Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP)

The Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP) awards grant funds to eligible national and regional nonprofit 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. SHOP funds must be used for eligible expenses to develop decent, safe and sanitary non-luxury housing for low-income persons and families who otherwise would not become homeowners. Homebuyers must be willing to contribute significant amounts of their own sweat equity toward the construction or rehabilitation of their homes.

SHOP is authorized by the Housing Opportunity Program Extension Act of 1996, Section 11, and is subject to other federal crosscutting requirements. No separate program regulations exist. All program requirements are listed in the applicable SHOP Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA).

Eligible Applicants

National and regional nonprofit organizations or consortia with experience in using homebuyer and volunteer labor to build housing may apply for SHOP grants. Applicants must have completed at least 30 units of self-help homeownership housing within the last 24 months. Eligible homebuyers must apply to participate in the SHOP program through a current SHOP grantee or one of their affiliates.

Application

SHOP grant funds are made available through HUD's annual SHOP NOFA competition. The SHOP NOFA is published on HUD's e-grant portal. Once the NOFA is published, eligible applicants may apply through Grants.gov.

View the FY 2020 SHOP NOFA.

Eligible Activities

SHOP grant funds can only be used for land acquisition, infrastructure improvements, and administrative costs. Total land acquisition and infrastructure improvement costs cannot exceed an average of $15,000 in SHOP assistance per unit. Administrative costs cannot exceed 20 percent of the SHOP grant amount. SHOP grantees must leverage other funds for the new construction or rehabilitation of their SHOP units.

Technical Guidance

HUD's Office of Rural Housing and Economic Development (ORHED) administers SHOP. For more information about SHOP, contact ORHED at 1-877-787-2526 or 202-708-2290. Persons with hearing or speech impairments may access this number via TTY by calling the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

Fiscal Year 2019 SHOP Grantees

Habitat for Humanity International (Habitat) received a SHOP grant award in the amount of $5,421,011. Habitat is a private, non-profit, ecumenical Christian organization that has assisted Habitat affiliates in building and rehabilitating more than 100,000 self-help homeownership housing units in partnership with low-income people in the United States since 1976. Habitat’s mission is carried out locally by approximately 1,251 subordinate self-help homeownership housing organizations within a specific geographic service area. This grant award will be used to complete a minimum of 289 SHOP units. Competed units will be sold to low-income homebuyers who have contributed a significant amount of sweat equity toward the construction of their homes.

Contact Person:
Donna Golden
322 West Lamar Street
Americus, GA 31709-3423
Phone: (229) 410-7514

Housing Assistance Council (HAC) received a SHOP grant award in the amount of $1,307,014. HAC is a national nonprofit self-help housing organization that will use its SHOP funds in primarily rural areas to facilitate and encourage innovative homeownership opportunities through the provision of self-help housing. Local affiliates will compete for SHOP funding from HAC. Each affiliate has the flexibility to design a program that meets the needs of its community. SHOP funds will be used to purchase land and make necessary infrastructure improvements that support the new construction of SHOP housing units. Completed units will be sold to low-income homebuyers who have contributed a significant amount of sweat equity toward the construction of their homes. The grant award will be used to complete a minimum of 70 SHOP housing units.

Contact Person:
Eileen Neely
1025 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 606
Washington, DC 20005-3516
Phone: (202) 842-8600 ext. 119

Community Frameworks (CF) received a SHOP grant award in the amount of $1,121,868. CF is a regional nonprofit self-help housing organization that serves the states of Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. CF will make SHOP funds available to 16 affiliates to purchase land and make necessary infrastructure improvements that support new construction and rehabilitation of the SHOP units. Each affiliate has flexibility to design a program that meets the needs of its community. Grant award funds will be used to complete a minimum of 60 SHOP housing units.

Contact Person:
Heather Megan
907 W. Riverside Avenue
Spokane, WA 99201-1006
Phone: (360) 377-7738

Tierra del Sol Housing Corporation (TDS) received a SHOP grant award in the amount of $2,150,107. TDS is a regional housing community development corporation with the purpose of improving the quality of life and economic conditions of low-income persons residing in distressed and underserved communities by providing affordable housing and community development through construction activities, lending, training, and employment opportunities. The grant award will be used to complete a minimum of 119 SHOP units.

Contact Person:
Rose Garcia
P.O. Box 2626
Anthony, NM 88021-9346
Phone: (575) 541-0477

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