Homes Not Jails - Sweat Equity

Sweat Equity

Sweat equity is the cornerstone of the Homes Not Jails philosophy. It is formulated to address the problem that most affordable housing is unaffordable for people with no income or people on General Assistance, Supplemental Security Income, or Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Homes Not Jails proposes an alternative model for people who are destitute and need to do labor instead of pay rent. The use of sweat equity decreases the amount of government funding needed to make affordable units available, and for more complex building skills such as architecture or engineering Homes Not Jails has historically relied on volunteer work. The underlying principle is to have residents do the work on their own housing and greatly reduce the cost of running a large non-profit organization that would contract out or source volunteers to help in construction efforts.