KINGSTON — Ahren and Heather Ben-Judah of Poulsbo have six children to look after.
Both are employed full time and “split shifts” at home taking care of the kids. This winter they’ve added yet another job: building their first house in Kingston.

Together with 11 other families, the Ben-Judahs are pounding nails and raising walls on their first home through the Mutual Self-Help Housing Program. The Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority programs helps low- and moderate-income families secure home loans through the federal Department of Agriculture. To qualify, the families work 30 hours a week on their future homes, alongside their future neighbors.

They aren’t just raising houses, Ahren Ben-Judah said, “it’s more of a community building.”
Twelve homes are under construction in the first phase of a 26-house neighborhood off Ohio Avenue. Families will begin work on another 12 this spring. Deanna Councilor who coordinates loans for the families said the Housing Authority is still looking for families to fill the last few houses.

Though only a few openings are left, it could take dozens of applicants to fill them.
Demand for the 40-year-old program has been up 20 percent since 2008, when the lending crisis made it harder for families to attain first-time home loans. At the same time, fewer people who apply for Self-Help Housing are qualifying because of the lean job market, Councilor said. Her department recently received a batch of 26 applicants for the program – three qualified.

The prospective home builders must be employed and fall into a income bracket —$21,000 to $40,000 for a single person and up to $70,000 for families. Good credit also helps. Most who qualify have a credit score higher than 600, Councilor said, but she works with families who don’t meet that standard.
Councilor coordinates USDA home loans for the families in batches. The loans are fairly standard 33- to 38-year term mortgages, usually with relatively low payments and interest. Most families find the payments are about the same as what they were already paying to rent.

To earn these loans families must spend 30 hours each week working at the building site under the supervision of a professional builder. No one moves in until the last shrub is planted and a USDA inspector approves the homes.

“You’ve got to commit,” Councilor said. “It’s a second job.”

Despite these demands, the Self Help Housing has a record of success. The program has built 1,300 homes across the county. In her nine years as coordinator, Councilor said only one applicant has dropped out of the program once they started.

The families aren’t building mansions. The smallest house is 993-square-feet, the largest is 1,383 — destined for the Ben-Judah’s family of eight. The houses are mostly two-story, with a built-in garage and up to four bedrooms. The homes meet several efficiency standards, including federal Energy Star.

The neighbors build their homes in stages, from foundations to finish carpentry. Everyone works a little on every home in the neighborhood.
Many participants have never tried their hand at carpentry but some become carpenters after the year of on-the-job training, said Ross Blowers, who supervises the construction.

“It’s pretty neat,” Blowers said. “You get to see a lot of people with different thought processes. They’re all go getters, every one of them.”

Among them is Zhan Tokhtakulinov, 55, who moved to North Kitsap from Kazakhstan eight years ago. Tokhtakulinov said it didn’t occur to him that he’d be able to purchase a home until he made a delivery to the Ohio Avenue site for Fred Hill Materials. He learned more about the program and was soon building a house for himself.

“It’s nice to know people, to meet new people, your future neighbors,” Tokhtakulinov said, taking a break from building last week. 

The home builders dedicate weekends and many evenings to the job site.

“You don’t find the time, you make the time.” Ahren Ben-Judah said.

The houses will be finished next winter if all goes to plan, said Casey Pleskun director of single family housing for the Housing Authority. After a year of building, move in day can’t come soon enough.

“You’ll see a lot of happy people,” Pleskun said. “You’ll see U-Hauls lining up, as soon as the USDA inspects, they’re moving in.”