By Leah Foreman – Reporter, Jacksonville Business Journal | It took nearly a decade just to get the land together and the infrastructure in place, but soon the first building of the Beaches Habitat for Humanity’s latest attainable housing project will be open to residents.
The initial four units, part of a single building of townhomes, will be completed by August 2026. Coastal Haven, located off of Mayport Road, along Sandy Walk Lane, will be comprised of 44 units when it is completed by 2030.
Bonnie Laubach, development director for Beaches Habitat for Humanity, spoke to the Business Journal about the need for housing by the beaches.
“It’s really sad to see families that have grown up in this community, that have worked in this community for so long and given back and just can’t afford to be here anymore,” Laubach said, a native of Neptune Beach.
It costs around $200,000 to build each unit, and the total cost of the 44-unit development is approximately $10 million, she said. The nonprofit sources most of its funds through grants and donations.
The residents, who are chosen from a lottery system, pay down the home’s mortgage, which the nonprofit owns, through a 30-year affordable home loan with no interest. Laubach noted that residents have to live or work in the beaches area for at least a year and meet HUD-regulated income requirements to qualify for Beaches Habitat for Humanity Housing.
Residents get to select some finishes and fixtures. They must take part in 300 hours of building their own homes and some mandatory workshops.
The three-bedroom homes will be built with a bedroom on the ground floor for residents with mobility issues so residents can age in place. One of the first four families to move into Coastal Haven is a Navy veteran who has been diagnosed with glaucoma, Laubach said.
Beaches Habitat for Humanity serves Neptune Beach, Atlantic Beach and Jacksonville Beach. The nonprofit’s reach goes as far inland as Saint Johns Bluff Road.
Across the bridge, the First Coast Habitat for Humanity recently broke ground on a 12-home subdivision that will be completed by summer 2027.
The Beaches Habitat for Humanity is a small team, made up of 15 full-time employees, and the nonprofit’s developments are made possible largely through the work of volunteers. Laubach said that they contract out for electrical and plumbing work, usually to Limbaugh Electrical Contracting and Advantage Plumbing.
The small nonprofit struggles to find affordable land. A portion of the 46 parcels that make up Coastal Haven were donated to Beaches Habitat for Humanity. According to Homes.com, the average home values in the area are $918,000 for Neptune Beach, $944,000 for Atlantic Beach and $757,000 for Jacksonville Beach.
Due to the increasing price of land, Laubach said the nonprofit may resort to only doing home rehabilitations, for seniors and veterans who own their homes, within the next 10 years.
“We’re not in the business of giving away homes or just bringing people to the beach that want to live at the beach. That’s not the purpose,” Laubach said. “It’s people that are really in this community and doing the hard work, and it’s just unfortunate there’s nowhere for them to land.”
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