliate overseas. Through this program we have built more than 400 additional homes. 

We envision a “green” future for Habitat for Humanity East Bay.  In response to the critical shortage of affordable housing in the Bay Area, Habitat for Humanity East Bay is working to increase our annual construction rate from 20 homes in 2007, to 40 homes by 2010 all using green design features.  Currently, we are building in East Oakland (54 homes) that is a candidate for LEED ND certification, and soon we will begin construction in Alameda (8 homes) and Bay Point (9 homes) as well. 

With your support we can do it!  

How can I be sure that you will use my money wisely and won't waste it?

Our primary sources of private funding are the following: Individuals, Corporations, Foundations, Civic and Faith Organizations. In addition, we receive grants and no-interest redevelopment agency loans from local government sources.

Habitat for Humanity East Bay is rated a Four-Star Charity by Charity Navigator for responsible use of donor funds.  According to Charity Navigator, the foremost non-profit donor rating organization, a Four-Star rating "means your supporters can be assured that your charity is worthy of their trust and commitment."  Currently, we use about 11% of donated funds for administrative costs, which means that your donations go where they are needed most – towards building more affordable homes and helping low-income families.

Can I Volunteer? How?

Volunteers play a critical role in our program, and are involved in every aspect of our work, including: construction, committee work, fundraising, advocacy and more.

Habitat for Humanity recruits large numbers of volunteers to help construct Habitat homes, and in so doing strives to promote volunteerism as a collective community value. To date, over 50,000 volunteers have participated in the construction of the 181 single-family homes built by Habitat for Humanity East Bay. An average of 150 volunteers participate in the program every week.