The Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity is accepting applications for a new house in Riverside. The group purchased a condemned property and are now looking to build a house with a family. Executive Director Mark Patton said they asked the city of Riverside to alert them of any properties that might be available for purchase, and recently they called to inform him of the property in question. The group constructs five to seven houses every year, and this particular house should be ready to move into next year.

In order to qualify for the Habitat house, applicants must meet certain criteria including: be at or below the acceptable income level, which is dependent on the number of people in the household; have acceptable credit scores; have acceptable debt-to-income ratio; cannot already be homeowners; be a legal United States citizen; and must have a clean criminal record. Patton said most people who are declined are because of credit or debt reasons, but they do offer credit counseling so people can try again. For more information or to apply, visit IowaValleyHabitat.org.