All I Want For Christmas Is Floors

I'm Willow and I took ownership of a home in 2011 that needed a lot of repairs, including replacing the flooring throughout. Due to family illness, the floors were never finished. It has been nearly twelve years, and the floors are still not complete. I would like to start a family with my husband, but we feel it's irresponsible to raise children in a home where they cannot safely crawl on the floor. The house is on a concrete slab, which was never sealed. Concrete is porous, so there are over a decade of spills, pet accidents, grime, dust, etc., are soaked deep into the slab.

After consulting with professionals, we determined that the floor would need to be:

1) Treated with an enzyme cleaner, possibly more than once

2) Extracted with large equipment, which we will need to rent

3) Sealed by a professional to prevent any future damage to the slab

4) New flooring laid so it can be sanitized effectively at regular intervals.

There are many other issues in the house that need to be fixed as well:

1) Half bath has no appliances and is just an empty room

2) Full bath has a broken shower surround, and the toilet flange will have to be drilled out and replaced

3) Both front and back doors do not seal properly, creating higher bills year-round

4) Damaged and missing kitchen cabinets

I own my home outright, but neither my husband nor I have any credit. We have spoken with banks and lenders, but we do not qualify for any loans based on credit and do not have a co-signer that we could ask to sign with us. I have applied for grant funding through my city, but it's unlikely that we will be approved; I started a higher-paying job in June, and now my income is just above the threshold to qualify. I am working with their organization to see if we qualify for any other programs.

On a personal note, the hardship of living in a home that cannot be cleaned has taken a significant toll on my husband and my mental health, is a perpetual financial strain, and we have not been able to have anyone visit our home. It has meant delaying all our life plans indefinitely, which is also difficult to process emotionally. Our physical health is affected due to the inability to maintain a sanitary environment. Our society puts so much emphasis on the individual to address their problems personally when for hundreds of years it was unheard of for one family to succeed without community help. I am embarrassed to say that my shame and my pride have prevented me from asking for help. Being denied assistance through financial institutions and grant programs has been disheartening. Feeling trapped by things out of my control with no other direction to pursue is gut-wrenching. I cannot see a path to success that doesn't include support from my community, so I am humbly asking for help. Thank you for helping as you can.

I plan to use any funds to address the flooring. I will put the additional funds toward the other necessary repairs if we are overfunded.