THOUSAND OAKS : Applicants Sought for Habitat House

Low-income families eager to own a home--and willing to devote 500 hours to help build it--are invited to apply for Habitat for Humanity’s first major project in eastern Ventura County.

The nonprofit organization plans to build a three-bedroom, one-bathroom house on Beall Street in Thousand Oaks this summer.

The family selected to own the home must chip in with “sweat equity” labor, be able to come up with escrow closing costs and be able to pay off a 20-year mortgage to cover the price of construction material, estimated at about $60,000.

Other qualifications: The family must have an annual income of $13,000 to $30,000, have members who have lived or worked in Thousand Oaks for at least a year and be unable to buy a home through standard bank loans. In addition, they must be willing to put up with publicity about the project.

Habitat for Humanity has scheduled three informational meetings for families interested in applying. The sessions will take place in the Thousand Oaks High School cafeteria, 2323 N. Moorpark Road, at 7:30 p.m. May 4 and 5, and 1 p.m. May 7.

Habitat for Humanity members are confident that they’ll find a family to meet the group’s tough standards.

“Thousand Oaks is not downtown Los Angeles, but there are a lot of people whose families grew up here and who now can’t afford to live here,” said Jennifer Zobelain, who heads the project committee.

Beall Street residents who live near the Habitat for Humanity building site will participate in screening applicants. Groundbreaking will take place after the family is selected, which probably will occur in July, Zobelain said.