Each year, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Chattanooga Area builds eight to 10 houses for low-income families, but one home – built almost entirely by women – received a little extra attention last month.
For the first time in 10 years, the local Habitat for Humanity affiliate reminded Chattanooga women that they can make a lasting impact in the push for affordable housing by challenging them to volunteer for its Women Build project.
A Housing Affordability and Vacancy Report published by the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency in late 2013 said that almost all the city’s low-income residents are housing-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing, and that there are few options for families with just one minimum-wage job.
A household must have a minimum income of $27,800 to afford the median gross monthly rent of $722 in the city, the report stated. The most recent Census figures show the city’s median gross monthly rent had risen to $748 by 2015.
The Women Build project on Taylor Street, sponsored largely by Better Homes and Gardens Signature Brokers, drew more than 150 female volunteers wielding hammers and paintbrushes.