Home for the holidays: Hilton Head family receives ‘life-changing’ opportunity on island
All along Alex Patterson Road on Hilton Head Island, pristine new homes stand proudly completed, the result of an 11-year effort by Habitat for Humanity volunteers to propel low-income islanders into homeownership. The final one of these 16 new homes was completed last Friday — just in time for the holidays.
When Esmeralda Preciado watched her sons cut the festive red ribbon that adorned their new home, wielding ceremonial scissors nearly as tall as them, it was the beginning of security, the end of uncertainty, and perhaps the most impactful Christmas gift their family will ever receive.
Preciado, a Hilton Head Islander since she was 3, said the home brought an end to long periods of not knowing where she and her family would live. Even as affordable housing options became scarce on the island — and prospects for home ownership more rare — Preciado said the Habitat home is a blessing that could change the trajectory of her sons’ lives.
“It means a lot, because right now a lot of people are struggling to pay rent, there are a lot of families (staying together) in one apartment, struggling to make rent,” Preciado said. “And I know for my boys this is life-changing.”
After living in different apartments that Preciado said at times felt “dangerous,” to raise sons William, 12 and Matthew, 8, in, she decided to move to Bluffton, despite paying slightly higher rent. She also began attending classes to become a dental assistant, and finished the course in 2017.
Today, she works two part-time jobs as a dental assistant and substitute teacher on the island.
Preciado applied for the Habitat for Humanity program the same year. Hilton Head’s regional Habitat for Humanity executive director, Brenda Dooley, said the “intensive process” for approval involves credit checks, criminal background checks, debt and income assessments and, most importantly, “sweat equity” hours. Applicants are required to put in time working on the project they’ll benefit from, Dooley said.
“A single applicant has 300 hours of sweat equity that they have to do,” Dooley said.
“Just them being one of those people who’s volunteering to help build their own and build others’ homes, volunteers enjoy having the person that they’re building that home for be there working with them, they get to meet that family and it makes it a much more meaningful experience,” she said.
Habitat for Humanity applicants also receive classes on budgeting, credit, home maintenance and insurance to boost financial literacy and improve long-term outcomes, Dooley said.
Preciado’s new beginning as a homeowner lets her minimize stress over making ends meet month-to-month and provide a higher quality of life for her two sons, she said.
Even simple things like going out for a family meal — which was very rare beforehand — are now much more financially viable.
While Habitat homeowners do pay for their new homes, Dooley said Habitat’s mortgages are often “a third to half” of what many were previously paying in rent each month.
Thanks to their reduced living costs, Preciado said she hopes to make future Christmases even more exciting for her family.
“Before I had to budget, knowing I can’t buy this because I’ll need to pay for rent and stuff. (My son) wants a basketball goal,” Preciado said, “and now I can start to save up for him. Little by little, since the mortgage is low, we can save up for what we want. ... We are so blessed and excited to be here.”
