PHOENIX — Amid a housing crisis in Arizona, a single mom and her daughters received the news of a gift of a new home to help ease their burden.
Sandra Cervantes and her daughters currently live in a townhome in Central Phoenix. The single mom works more than 50 hours a week.
>> Live, local, breaking. Download the 12News app
"We actually went to look at, like, different townhouses and by central area really expensive, like $2,500 just for, like a three-bedroom townhouse and still no backyard," Cervantes said.
A few months ago Cervantes applied for Habitat for Humanity's Home Ownership program.
"My friend, she actually has a house with Habitat housing, and she kept saying, like, 'Go - go, apply for the house - apply for the house.'," Cervantes said. "And I was kind of like, we're kind of thinking, Oh, we probably wouldn't, you know, get approved anyways."
Friday, she found out she was approved for the home.
The Arizona Lottery sponsored $100,000 to help with the 'sticks and bricks' of the home, to be built near 16th Street and Southern Avenue.
The Cervantes family will also put in hundreds of hours of sweat equity into their home too, while also having a mortgage.
"No interest," Jason Barlow, President and CEO for Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona said. "And because we're the bank we can stretch the payments so that it meets your pay, you know, what you earn. So we don't want you to pay too much for housing."
It's housing to become a new home.
"Just knowing you know that we're going to have the house, that's a big blessing," Cervantes said.
Watch 12News for free
You can now watch 12News content anytime, anywhere thanks to the 12+ app!
The free 12+ app from 12News lets users stream live events — including daily newscasts like "Today in AZ" and "12 News" and our daily lifestyle program, "Arizona Midday"—on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV.
12+ showcases live video throughout the day for breaking news, local news, weather and even an occasional moment of Zen showcasing breathtaking sights from across Arizona.
Users can also watch on-demand videos of top stories, local politics, I-Team investigations, Arizona-specific features and vintage videos from the 12News archives.
Roku: Add the channel from the Roku store or by searching for "12 News KPNX."
Amazon Fire TV: Search for "12 News KPNX" to find the free 12+ app to add to your account, or have the 12+ app delivered directly to your Amazon Fire TV through Amazon.com or the Amazon app.