Affordable housing is a problem for many people in Northern Michigan.
It can be an even bigger issue for veterans returning from deployment or any other active duty.
“We owe it to them when they get back to make sure that we are meeting their needs,” said Scott Herzberg, Military and Veterans Advisor at Northwestern Michigan College.
That’s why organizations like Habitat for Humanity offer programs to help veterans and their families get into affordable homes.
They recently built houses for veterans in Leelanau and Kalkaska counties.
“There are veterans out there that need help, whether it’s through affordable housing, or a home repair or financial counseling, we want them to know that we are here to work for them,” said Kathleen English of Habitat for Humanity, Grand Traverse Region. “We’ll tell them how they can apply for our home ownership program and what we’re looking at to see if someone is eligible for the program.”
Herzberg said Habitat’s program is helpful, but he would like to see them do builds closer to where the jobs are, “Particularly in this area, we don’t have affordable housing. As we get further away from the Traverse City central or the center of Traverse City, it becomes less expensive which is great, but now access, and now you’re kind of robbing Peter to pay Paul in some regards.”
He would like also to see more of a community for people returning from service, “…to come back to a civilian culture where there are other veterans, like mindedness, where they can have that camaraderie, where they can lean on each other, where the spouses have the opportunity to lean on each other, where their children can play together.”
For more information about Habitat for Humanity Grand traverse region and their veteran builds, .
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