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Wednesday, November 12, 2003 Metro Brokers sponsors, builds Habitat house Metro Brokers/GMAC Real Estate recently sponsored and built its first Habitat house in College Park for a single mother of twin boys. The blitz build, constructing a home in one week, took place at Faith Cove near Godby Road with an official ribbon cutting ceremony at the end of the week. Associates and employees from each of Metro Brokers 18 metro Atlanta offices lent their time, money and sweat to build this home. Kay Fulp of the Peachtree City office said she never would have thought a home could be built in a week, but what a difference a day makes. With more than 500 company volunteers participating in the project, the Habitat home was finished on time. "My husband, Jim, is a builder and our job site superintendent and he especially enjoys seeing the progress of the home. He is used to seeing a home built in seven months not seven days." "Associates were so excited because they are used to selling homes, not building them," laughed Kevin Levent, president and CEO. "I enjoyed seeing everyone on the job site chipping in and having fun in the process." Associates and employees of all ages hammered, caulked, painted, laid sod, and planted. Many people thought they didn’t know how to do construction work or felt they may be too old. Not so. There was something for everyone, whether it was sweeping, giving out water, cooking, cleaning, giving out t-shirts, or overseeing first aid. "Marsha Wells of the Peachtree City office really deserves a lot of the credit," said Levent. "She was instrumental in making our Habitat house a reality. She helped raise more than $40,000 to build the home and met with builders, agents and Habitat for Humanity staff on a regular basis to ensure everything was on schedule. Plus, many associates continually made financial contributions. Even just $10 a month made a difference." Families must invest 400 "sweat equity" hours on other Habitat homes before being considered for a home. Habitat homeowners are also chosen on the basis of housing need and their ability to repay the no-interest, no profit mortgage. Brenda Rayburn, executive director of Southern Crescent Habitat for Humanity, said, "It is a hand up, not a hand out." "Metro Brokers and Habitat for Humanity has made my dreams of home ownership a reality," said Maria Otero Ingram, Habitat recipient. "I believe my home is even more special because it is built with love. These volunteers helped me out of the kindness of their hearts and it means the world to me." Metro Brokers/GMAC Real Estate is a full-service real estate company offering a wide range of real estate services including residential and commercial sales; pre- and post-license training; corporate relocation; new home sales and marketing; and insurance, mortgage and title/closing services. Metro Brokers/GMAC Real Estate promotes employee volunteerism. Habitat for Humanity is just one of the many community projects sales associates are involved in. Just a few of the projects associates volunteer for include: Meals on Wheels; the Peachtree Road Race; revitalizing older neighborhoods; missions to third world countries; collecting clothes, food and supplies for Cartersville’s Tranquility House; and donating school supplies to children in need. "I can’t believe how much fun everyone had working construction of all things," exclaimed Judy Levy of the Perimeter office. "Volunteering is such a rewarding and invaluable experience."
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