Insider Report Spring 2022 from Habitat Greater San Francisco

Insider Report A Donor Publication From Habitat Greater San Francisco

Spring 2022 Issue An update from CEO Maureen Sedonaen Partnership Stories: A Firm Foundation Donor Stories: Impact Generations Construction Updates: Moving In and Moving Up

Dear Friend of Habitat GSF, As we move forward into yet another pandemic year, we at Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco (Habitat GSF) are facing the uncertainty of the future by ensuring that we double down on our mission of providing local families with affordable homeownership and home repair opportunities. Our families are moving in and we’re leveling up!

After years of planning, approvals, applications, and pandemic setbacks, I’m proud to say, beginning in the Spring, 26 families will be settling into newly built homes on Geneva Avenue in Daly City and Jefferson Avenue in Redwood City. And with your support, in 2022 we will be actively constructing new homes in all three of our Bay Area Counties for the first time in our history – including 80 homes in Novato, which will be Habitat GSF’s largest construction to date, and the largest affordable homeownership development in the State of California! With our active sites and many more homes in the pipeline, together we are helping shape the future of our region as one that is more inclusive for everyone. Our homes are and will always be affordable, paving the way for future generations to make and keep the Bay Area their home. Thank you for sticking with us on this journey!

In this edition of the Insider Report, you will read about the impact of sweat equity on homeowners, exciting construction updates, the importance of legacy giving, and more.

Most importantly, I hope you are proud of the work we do together and know that we are forever grateful for your support.

Maureen Sedonaen CEO, Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco

Future Habitat GSF homeowner, Allan and his son enjoying sweat equity at a community garden.

Building a Bright Future To qualify for a Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco home, prospective homebuyers partner with our construction and volunteer teams to complete sweat equity – a set number of hours worked to build their future homes.

This model helps future homeowners, like Cristina and Allan Layson, feel pride in working on a home of their own. The Laysons are a multigenerational household who have lived in the Bay Area for over 20 years. The couple, their two children, and Cristina’s elderly mother are getting ready to move into their newly built home on Geneva Avenue in

Daly City, and completing sweat equity made them feel like they play an active role in making their dream home a reality. Cristina says of their sweat equity experience, “It helped us to learn many things, that even the simplest and smallest thing to build a home is important, from the hard work to the easiest work.”

Habitat GSF relies on the partnership of our future homeowners to make building affordable homeownership a reality in our communities.

We are proud of this model and the homes (and relationships) that are built out of it.

Help us build families a future! Visit www.habitatgsf.org/insider-report

Tamsen Plume, current Habitat GSF Board Member and Executive Partner at Holland & Knight with Supervisor Mandelman at Amber Drive.

A Firm Foundation There are many requirements for building a home: land, materials and labor to name a few. In addition there are many lesser-known but just as vital activities happening behind the scenes. The expertise and resources from our legal partners are as important to the successful building of an affordable home as the building’s foundation – we simply could not build without these key partnerships.

Several current and former Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco board members have provided us access to some of the best land use law firms in the country. It is hard to quantify the dollar value of the hundreds of hours of technical and regulatory expertise they have donated to Habitat GSF. What we do know is the cost of the affordable homes we build is that much lower because we do not have this legal expense. It also gives these organizations opportunity to support causes in their communities that they care about. As Patrick McGaraghan, former Habitat GSF Board Chair and Retired Partner at DLA Piper puts it, “We are so grateful that we can bring our expertise to bear for Habitat Greater San Francisco and support these complex land transactions. This not only saves Habitat GSF precious time and mission critical resources, but we can partner with an organization whose mission and values align with our own.”

Our partnership agreements, land transactions, CEQA reviews, zone changes, entitlements are all handled with the same high standard as our peers in the for-profit development world. Tamsen Plume, current Habitat GSF Board Member and Executive Partner at Holland & Knight states “Supporting Habitat Greater San Francisco with legal work on complicated and layered land-use policies, CEQA compliance and state housing laws is a pleasure and privilege. Our team at Holland & Knight loves to work with the amazing Habitat Greater San Francisco team, give back to our community and have such a direct impact on the housing crisis in the Bay Area.”

Home building involves long term projects, and these valuable partners team up with us for the long term to see them through. Says David Kremer, current Habitat GSF Board Member and Partner at Shartsis Friese LLP, “being able to advise Habitat Greater San Francisco and provide this critical legal service is incredibly rewarding to myself and my team at our firm. It gives us a tangible way to give back to the community and helps to solve the long-term issue of access to affordable homeownership.”

Thank you to all of our legal partners who provide essential support to ensure we can continue building families in the Bay Area a future.

Help us build families a future! Visit www.habitatgsf.org/insider-report

Insider Report

Impact Generations There are a lot of ways to support Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco. From monetary donations to volunteerism, we are an organization that prides itself on partnering with the community as we fulfill our mission of building more opportunities for local families. One unique way to make a long-lasting impact is to join Habitat GSF’s Generational Impact Legacy Society by including us in your estate plans. By doing so, you’ll be added to a growing list of philanthropists who are helping build families’ futures in our community for generations to come.

One such donor is Ellen*, a long-time Bay Area resident and Habitat GSF volunteer. Ellen advocated for more housing for underserved communities in our region. She chose to partner with Habitat GSF in her lifetime as a dedicated volunteer, working alongside staff and other members of her community for years. It wasn’t until Ellen’s passing in 2020 that Habitat GSF received a large gift from her estate – a lasting contribution that was years in the making. Now, her legacy lives on in every home we build, from the six homes in Daly City to our sprawling 80-home construction in Novato.

Mt. Burdell Place, Novato

There are several ways to set a planned gift, and at Habitat GSF, we’re making it easier for you to understand your options by providing donors with a free informational tool at www.freewill. com/habitatgsf. Once you’ve made your decision, you can let us know by contacting Julia Jordan, jjordan@habitatgsf.org, and you will automatically become a member of the Generational Impact Legacy Society. This membership includes publications and updates on our recent work, invitations to members-only events, and more. To learn more visit: www.freewill.com/habitatgsf. *Name changed for donor privacy.

Partner Spotlight The San Francisco office of Prologis, a global real estate company, has become a key partner to us over the last five years. During this time, in addition to sponsorships, their team has fielded over 40 volunteers to support our work. They have rolled up their sleeves in local community gardens and bought their creative eyes to build and decorate playhouses. Partnering with other local organizations who support building affordable homes for working families is essential to our work and deeply satisfying.

We are lucky to have Karen L. Jackson, Vice President of Customer Experience at Prologis on the Habitat Greater San Francisco board, she stated, “We are very proud to partner with Habitat Greater San Francisco. When we support their work in the community, building and repairing homes, we know it will have a lasting impact on the lives of thousands of our neighbors in the Bay Area.”

Is your organization interested in partnering with Habitat GSF? Contact our Corporate Partnership Team: Corporate@HabitatGSF.org

Insider Report

Spring 2022

Access to Homes In conjunction with the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development (MOHCD), we are in the midst of homeowner applications for the eight new Habitat GSF homes coming to Diamond Heights in San Francisco. While construction continues, efforts are in full swing to ensure those in our community who can benefit the most from affordable homeownership hear about this opportunity.

Affordable homeownership is one way Habitat GSF can tackle housing inequity in our threecounty service area. Ensuring we reach communities that have historically been excluded is vital. We do this by partnering and being present in the communities in which we serve.

Our goal is to ensure Habitat GSF homeowners who move into Amber Drive homes are reflective of the city’s diversity.

There are basic requirements for homeownership through Habitat GSF: demonstrate a need for housing, have the ability to pay a mortgage, and have a willingness to partner with us. In addition, for these homes in the heart of San Francisco, the income levels are set at 60%-80% of Area Median Income as defined by HUD. In contrast, to afford a median-priced home in our region, a family of four needs to earn over 175% of the AMI. These affordable condos will be home to health aides, custodial and maintenance workers, retail employees and food prep workers. Those who are essential to our communities and economy, and yet who are so often pushed out of San Francisco due to ever-rising costs and housing instability.

Amber Drive, Diamond Heights San Francisco

Help us build families a future!

Visit www.habitatgsf.org/insider-report

Insider Report

Spring 2022

Going the Extra Mile At Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco, there are many stakeholders involved in the work that we do. Everyone from our staff and board to the homeowners completing sweat equity on our sites is instrumental to our mission. One of the most important groups we work with is our volunteer community. Since day one, Habitat GSF has relied on volunteers to work alongside us in building affordable homes in the counties we serve. It was a pleasure to speak to one such volunteer, Sean Barron, to learn more about his interest in Habitat GSF and his journey to not only being a dedicated monthly donor, but one of our most active volunteers.

Sean spent his career working in finance and upon retiring in 2020, wanted to spend the rest of his days giving back to his community. He began by volunteering at a food bank in Novato. While he enjoyed working on closing the very real food insecurity gap our region faces, Sean wanted to do more. That’s what brought him to Habitat GSF’s website, and into Daly City for his first volunteer shift.

Sean admits he was not very handy, which made him nervous walking onsite on his first day. However, Sean was quickly moved by Habitat GSF’s General Superintendent Dawn, who he says maintains a positive and welcoming culture onsite. Every Friday from then on, Sean made his way from his Marin home to Geneva Avenue in Daly City, where he got to know his crew leader and community.

Over time, Sean’s skills as a builder got better, and his connections with his fellow crew members, including future homeowners, deepened. Commenting about his experience as a volunteer, Sean says, “It’s my favorite thing to do. You see the impact at a grassroots level.” We couldn’t be happier that Sean worked up the courage to come to the site that first day, because he has become not only one of our most consistent donors, but a familiar face on our work sites. Thank you for joining this community, Sean!

Sean Barron, regular volunteer and donor, at Habitat GSF

Insider Report

07 / Spring 2022

Moving In and Moving Up

Habitat GSF is going through exciting growth, and we are thrilled to share that we have active development in all three counties - San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin - for the first time ever!

While geographically close, the needs and neighborhoods across our service area are very different.

Another goal for our homes is to complement their communities and to provide long term efficiency and comfort for homeowners. Here are some unique features of our current developments:

Novato – It’s a first!

Approved by Novato’s City Council in January 2022, work is starting in earnest on this 80-home development in Novato. This will be Habitat GSF’s largest construction to date, and the largest low-income, affordable homeownership development in our history and in the State of California! This will have a huge impact on the working families of Marin, bringing the opportunity of homeownership to hundreds of people.

Jefferson – Transit oriented

Our new homes on Jefferson Avenue in Redwood City are almost move-in ready!

These 20 affordable homes fit neatly into their compact, downtown footprint and will include 11 existing Redwood City residents. Close to nearby businesses and public transit, these homes are an excellent example of building in a transit hub. By reducing commutes, homeowners can spend more time with their families while contributing to reduced emissions.

Geneva Village – Sustainable

Geneva Village in Daly City is another Habitat GSF development located with easy access to public transit as well as other green credentials! Despite budget constraints, Habitat GSF homes are always built with sustainability in mind. At Geneva Village, we achieved Zero Net Energy through use of solar panels, and the homes are designed to produce more energy than they consume. These homes are 100% electric, meaning less pollution and also lower utility costs for the homeowners.

Amber Drive – In the Heart of San Francisco

Help us build families a future!

Habitat for Humanity Greater San Francisco 300 Montgomery Street Suite 450 San Francisco, CA 94104 (415) 625-1000 • www.habitatgsf.org

2122SpringIR

Construction started in November 2021. Starting in March, our wonderful volunteers will join us on site as we begin our vertical phase of construction on eight new affordable homes. Keep an eye out for updates on these San Francisco homes over the next few months.

www.habitatgsf.org/insider-report Help us build families a future! Visit www.habitatgsf.org/insider-report