New perspective on illegal Habitat houses

1232 and 1230 Holmes Avenue, Charlottesville, Virginia

Update on illegal Habitat houses Monday, December 18, 2006

J Smythe adds a perspective Jan. 18, 2007:

"The Covenants on the deeds (as I understand it) stipulate that Habitat gets "right of first refusal" on any sale of the house. They get first shot to buy the house back at fair market value." ( Read the full 17-paragraph comment )

What if the owner is willing to sell at a price greater than fair market value? If the house is assessed at $200,000, can the Habitat owner sell it for $300,000? Or does the covenant stipulate that only Habitat can buy the house and at a price lower than the owner's selling price? Can Habitat then sell the house for $300,000? I can't think of anything I can sell and require the buyer to sell it back to me at my price if they ever decide to sell. If you view your house as an investment, you should avoid predatory lenders like Habitat.