One Montreal family is getting a much better Christmas gift than most: a new home thanks to Habitat for Humanity.
Construction on this duplex in St. Henri began in April.
About 200 volunteers came together to build the home on Bourassa St. after the city of Montreal sold the property to the charity organization.
Jean-Maurice Forget, president of the Quebec branch of Habitat for Humanity, said the original goal was to give the lower half of the duplex to an indigenous family because it is located near the offices of Native Montreal, a community group for indigenous and non-indigenous people.
The home ended up going to the Elkaami family, which was ecstatic to finally have their own home instead of a cockroach-infested apartment where they had been living.
"We are very happy, we are very excited and finally we have our own place," said Noureddine Elkaami.
The upper half of the duplex was given to a family of five in October.
Forget said the gift of a home does come with some strings attached.
Before giving a family a home, Habitat for Humanity insists that the recipients have lived in the area and be able to eventually pay off the mortgage.
"They buy the house. What we're doing is we're adapting the payments on the mortgage to their financial capacity. Habitat for Humanity owns the mortgage, so if they have any issues it's not a bank that owns the mortgage, it's Habitat, and we are very flexible with the families that live in the houses we sell," said Forget.
In exchange for not paying interest on the mortgage, Habitat insists the homeowner put in sweat equity by spending at least 500 hours working on the home.
"That's their contribution to have access to that mortgage without any interest," said Forget.
But Elkaami said he plans to spend more time volunteering so he can help pay it forward.
"I want to do more. Like I say before, we are part of this big family," said Elkaami.
