The Warren County chapter of Habitat for Humanity has dissolved.

Rocco DelPrince told the Times Observer that the closure was effective June 30.

“Recent regulations made it increasingly difficult for an affiliate of our size to serve people in the area,” DelPrince said. “We were considered by our governing bodies to be a ‘bank’ because we were in the business of selling homes, even though our mortgages were interest-free and we collected no fees.”

But what Habitat does certainly doesn’t fit most people would consider a “bank.”

“Homeowners that followed our program only paid principal, property taxes and insurance for their home after they met their volunteer or ‘sweat equity’ requirements,” DelPrince explained.

“We’re pretty proud of what we were able to accomplish in the meantime,” he said. “Our affiliate was chartered in the early 90s and we’ve built a variety of modest and safe homes throughout Warren County. Our partner families have used the opportunity to build a new life for themselves in their new homes.”

One unique relationship the local chapter formed was with the Warren County Career Center – utilizing students in programs there that need practical construction experience to work on Habitat’s homes. A couple of the homes were set up in the lower parking lot at Warren Area High School for the students to work on and then trucked to their final site.

“When we were building homes, we had a strong volunteer labor and donor base that made our program possible,” DelPrince said. “We are also proud of our partnership with the Warren County Career Center and feel that the students in the Building & Construction course gained valuable experience by building our homes.”