TRAVERSE CITY — The last two families have crossed the threshold to complete the New Waves Community Housing Project of 13 single-family homes.
Partner organizations, Habitat for Humanity Grand Traverse Region and New Waves United Church of Christ, welcomed them recently with a ceremony for the new homeowners and gifts of quilts, embroidery and Bibles.
Those families – the Kamps and the Dugans – shared their struggles and dreams on the road to homeownership.
Julie and Aiden Kamp, who have known each other since preschool, have been together since they were 16. When they were 18, they found out that Julie was pregnant.
Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with a medical condition called hyperemesis gravidarum, a severe form of sickness during pregnancy, and they learned it was potentially life-threatening. After the birth of their son in 2024, they were told that Julie would be medically at risk if she were to give birth again. They decided they would adopt a child.
The family had dropped to one income since Julie could not work. Meanwhile, the gap between their income and the cost of a house grew, Aiden Kamp said.
In 2024, the median household income in Traverse City was $74,087, while the median home value was $415,400, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
“For the first two years our son was born, it was sad because we kept having to move because rent was getting more expensive.”
He mentioned those movies where families draw lines on the wall to show how tall their children are growing. “We never really got that,” he said.
Then they connected with Habitat for Humanity through their adopted daughter’s cheer team. They applied for housing. And, eventually, they got their house.
As young parents, the Kamps are big on not just giving their children a home, but also stability.
“We’re still very young and just to know that we’ll never have to worry about moving again … It’s everything,” Julie Kamp said.
For the Dugan family, the path to homeownership was quite different.
Jaclyn Dugan used to work with Habitat in Illinois before she came to Traverse City.
Then, after her divorce, Dugan and her two daughters had to go house-hunting.
After she reached back out to Habitat, she was able to volunteer to build her own house.
“There’s been lots of work that we’ve come and helped with, which has been really kind of tables-turned for me,” Dugan said.
Illinois has a median house value of $265,500, — about $150,000 less than houses in Traverse City.
What makes the houses here affordable is Habitat for Humanity’s business model. The model that these homeowners pay for is a fixed rate based on the homeowner’s annual income, in addition to whatever mortgage they can get.
“We believe 30% of their income is affordable,” Habitat for Humanity CEO Wendy Irwin said. “Anything above that, then that’s where all the donors and all the other programs fill that gap in.”
For Irwin, the feeling she gets during the ceremony and being able to give the keys to the new homeowners is a big part of their reward.
“I’m addicted to a happy ending, and every time I see the smiles and the faces and that strength, stability, and self-reliance that we’ve had the opportunity, the privilege, the honor to contribute to – it keeps us going,” Irwin said.
Despite these two happy endings, she said, they’re aware of the challenge facing the working class – especially in the Grand Traverse region.
“This is a desirable community, but the market rates are too high for an average family to be able to afford,” Irwin said.
So their fight for affordable housing will continue, Irwin said, but their next project will be in Kalkaska County.
“We have eight houses that we’re building there, townhome style,” she said. “That’ll be completed within a year.”