Charity makes home ownership a reality
Love can make the impossible happen.
For Chris and Taylor Abercrombie, a strong marriage helped them through disaster and into home ownership with the help of Habitat for Humanity.
“He’s always supporting me, no matter what,” Taylor said of her husband. “He’s never left me.”
The two married about 13 years ago, but when Taylor’s father died, she started taking drugs.
Chris stayed with her and helped her overcome addiction.
“No matter what, I’d be by her side,” he said. “I love her that much.”
Until their move, the couple lived in an apartment with their two children.
It wasn’t well-insulated.
“We would keep [the thermostat] on 72 and we’d be like ‘Oh my God, it’s freezing,’” said Taylor.
hen, Taylor learned about Habitat for Humanity.
Chris, naturally a pessimist, felt like it wasn’t worth applying for the program.
“This will never happen. It will never work,” Chris recalled saying at the time,
But Taylor saw potential and pushed for the opportunity.
“We can do it,” Taylor said.
Habitat for Humanity doesn’t just give someone a free house.
Potential homeowners must complete a financial education class. Couples must put in 300 hours of work to build their house, and single parents must put in 200 hours of work.
The Abercrombies started building the house in March of last year.
“You don’t really know how much goes into building a house until you’re actually there almost every day,” Chris said.
The couple got to pick pullout drawers for their trash cans, paint colors, kitchen designs and more.
Taylor thinks the custom trash can pullouts are the “greatest thing in the world,” Chris said.
When these processes are done, the couple buys the house and must make mortgage payments.
The Abercrombies took out a $237,000 loan for the house, and Habitat for Humanity paid the remaining $134,000.
Over the next 20 years, they will work to pay off both these sums of money. If they can’t pay Habitat for Humanity back after 20 years, the group will forgive their debt.
It’s increasingly hard to become a homeowner in Gilmer County. According to real estate website Zillow, the average Gilmer house costs $413,352.
As of 2023, the U.S. Census puts the average per capita income at $34,175 yearly.
Taylor works as a server at IHOP, and Chris works as an assistant manager at Food Lion.
“We would never have thought about being able to build a house,” Taylor said.
On Friday, Jan. 16, the family moved into their completed home. They stayed up late to get it all done in one day.
“It still doesn’t seem real,” Chris said.
Their new home is warm, comfortable and beautiful.
They also have the freedom to get another dog and a cat.
“We escalated quickly,” Taylor said.
After a home is finished, Habitat for Humanity will fix any issues that come up during the house’s one-year warranty.
But like any home, there’s always some new project or improvement to make.
The Abercrombies plan to build a swing set for their kids in the yard, a fence for their dogs and more.
“We’re going to live here for the rest of our lives and our kids are going to inherit this house,” Taylor said.