Teri Capparelli, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity of Bergen County: Helping Veterans with Home Updates

The Big Idea:

● Teri Capparelli leads Habitat for Humanity of Bergen County (Habitat Bergen) in its efforts to address housing insecurity in the region through building and rehabilitating houses with donated supplies and volunteer labor and selling them to hardworking families at no profit and financed by affordable, no-interest loans.

● Habitat Bergen offers a unique model where families purchase homes at an affordable rate and hold a 0% interest mortgage for 30 years. This approach enables them to build equity and stability, illustrating that the program is designed to offer a "hand up, not a handout."

● Funds from mortgage payments are cycled back into the community to help build and repair additional housing.

Background:

●      The families that Habitat Bergen works with include veterans, police officers and hospital workers. In September, Habitat Bergen partnered with Veolia NJ to rehabilitate a military family’s home in Westwood. Through the project, Veolia NJ employees helped Habitat build a new fence to keep the family’s young children and dog safe during a parent’s second deployment to Iraq.

●      Currently, Habitat is working on a critical repair project for a single mother in Mahwah, whose garage was destroyed due to a fire. Following this, the team is set to begin another project in Oradell.

●      Habitat Bergen employs an extensive vetting process. In addition to credit and background checks, families must demonstrate need and be financially able to support a zero-interest mortgage. At the same time, families must be willing to partner with Habitat Bergen throughout the process including by helping build and renovate community housing or working in its Westwood ReStore.

Fun Fact:

The success of Habitat Bergen is fueled by strong community support, highlighted by local Mahwah High School students who have raised more than $57,000 so far! Their fundraising efforts include engaging events like volleyball tournaments, attracting over 100 participants.

Their Take:

Teri Capparelli

“By helping families achieve their dream of homeownership, we’re investing in the stability of our communities. Each project we undertake reinforces the idea that when we come together, we can create lasting change for those who need it most.”

-  Teri Capparelli, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity of Bergen County