Here’s what to take away from the Habitat Philadelphia Community Impact Report

The Philadelphia chapter of Habitat for Humanity recently released a report detailing the impact of their work in fiscal year 2015.

Besides the usual details like number of volunteers (3,200), number of homes built (10) and number of homes repaired (88), the report includes a brand new metric: the amount of revenue generated by its newly opened ReStore, which sells repurposed home goods to the general public for less than retail price. According to the report, that store is on track to generate $150,000 by December.

But where are those funds going?

“The nice part about the ReStore funds is they are unrestricted,” said Habitat for Humanity executive director Frank Monaghan. “By the end of December, we’ll have generated enough funds to finance the building of a whole house. This is a big part of our growth plan for the future.”

Build one house, Monaghan clarified, or repair at least 10, if all of those unrestricted funds are indeed funneled into the nonprofit’s programming. The need for repair is critical, as the number of Philadelphia homes in need of those services continues to scale upwards of 6,500 – and that’s just the roster of homes on the city’s basic systems repair program. Habitat for Humanity has been trimming away at that list for the past five years.

“In Philadelphia right now, one in eight is an elderly homeowner that cannot afford a basic repair on their home,” the nonprofit’s associate executive director Corinne O’Connell said at this year’s Wharton Social Impact Conference. “All growth is fantastic, but if we do not stabilize existing housing, we’ll be in a pickle as a city.” 

The ReStore, which O’Connell said was launched with $300,000 in startup capital and generated $107,000 in its first quarter, has been so successful that the nonprofit already has its sights on opening up store two and three. It’s been a welcome boon for their programming: Activity in fiscal year 2015 generated approximately $5,071,023 in support and revenue for the nonprofit, with approximately $3,986,141 of that sum spent on programming. For fiscal year 2016, Habitat Philadelphia hopes to build 12 homes and repair 92 in the city.