Every October, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sioux Falls opens its doors to families hoping to buy a home they couldn't otherwise afford. This year's window is open now, and it closes at the end of the month.
According to Habitat's homeownership page, the annual application round runs Oct. 1 through 31. Application packets are available at the Habitat office and online through Oct. 30. The deadline to turn in the application and all required documents is Saturday, Oct. 31, at 6 p.m.
Who can apply
Applicants must have lived or worked in Minnehaha, Lincoln or Turner County for the past 12 months. They must be U.S. citizens or have permanent residency by Oct. 31, and they must meet Habitat's income, credit and debt guidelines.
The income range is set by household size. For a family of four this year, the minimum is $47,500 and the maximum is $83,100. For a single person, it's $33,250 to $58,200.
Applicants with established credit need a score of at least 580. Monthly debt payments can't be more than 15% of gross monthly income, and applicants must save at least $2,500 for closing costs.
Then comes the work. Buyers put in 200 to 250 hours of sweat equity alongside Habitat's crews before they can buy, and they take homebuyer education classes. Habitat builds the house, sells it at appraised value and makes the loan, adjusting loan terms to keep payments affordable.
Habitat says it typically has six to 10 openings a year, and it can only build where it owns land.
From Millard Acres to Cliffview Heights
The affiliate is about to finish its first full neighborhood. Millard Acres, a 3.07-acre development in northeast Sioux Falls, was designed for 13 twin homes housing 26 families. Habitat secured the land with the City of Sioux Falls in 2020 and began infrastructure work that fall. All the twin homes are built with insulated concrete forms. The homes sit on North Americus Circle, a cul-de-sac a few blocks east of Cliff Avenue, according to South Dakota News Watch.
Construction on the last three twin homes started at the end of 2025. Habitat says it expects to welcome the final six families home at the end of this year. When three twin homes were finished at the end of 2025, the affiliate reached 200 homes sold since its founding in 1989.
Next up is Cliffview Heights. Habitat says construction there will begin in 2027, with eight twin homes for 16 families built over three years. Habitat is also building single-family homes in Granite Valley with CTE Academy, Harrisburg High School and Southeast Technical College. That work is expected to continue through 2028 or 2029.
Executive Director Rocky Welker explained the shift to whole neighborhoods in an interview with South Dakota News Watch earlier this year. "We didn't do a project with 13 twin homes because we wanted to go and invest a lot more money and take on a bigger project with more responsibility," Welker said. "We did it because if we didn't, we wouldn't have had land to build on."
Welker told News Watch that partnerships made Millard Acres possible. Habitat received funding from South Dakota Housing and a zero-interest loan for the land from the City of Sioux Falls. He also said that most new Sioux Falls subdivisions have covenants requiring homes of a certain size and with certain amenities. "Everything on the open market is at a price point that by the time you pay for the land and infrastructure, you need to see higher-priced homes to make it pencil out," he said.
Why it matters for Contractors
Habitat isn't competing with builders for the same buyers. It serves families who can't get into the open market at all. But its experience shows the same problem many contractors face: land and infrastructure costs, plus subdivision covenants, make entry-level homes hard to build in Sioux Falls.
Twin homes on a cul-de-sac, ICF walls and partnerships with schools and the city are how Habitat has made the numbers work. Contractors and suppliers can help, too, by volunteering crews, donating materials to the ReStore or sharing expertise. And for builders thinking about entry-level product, Habitat's shift to small neighborhoods of twin homes is worth studying.