Austin Habitat for Humanity to build affordable homes for ‘community of tomorrow’

Habitat for Humanity International announced on Oct. 15 that Austin Habitat for Humanity will host the 2025 Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, an annual, weeklong home-building blitz that attracts thousands of handy volunteers.

Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity, last year’s Carter Work Project host, passed on the symbolic hammer to Austin Habitat during the closing ceremony of this year’s work project in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Michele Anderson, Austin Habitat CEO, said she was thrilled by the selection.

“It’s an honor to be the host city in 2025 and bring attention to the affordable housing challenges faced by many hard-working Central Texans,” she said. She noted that the week-long event will coincide with Austin Habitat’s 40th anniversary.

Since its founding in 1985, Austin Habitat has built more than 550 homes and repaired 400-plus homes in five counties, with the help of its partners and volunteers.

The 2025 Carter Work Project will expand Austin Habitat’s construction efforts into eastern Travis County with Whisper Valley, a sustainable, master-planned community billed as the first fully geothermal neighborhood in the U.S.

“For Austin, this project is not just about building homes,” Anderson told the Monitor. “It’s about fostering a sense of community and addressing the pressing needs of families struggling to reach the dream of affordable homeownership. It underscores our collective responsibility to ensure that everyone has access to safe, affordable housing.”

She added that she hoped the event would “inspire conversations about long-term solutions” to create more affordable, equitable housing in the region.

The 2,067-acre Whisper Valley development will be located 15 miles from Downtown Austin along the SH 130 corridor, between Tesla’s Gigafactory and Samsung’s $7 billion production facility. Over the course of one week – Oct. 26 to 31 – Austin Habitat volunteers will help to build 25 affordable homes for the development.

Angel Leverett, Austin Habitat’s communications director, anticipates a turnout of 800 volunteers a day – 4,000 for the week. Austin Habitat plans eventually to build over 700 affordable homes at Whisper Valley.

The homes, which start at $230,000, will feature both geothermal heat pumps and solar panels designed to generate more energy than they consume. This design scheme achieves a Home Energy Rating System rating of 25. The HERS rating is a numerical score from 0 to 100 that indicates how energy-efficient a home is.

Master plans for the overall development include both residential neighborhoods and business districts, a 600-acre park, a 26-mile hike-and-bike trail, pocket parks, multiple community centers, community gardens, village-type restaurants, retail spaces, office areas, an emergency services center, planned future neighborhood services, a transportation center, two gas stations, and on-site elementary, middle and high schools.

Taurus Investment Holdings is the developer in charge of the project.

Those interested in volunteering or in being a sponsor for the project may visit austinhabitat.org or contact cwp@ahfh.org.

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