Meetings with Habitat Staff and NGO Partners

Today we were joined by two notable guests. First was Elizabeth Blake, Senior Vice President of Advocacy/Government Affairs and General Counsel for Habitat for Humanity International. The other was Habitat for Humanity International Board Member Alex Silva, Founder and President of Omtrix, Inc. Mr. Silva is an expert in micro lending markets and was able to offer key advice as we negotiated questions in housing finance.

Our group started off the day by meeting with Irene Campos, Ministra de Vivienda. Ms. Campos is the Costa Rican Minister of Housing, and offered much insight about how Habitat’s efforts have, and can, alleviate the housing need in Costa Rica. Like other officials we have met, Ms. Campos stressed that government subsidy for housing is, in all cases where possible, linked to land title rights for homeowners. She also understood the need for supportive housing service in addition to the bricks and mortar of initial construction. But not all services were available to the people in the informal settlements that we saw, as she is not allowed to offer any such help to undocumented workers.

Our next meeting was with Juan Jose Umana, Fundacion Costa Rica Canada, one of the nineteen organizations that receive housing funds and work with families. Mr. Umana provided a level of detail on NGO housing finance that we had not yet seen. His depth of knowledge and familiarity with the programs answered some of the team’s lingering questions, like at which levels of income a family can expect a federal housing subsidy to kick in ($400/month), and where it phases out ($2500/month, with a minimum of four sources of income). The interest rates on a family’s mortgage balance, he explained, hover around 15%. This is tied to Costa Rica’s high inflation rate, which is influenced by a high rate of foreign money flowing into the country. Mr. Umana also gave a brief explanation of Finanvivienda, a partnership of member organizations, one of which is Habitat for Humanity Costa Rica, and had a mission similar to Minnesota Housing Partnership. We ended our morning with a lunch at Almuerzo Ruisenor Alameda, where people had amazing lunches, including Katie and I, who ordered some of the best Chicken Cordon Bleu south of the border.

That afternoon we traveled to FUPROVI, another of the nineteen NGO agencies that uses government housing money and turns it into homes for families. We had an expert presentation by Veronica Fonseca, and were later joined by Carmen Gonzales, Gerenta de Desarrollo e Investigacion. What makes FUPROVI unique is its building methods. The entire community works on every house. No family member knows if the house on which he/she is working will be the house where they will live.

Before dinner, we met with Alvaro Gonzalez, of Costarriceenses Solidarios Pro-Vivienda Digna. Mr. Alvaro advocates private for sector participation in the housing solution, suggesting that corporations can help their own employees by contributing resources to housing deficiencies in their own communities. He believes it is an exercise in corporate responsibility. Mr. Gonzales pointed out that if you are poor but don’t own land, you have little chance of receiving a government housing subsidy, unless you are very poor. He hopes his efforts can close that gap.

Our group was privileged to end the day by having dinner at Cena Ram Luna, a restaurant on the hillside with one of the best views of nighttime San Jose. We talked of our trip memories, the people we met and the places we saw. You can’t help but be changed by learning from people who need the help you can provide.

John Lesch,
Team Member, MN State Representative