Home Ownership FAQ

By pairing 10 to 12 households together to help build each other’s houses, this collective effort becomes the down payment on each participant’s future home. Since 1970, over 1,200 homes have been constructed in this method by dedicated groups throughout the Central Coast.

Home are built wherever we can leverage land cost with affordable mortgages. Our previous neighborhoods have been located throughout rural San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, and Monterey counties.

Although your ‘sweat-equity’ will serve as your home’s down payment, there are some other expenses before and during construction. This can include:   

• Construction insurance  
• Purchase of basic tools 
• Property taxes

The estimated total is $8,000-9,000 per household.  

The general requirements are:

• Household income between county-specific minimum & maximum income limits  
• Good credit  
• Rental history  
• Proof of citizenship or permanent residency for the potential mortgage holder

The location of each project will determine the specific eligibility requirements and will be posted before applications are made available.  

Simple! Go to pshhc.org/homeownership-interest-list and complete the short form to join our interest list. 

Each project will announce ahead of time what the selection process is. Intake forms will be either:

• Entered into a lottery  
• Processed in the order received  

In a lottery, intake forms are put in a random digital lottery to determine the order of processing. All individuals will be notified within 10 days of the lottery to confirm the order.

Once the number of eligible intake forms matches the number of available homes, all will be notified whether or not they have been selected to build.  

Mortgage payments (including property taxes and insurance) are typically 1/3 of the household’s gross monthly income. This is the amount earned before income and employment taxes are deducted. For example, if your monthly gross income is $3,600, you can expect your mortgage payment to be about $1,200.

The size of the house depends on the tract being developed, the number of people in the household, and the needs of the family. Most homes have three or four bedrooms and are 1,100 to 1,500 square feet.  

Certainly! Most of our owner-builders work full-time in addition to the hours put in at the jobsite. Much of the work takes place on the weekends to accommodate schedules.

Yes! Many owner-builders have friends, neighbors, or community groups assist with completing their 40 hours per week. It is required that 16 of the weekly hours must be completed by the owner-builder(s) or a “permanent helper”. The permanent helper is a long-term volunteer who you have designated ahead of time to support your build.

Just as with other residential developments, self-help home plans are developed by licensed architects and approved by county or city building departments. Work is regularly inspected throughout the construction period just as are conventionally built homes. All owner-builders receive oversight and training from a PSHH Site Superintendent. 

After completion, owner-builders will be well-positioned to maintain their homes because they have been involved in each stage of its construction. 

The person in your household who applies for the mortgage must be a citizen or permanent resident. However, citizenship is not a requirement for all members of the household or all people helping with the build.

In order to be approved for the mortgage, the individual applying must also have enough income to support the mortgage.

We’d be happy to assist! Just email us at homeownership@pshhc.org to connect with our team.

Yes. We will let you know if your intake form has been selected in the lottery and the number you have been assigned for order of processing. Even though your lottery number may be higher than the number of building lots available, please don’t be discouraged. Not everyone ahead of you will qualify, so you may still have a chance to build.

Yes. Please note that given the high volume of submissions and the time it takes to review each submission package, it can take 4-6 weeks for you to be notified of your status.

If your intake form is incomplete, you will be notified before the final submission date. It will need to be resubmitted before the publicized deadline. If you are unsuccessful in the lottery, you will also be notified.

Unfortunately, if you already own a home you will fall outside the eligibility requirements.

Yes, you can still be eligible if you have an existing car loan. What is important is the debt-to-income ratio. Depending on your level of income, you can assume some debt and still be qualified. This is to ensure that our owner-builds can maintain the mortgage on their home alongside their other financial commitments once the building is complete.

The best way to provide proof of regular cash income is by providing multiple months of bank statements with those deposits highlighted. If the cash is not deposited into a bank account, a letter from your employer will be needed to verify the income.