Veterans Build

Volunteer, employment and homeownership opportunities

We appreciate your interest in Habitat for Humanity’s Veterans Build. Through this initiative, you can help us provide volunteer, homeownership and employment opportunities to U.S. veterans, military service members and their families.

Facts about veterans

The National Low Income Housing Coalition finds that 2.5 million veterans heading households are at least 55 years of age. Of those 2.5 million veterans, 24% have housing cost burdens. Unlike our older civilians, our older veterans are more likely to have a disability — 35% versus 28% — which may require home modifications, health and other supportive services as they age.

Our female veteran population is in need as well. According to a report by the National Housing Conference, nearly half of our veterans who are single mothers spend more than 30% of their income on housing. Our female veterans face significant economic and housing challenges and are particularly vulnerable to housing cost burdens compared with our overall veteran population.

Likewise, our most recent veterans who served following 9/11 have returned to a slow-growing economy and rising housing costs. These economic factors have made the transition from military service to civilian life difficult for many of our veterans.

In addition, nearly 4 million of our veterans pay at least 30% of their income toward rent or mortgage, while more than 1.5 million pay at least 50%. As you can imagine, using half of your income to pay your rent or mortgage is an enormous strain on any budget.

Five areas we focus on:

Building

Safe, decent, affordable housing is the centerpiece of Veterans Build. In many communities, we are expanding programs to maintain and preserve homes and make them more energy-efficient and affordable. In partnership with The Home Depot Foundation, Habitat developed the Repair Corps program to offer critical home repairs to military veteran homeowners.

Employment

We value skill sets gained from your military service. We recruit veterans to work at Habitat as employees, board members, extended volunteers, AmeriCorps members, interns and fellows. You can find a position at Habitat for Humanity International or find a Habitat office near you for employment opportunities in your community.

Volunteer engagement

We provide volunteer experiences that bring together veterans, military families and their neighbors. These experiences help bridge the gap and ease the transition to civilian life with fulfilling community engagement. You can find a Habitat office near you for volunteer opportunities in your community. You can also learn more about our long-term volunteer opportunities.

Education

We offer financial education and financial literacy programs. Our programs support successful homeownership among veteran and military homeowners. We also train Habitat employees and community volunteers throughout the U.S. to better understand the military culture. This increases our effectiveness in interacting with veterans and military families. You can learn more about our financial education and financial literacy programs.

Honor

Throughout the year, we participate in or host special events that pay tribute to veterans, raise awareness and mobilize volunteers to advocate for affordable housing.

Notable successes and celebrations:

9,097+

The number of veterans and their families who have partnered with us to improve their housing since 2013.

350+

The number of Habitat affiliates that take part in Veterans Build, partnering with veteran support organizations to meet veterans’ needs.

100+

This is how many veteran-serving organizations we are currently partnering with or reaching out to. These organizations allow us to better meet the needs of veterans through our holistic approaches.