Homebuyer Selection Background Requirements
Policy is subject to be changed or amended at any time by executive committee and board of directors.
Version approved by HFHOC board of directors: January 2020
Fraud or misrepresentation of material facts or information during the selection process: Applicants who provide false information, omit material information, or do not report changes to any material information in a timely manner during the selection process will be declined under willingness to partner. Material information includes but is not limited to disclosure of household members, marital status, income sources, other assets, expenses, debts, criminal/juvenile delinquent history of any household member, and student status for adult dependent household members. Habitat staff and the Homeowner Selection Committee will evaluate the extent to which the applicant intended to mislead in determining eligibility for a future application.
Acceptance of Locations: The applicant must express an acceptance of location for their Habitat home according to the following:
Habitat applicants, during the selection process, will demonstrate willingness to partner by accepting, via a written response on the Application for Partnership, that they cannot choose the location, size, features of their home, and whether it is new or renovated construction. Upon selection into the program, the applicant will sign a Partnership Agreement that states build schedules and locations can change in the time between Application for Partnership and building and/or purchasing the home.
During the selection process, applicants will be informed of the current location(s) where Habitat homes are available. Habitat staff will discuss locations likely to be available and affordable to the applicant, but nothing regarding location is guaranteed at the time of selection into the Habitat program.
If an applicant is unwilling to live at locations that Habitat has available that are affordable and meet funding requirements, the applicant will be denied for lack of willingness to partner.
Floor plans, square footage, features of homes, and whether the home is new or renovated, are determined by Habitat and vary based on location of the home and number of bedrooms. The number of bedrooms is determined according to the House Size Policy (see Ability to Pay section).
In determining the home/location when selecting an applicant or Future Homeowner, Habitat will consider factors related to agency sustainability, including funding source requirements.
If a Future Homeowner does not accept the expected home/location discussed with them during the application and partnership process or the formally offered home/location, they will be moved to the bottom of the Homeowner Build Schedule. If the Future Homeowner does not accept a second time they will be declined or de-selected.
Certifying Willingness to Partner - The following methods and resources are used to determine willingness to partner:
Information given on the Application for Partnership
Information gathered at interview and/or home visit
Interaction with Habitat staff and Homeowner Selection Committee volunteers during the selection process
Signing of the Partnership Agreement
Sex Offender Registry and Criminal Background Check Policy
Purpose: As a ministry, HFHOC values the safety of children, our employees, volunteers and families we serve. We want to take prudent measures to protect our human and material resources. Additionally, HFHI requires affiliates to conduct sexual offender registry checks on all applicants and strongly recommends that affiliates conduct criminal background checks on all applicants, adopting and consistently utilizing a policy for conducting checks and making decisions based on results of those checks. Therefore, HFHOC has set this policy to require sex offender registry and criminal background checks of all applicants and household members who may be selected to become Habitat homeowners. This Sex Offender Registry and Criminal Background Check Policy considers an applicant’s history that may have an impact on the applicant’s ability to pay, willingness to partner, or that may pose a risk to HFHOC, its staff, volunteers, contractors, agents, or others in the community.
Notice and Consent: Applicants will be notified that all applicants and household members as listed on the Application for Partnership or disclosed any time before mortgage closing, age 14 and older, are subject to sex offender registry checks, and all adult applicants and household members age 18 or older are subject to criminal background checks. On the Application for Partnership, applicants and household members will be asked to disclose convictions, diversions, guilty or nolo contendere pleas, and/or juvenile adjudications (that are open to public inspection) occurring at any time in the past, and arrests, charges, petitions and/or active probation or parole statuses in the last 12 months. While only adults can and will be screened through a third party background screening service, applicants will be notified that juvenile adjudications (that are open to public inspection) for any applicant or household member, whether currently a minor or adult, are covered under this policy and should be disclosed and that HFHOC has the right to conduct criminal background checks on any member of the applicant household age 14 or older. Juvenile adjudications that are open to public inspection in Tennessee include first degree murder, second degree murder, rape, aggravated rape, rape of a child, aggravated robbery, especially aggravated robbery, kidnapping, aggravated kidnapping, or especially aggravated kidnapping and the attempt to commit those offenses, but juvenile adjudications open to public inspection from any state are relevant to this policy. Any applicant or household member who does not consent to a sex offender registry or criminal background check will disqualify the entire household from being selected for partnership with HFHOC.
Separated spouses - When an applicant is separated from his or her spouse, and has not been granted a divorce by a court of competent jurisdiction or is not granted a divorce by the home purchase date, the applicant’s spouse will be considered a household member of the applicant and will be subject to sexual offender registry checks and criminal background checks in the same manner described in this policy for other household members. Failure of the subject spouse to consent to such checks or to make the required disclosures will disqualify the applicant from being selected for partnership with HFHOC or will cause the applicant to be de-selected for partnership.
Sources of Information: HFHOC may utilize a third party background screening service and public sex offender registry databases to conduct sex offender registry and criminal background checks. As warranted in relation to any household member, HFHOC may seek law enforcement, correction agency, and/or court records or search other available databases including the National Sex Offender Public Website.
Procedures:
HFHOC Homeowner Services staff will initiate the sex offender registry and criminal background check prior to final Homeowner Selection Committee review. Whenever possible, the results of these check(s) are considered prior to selecting the applicant. When this is not possible, Committee selections are contingent upon the results of these checks.
HFHOC reserves the right to recheck sex offender registry and criminal backgrounds at any time during the partnership up to the time of the home purchase, and the applicant and household must continue to qualify under this policy for the duration of the Habitat partnership.
The only other persons who will have direct knowledge of the results of the checks will be the Executive Director and the Homeowner Services Manager.
Sex Offender Registry Decision-Making Criteria:
An applicant’s or household member’s presence on the sex offender registry must be verified as legitimate, and HFH affiliates may automatically decline or de-select an applicant based on verification of this information, except in states that prohibit or restrict using sex offender registry information in housing decisions. Tennessee is not such a state.
HFHOC will decline or de-select applications when an applicant or household member is verified as a registered sex offender.
Criminal Background Check Decision-Making Criteria
The following conditions will render an application ineligible:
A conviction, guilty or nolo contendere plea, and/or juvenile adjudication (that is open for public inspection) of the applicant(s) or any member of the applicant household occurring at any time in any jurisdiction for an offense that would constitute a Class A Felony in the state of Tennessee.
Any felony conviction, diversion, guilty or nolo contendere plea, and/or juvenile adjudication (that is open for public inspection) of the applicant(s) or any member of the applicant household occurring within the last ten years in any jurisdiction that would constitute a felony offense other than a Class A Felony in the state of Tennessee.
Any misdemeanor conviction, diversion, guilty or nolo contendere plea, and/or juvenile adjudication (that is open to public inspection) of the applicant(s) or any member of the applicant household occurring within the last five years involving:
Offenses that would constitute a Class A Misdemeanor in the state of Tennessee
Any offense not listed above that HFHOC reasonably determines has the potential to affect the right to peaceful enjoyment of the neighborhood by others living in the applicant’s prospective community or that threatens the health, safety, or welfare of HFHOC, its staff, volunteers, future homeowners, contractors, and agents, or others living in the applicant’s prospective community.
If there are charges pending against an applicant or household member, the decision about the application may be postponed until the case is settled. If the case will take longer than 60 days to settle, the applicant will be denied on willingness to partner because the application is not complete without this information.
Arrests, charges, or petitions against any member of the applicant household, whether convicted, adjudicated, or not, involving any of the offenses listed above, and occurring in the last twelve months.
Applicants or household members with current or previous probation or parole sentences that have not been satisfactorily completed for one year. Applicants will be required to provide verifying documentation.
Failure to disclose on the application any past felony or misdemeanor convictions, diversions, guilty or nolo contendere pleas, and/or juvenile adjudications (that are open for public inspection) occurring at any time in the past or arrests, charges, or petitions in the last 12 months, involving any of the offenses listed above, or failure to disclose an active probation or parole status in the last 12 months.
The following conditions require additional consideration and review by a panel appointed by the HFHOC Board
Any conviction, diversion, guilty or nolo contendere plea, and/or juvenile adjudication (that is open to public inspection) of the applicant(s) or any member of the applicant household occurring more than 10 years in the past in any jurisdiction that would constitute a felony offense other than a Class A Felony in the state of Tennessee.
Any misdemeanor conviction, diversion, guilty or nolo contendere plea, and/or juvenile adjudication (that is open to public inspection) of the applicant(s) or any member of the applicant household occurring in the past 10 years involving any of the types of offenses listed previously in section F 1 (c).
Panel Reviews: In the instances above, HFHOC will initiate a Panel Review of an applicant(s) or household members’ criminal or juvenile delinquency background and HFHOC will determine, in its sole discretion, if that background poses a risk to the right to peaceful enjoyment of the neighborhood by others living in the applicant’s prospective community or threatens the health, safety, or welfare of HFHOC, its staff, volunteers, future homeowners, contractors, and agents, or others living in the applicant’s prospective community.
Panel Decisions: The Panel will be comprised of the Board Chair and Co-Chairs of the Homeowner Selection Committee, Executive Director, and the Homeowner Services Manager. The panel will review all information obtained on the applicant(s), and any mitigating evidence provided by the applicant(s). The panel will take into account the following considerations when making a determination on the applicant:
The nature of the offense and whether children were involved
The nature of the pattern of criminal activity committed since the last offense
The number of offenses
The time elapsed since the offenses
The age of the candidate when the offenses occurred
The extent to which the offenses may affect the right to peaceful enjoyment of the neighborhood by others living in the applicant’s prospective community
The extent to which the offenses may threaten the health, safety, or welfare of HFHOC, its staff, volunteers, future homeowners, contractors, and agents, or others living in the applicant’s prospective community.
Any information produced by the applicant demonstrating rehabilitation and good conduct (see “Mitigating Evidence” section below)
Any other factor or information that HFHOC deems relevant.
Mitigating Evidence: HFHOC will allow the applicant to present mitigating evidence, in the form of (a) letters of recommendation from employers, doctors, counselors, or other relevant parties who are able to give an independent recommendation for the applicant or household member, (b)records from rehabilitation programs, community service programs, or other programs demonstrating applicant or household member’s rehabilitation or commitment to rehabilitate behavior, or (c) any other relevant information obtained from an unrelated third party demonstrating that the applicant or member of applicant’s household does not currently present a risk to peaceful enjoyment of the neighborhood by others living in the applicant’s prospective community or threat to the health, safety, or welfare of HFHOC, its staff, volunteers, future homeowners, contractors, and agents, or others living in the applicant’s prospective community.
All Panel Review decisions must be made by unanimous vote. Final decisions will be communicated to the HFHOC Executive Director.
All applicants denied under this policy are notified in writing of the specific reasons for the denial in accordance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act. Applicants are provided with information about the reporting agency (name, address, telephone number); are advised that the reporting agency did not make the adverse decision and cannot provide the applicant with reasons for denial; and are notified that they have the right to obtain a copy of the background check report and dispute the accuracy of the information.
If an applicant is declined or de-selected under this policy, the applicant may appeal the decision in writing to HFHOC’s Executive Committee within 30 days of written notification. The Homeowner Selection Committee Chair will review and present the information to the Executive Committee which may affirm or overturn the decision.
Reapplying after denial based on criminal background
Applicants who are denied based on time limits of a charge or offense are not eligible for twelve months from the date of the Adverse Action Notice. If applications are not being accepted on a rolling basis, then applicants may be eligible upon reapplying during the next application submission period assuming the appropriate time has passed.
Applicants denied based on non-disclosure will not be eligible upon reapplication.
Reapplication for applicants denied after a panel review will be considered on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the policy but must wait at least one year to reapply.
If an applicant is declined under this policy due to the criminal or juvenile delinquent history of a coapplicant or other household member and the applicant desires to reapply and remove that individual from the household, the application will not be eligible for at least one year. When reapplying, the applicant may be asked to provide reasonable proof that the person will no longer live with them.
If an applicant is declined due to presence on the sex offender registry, they may reapply once removed from the registry. All policies regarding the original offense and sentence timelines will apply.
