Haven Design|Build Addresses Affordability Crisis with its Unique Housing and Community Development in North Carolina

As the United States faces an unprecedented housing crisis, with millions struggling to afford a roof over their heads, innovative solutions are more critical than ever. In this challenging landscape, Haven Design|Build, a certified BCorp social enterprise based in Durham, North Carolina, is actively making a change in the affordable housing and community development spaces. It strives to achieve this by creating environments in which all residents are engaged and able to thrive. 

In the US, half of renters struggle to afford their rent, and nearly 85% of homes are priced beyond the reach of the average family. There is a shortage of approximately 3.2 million homes, and demand outstripping supply is one of the main reasons why prices are so high. 

To address these problems, governments and private enterprises have been working together to increase the supply of affordable housing units and help alleviate the housing crisis, especially for under-served communities. This award-winning licensed architecture and construction company is one of the participants in this sector. Haven Design|Build focuses on single-family and multi-family projects for under-served, vulnerable, and/or disadvantaged communities.  

It was founded in 2016 by Drew Helm, Zach Sunderland, and Bryce Jahner. Sunderland and Helm met while studying architecture at Iowa State University, with Helm later shifting to communications and management, where he met Jahner. Sunderland’s volunteer work in Haiti after a devastating earthquake inspired him to create affordable, well-built housing. 

Reconnecting years later, Sunderland and Helm combined their architecture and business expertise to establish this company. Their integrated design-build model offers significant advantages by merging architectural and general contractor services, resulting in more efficient designs, greater transparency, and fewer conflicts. This architecture firm collaborates with developers on various affordable housing projects in the Raleigh-Durham region, both of which are among the top five hottest US housing markets.  

One such project is on Ross Road in Durham, which Haven Design|Build is helping restore. A naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) property, the Ross Road project is partially funded by the city government and consists of 44 units and a community center. Haven Design|Build is working with the developer, Reinvestment Partners, as the architect for the whole project, as well as the general contractor for 12 units. This is a no-displacement project, where tenants are temporarily moved into vacant units while their units are being rehabilitated. Once that’s completed, they can move back into their original residence and their rent remains unchanged. 

Haven Design|Build was the design-build partner for restoring Holloway Place in Durham. A historic duplex that served as a transitional shelter for more than two decades was transformed into the region's first affordable co-housing project. This was a public-private partnership with the city of Durham, the affordable housing developer Housing for New Hope, and other community partners to create seven single-room occupancy units of supportive housing for women experiencing homelessness. 

“Our mission at Haven Design|Build is very intentional – we exist to increase the quantity and quality of housing options for under-served communities in the Raleigh-Durham region,” Sunderland and Helm say. “With real estate values skyrocketing, housing has become unaffordable for the average family. We believe that there is no single solution to affordable housing; multiple approaches are necessary. We strive to create a variety of housing options and prioritize environmental and economic sustainability and human health. Our goal is to build communities that bring joy to their residents and become a source of pride to the neighborhood they inhabit.” 

Additionally, Haven Design|Build is helping develop The Cottages of Idlewild, a 17-unit mixed-income housing project in Raleigh. This public-private partnership provides homeownership opportunities for low and moderate-income families through the Raleigh Area Land Trust and ensures long-term affordability through the land trust community ownership model.  

Through their unwavering commitment to quality, sustainability, and community, Haven Design|Build is transforming lives and setting a new benchmark for affordable housing in North Carolina and beyond.