This story is sadly lacking in information. First, the house is no longer a Habitat house because the family has already met their obligation to the organization. Second, what is the law that says a house must have a working furnace? Is there such a thing? Better a family outside on the street than inside a building with no heat?
When did they pay off their mortgage? They moved in in March of 2000, and around here, Habitat has a 20 year interest free mortgage, so it is unlikely that they would have refinanced. One of the earlier stories put the payments at $115 a month, so total payments so far would have been $6900.00. Was that the total obligation for the purchase and both rounds of renovation? (Around here, Habitat only does new construction, so I would like some education on how the re-hab deals work. Here, the city will clear the slum property, and Habitat will start with a bare lot. The re-hab route looks like it might be a lot cheaper.)