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The Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP) awards grant funds to eligible national and regional non-profit organizations and consortia to purchase home sites and develop or improve the infrastructure needed to set the stage for sweat equity and volunteer-based homeownership programs for low-income persons and families. Only national and regional non-profit organizations and consortia with experience facilitating innovative homeownership opportunities through the provision of self-help homeownership housing programs are eligible to apply. Applicants must propose to use a significant amount of SHOP grant funds in at least two states.
Land acquisition, infrastructure improvements, and reasonable and necessary planning and administration costs (not to exceed 20 percent) are the only eligible uses for SHOP grant funds. The average SHOP expenditure for the combined costs of land acquisition and infrastructure improvements cannot exceed $15,000 per SHOP unit. Successful applicants must leverage other public and private funds to pay for the construction or rehabilitation costs of each SHOP unit and for any other program costs that are not assisted with SHOP grant funds. SHOP units must be decent, safe, and sanitary non-luxury dwellings that comply with state and local codes, ordinances, and zoning requirements. The SHOP units must be sold to homebuyers at prices below the prevailing market price.
Homebuyers must be low-income and must contribute a significant amount of sweat equity towards the development of the SHOP units. A homebuyer’s sweat equity contribution must not be mortgaged or otherwise restricted upon future sale of the SHOP unit. Volunteer labor is also required. SHOP Grantees may award SHOP Grant funds to local non-profit affiliate organizations to carry out the Grantee’s SHOP program. These affiliate organizations must be located within the Grantee’s service area.
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