The death toll from the December 26th earthquake and tsunami disasters in the Indian Ocean nations is estimated to be as high as 227,000, according to Indonesian health officials. With many remote villages and towns cut off, the number of dead and homeless victims is inestimable.

The World Food Program is feeding approximately 400,000 in Indonesia, and many more need immediate attention due to the lack of housing. Thousands are being temporarily cared for in roofless or tented camps, but disease, crime and sanitation problems are pandemic.

With hundreds of thousands in need of immediate shelter, Habitat for Humanity is seeking to build 25,000 permanent homes. The NAR and Habitat have set a goal to build 1,000 core units in the hard-hit countries of India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and the Sumatra area of Indonesia. The homes will be single room, some on preexisting foundations in order to help rebuild communities. The houses will include sanitation facilities, porches and roofs, and will easily accommodate additions.

"We have an ongoing relationship with Habitat and we are impressed with how extremely efficient the organization has been in getting the donated dollar to the persons in need," said NAR President Al Mansell.

NAR, as it has done in past disaster relief efforts, will absorb 100 percent of administration costs so that the full donations by Realtor members can be utilized by Habitat to build homes.

But the horrifying conditions the victims are living in mean time is of the essence.

"We are halfway to our goal $1 million in donations," urges Lucien Salvant, spokesperson for the NAR. "and we need to get those people out of those camps as soon as possible.

"Other relief efforts are coming to an end," says Salvant. "A lot of organizations are handling food, clothing and medicinal needs, and since we are a housing organization, it is appropriate to get these people into houses as soon as we can."

Habitat is currently mobilizing its staff all over the nation to send people overseas, and working with the NAR and sister Asian organizations to prepare the building sites.

In addition, many NAR affiliates are also organizing relief efforts, including the Oregon Association of Realtors which donated $1 for every member for a total of over $15,000. The Chicago Association of Realtors has donated $3,000.

Click here to contribute to the relief efforts, using the NAR's e-commerce page.

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