Habitat for Humanity GTA
STAR RATINGCi's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics: |
✔+
FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY
Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.
A
RESULTS REPORTING
Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.
Low
DEMONSTRATED IMPACT
The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.
NEED FOR FUNDING
Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.
51%
CENTS TO THE CAUSE
For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 51 cents are available for programs.
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Programs
About Habitat for Humanity GTA:
Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area (HFH GTA) was created in 2014 when three Habitat affiliates merged: Habitat for Humanity Toronto (founded in 1988), Brampton-Caledon, and York Region. HFH GTA is one of 1,400 worldwide affiliates of Habitat for Humanity (HFH) that work towards creating a world where everyone has a safe and stable place to live. HFH was founded in 1976 in Georgia and has since spread to over 70 countries. HFH originally gained worldwide acclaim when former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn supported HFH efforts through the Jimmy Carter Work Project in 1984.
Habitat for Humanity’s homeownership program provides working low-income families with the opportunity to purchase an affordable home, usually with no down payment required. The charity offers a fixed, 20-year mortgage with zero interest. Mortgage payments are calculated annually to ensure that families are not paying more than 30% of household income. When mortgage payments are received, the charity reinvests this money into building more houses. To be able to buy a house, individuals must meet Habitat for Humanity’s requirements as well as contribute 500 hours of sweat equity helping build their own home and the homes of others.
In F2018, HFH GTA completed the building of 28 new houses giving 142 people, including 88 children, a safe place to call home. At the end of F2018, the charity has 26 more homes under construction, including 13 townhouses in Brampton. This compares with 26 families in F2016 and 60 homes under construction. Since 1988, HFH GTA has built and provided close to 400 homes.
HFH GTA operates 12 home improvement stores across the GTA called ReStores, adding two new ReStores over the last two years. ReStores sell new and used home furnishings, appliances, and renovation materials to the public at a reduced price. In F2018, ReStores collected more than 12,000 donated home items, and earned net profits of $1.7 million.
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Results and Impact
According to Habitat for Humanity GTA, after moving into a new home, 87% of families report less asthma and fewer allergy-related conditions, 88% report improvements in their children’s confidence, 76% report improvement in overall family health, and 76% report improvements in children’s grades.
Habitat for Humanity Canada reports that every dollar given in its Canadian building operations produces $4 of social benefit as reported in Boston Consulting Group’s 2015 impact analysis. BCG’s assessment found that the estimated value to society that Habitat for Humanity generates per family is about $175,000. Beyond this social return on investment, families reported high levels of well-being and positive changes in many aspects of their lives, such as improved social engagement.
Charity Intelligence has given Habitat for Humanity GTA a Low impact rating for demonstrated impact per dollar.
Impact Rating: Low
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Finances
Habitat for Humanity GTA is a medium-sized charity with donations totaling $4.8m in F2018. Administrative costs are 13% of revenues and fundraising costs are 36% of donations. For every dollar donated, 51 cents is available to cover its programs. This is outside Ci’s reasonable range.
Habitat for Humanity GTA received $874k in donated goods and services to help build homes in F2018. When these non-cash donations are included in donations, total donations and fundraising revenues rise to $5.7m and fundraising costs drop to 31%. Including donated goods, HFH GTA has 56 cents available to cover its program costs from every donated dollar.
Habitat for Humanity GTA has interest-bearing debts of $21.6m, and a cash balance of $4.1m. This shows as a negative funding reserve of $17.5m. This is common for most Habitat for Humanity chapters across Canada that hold mortgages for first-time homeowners.
In F2017, HFH GTA changed auditors. Figures for F2016 were restated.
Updated on June 20, 2019 by Stefan Tetzlaff.
Financial Review
Fiscal year ending December
|
2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Administrative costs as % of revenues | 12.3% | 6.8% | 8.3% |
| Fundraising costs as % of donations | 36.5% | 37.3% | 35.5% |
| Program cost coverage (%) | (164.8%) | (146.2%) | (197.7%) |
Summary Financial StatementsAll figures in $000s |
2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donations | 4,798 | 4,702 | 4,812 |
| Goods in kind | 874 | 5,659 | 989 |
| Government funding | 270 | 2,270 | 466 |
| Fees for service | 3,813 | 4,548 | 3,331 |
| Business activities (net) | 1,724 | 2,231 | 2,098 |
| Investment income | 45 | 75 | 55 |
| Total revenues | 11,523 | 19,485 | 11,752 |
| Program costs | 10,640 | 9,202 | 8,604 |
| Administrative costs | 1,416 | 1,312 | 969 |
| Fundraising costs | 1,751 | 1,755 | 1,708 |
| Cash flow from operations | (2,284) | 7,216 | 470 |
| Capital spending | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Funding reserves | (17,538) | (13,451) | (17,007) |
Note: Habitat for Humanity financial statements are complex. Ci presents the figures to include HFH core construction cost and mortgage payments received. Ci reports home and project development costs in program costs, increasing expenses by $7.1m in F2018, $5.8m in F2017, and $5.3m in F2016. Ci reports mortgage payments received from families housed in HFH homes in fees for service, increasing revenues by $3.8m in F2018, $4.5m in F2017, and $3.3m in F2016. Ci reports ReStore profits excluding non-cash amortization charges. This increases ReStore profits by $172k in F2018, $150k in F2017, and $57k in F2016. Similarly, Ci excludes non-cash amortization charges from program, admin, and fundraising costs. This decreased program costs by $83k in F2018, $113k in F2017, and $147k in F2016, admin costs decreased by $27k in F2018, $28k in F2017, and $24k in F2016, and lastly, fundraising costs dropped by $174 in F2017.
Salary Information
$350k + |
0 |
$300k - $350k |
0 |
$250k - $300k |
0 |
$200k - $250k |
0 |
$160k - $200k |
1 |
$120k - $160k |
3 |
$80k - $120k |
5 |
$40k - $80k |
0 |
< $40k |
0 |
Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2017
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Comments & Contact
Comments added by the Charity:
The chasm between incomes and housing prices in the GTA has driven a situation where the need for affordable housing has never been greater for working, lower-income families in the regions where we build. In the last five years, only 2% of homes built or under development are affordable. A 2019 RBC study described the situation as drastic and reported that only 20% of GTA households can afford a home in the area.
Against this challenge, our mission remains the same, and philanthropic donations remain critical to Habitat for Humanity GTA’s work to build more decent, affordable homes and deliver affordable homeownership to working, lower-income families. Our donors and supporters are confident of our proven and enduring model for three specific reasons:
1. Net profits from our ReStore social enterprise directly fund our overhead costs for administration and fundraising. In this way we are able to maximize the impact of every contribution, cash and non-cash. In calculating all contributions, and applying our ReStore profits against our expenses, Habitat for Humanity GTA’s “cents to cause” in 2018 is a healthy 74.5%.
2. Our Mortgage Model ensures that funds are continuously reinvested to enable us to build more homes for more GTA families.
3. The number of homes we are building is growing year over year, with our largest build ever – 50 homes at Pinery Trail in Scarborough (Toronto) – to be completed before year end 2019.
Habitat for Humanity GTA continues to be nimble and innovative as we develop strategies to build more homes, house more families, and strengthen more communities. We are only able to do this through the generous cash and gifts-in-kind donations from individuals and corporations across the GTA – your support is the catalyst for building these homes and helping our communities remain strong, vibrant and inclusive.
*Sources: Boston Consulting Group, Transforming Lives: The Social Return of Habitat's Work in Canada, 2015
Charity Contact
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