Habitat for Humanity of Washington DC & Northern Virginia

Habitat for Humanity of Washington DC & Northern Virginia (Habitat DC-NOVA) mission is to build strength, stability, and community through affordable homeownership. We do this by building and preserving sustainable, affordable homes, engaging volunteers, and advocating for housing policy solutions.

In our nation’s capital-the seat of government and a symbol of our democracy-people struggle to provide the most basic need for their families: a home. More than half of renters in our area live in unaffordable housing. One in four spend more than 50% of what they earn on housing, leaving precious little for necessities like food, transportation, and medical care, and nothing left to save for their future. Many live in homes that are cramped, unsafe, and in disrepair. Families suffer from the effects of unstable housing: their health is worse, children perform poorly in school, and they are unable to save money to plan for their futures.

The pervasive legacies of systemic housing discrimination still impact families today. Issues like inequitable access to credit, exclusionary zoning practices that prohibit diversity in housing types, and gentrification of lower-income neighborhoods remain to prevent struggling families, particularly Black and other families of color, from accessing quality, stable housing.