PITTSBURGH -- Home ownership is a difficult goal these days. But imagine never living in a house, instead growing up in a tent or a refugee camp. So imagine how one local Somali family must feel as they move into their first house.

The Somali Bantu population here in Pittsburgh was brought from Kenyan refugee camps four years ago by Catholic Charities. Most of those people live in Lawrenceville apartments. But soon, thanks to Habitat for Humanity, one family will have a home of their own, in Sharpsburg.

The Msulwa family lived in a refugee camp for four years, having fled civil war and persecution in Somalia.

Fatuma is the eldest daughter of Mohamed and Khadija. There are seven Msulwa children and at 18, Fatuma is married with a five-month-old child of her own.

"There were a lot of tragic things going on. Terrible things, violence, all those kinds of things…You would be terrified if you saw the things going on," said Fatuma.

Fatuma said life in America has been an adjustment.

"Very strange, the culture is very different. The language was very hard for us," said Fatuma.

But life has gotten a little easier. A donor gave a house to Pittsburgh's Habitat for Humanity, just when volunteers like John Whitehill were trying to help the Msulwa family find a house.

"The progress this family made, the kids, the parents, largely because of a big heart from a lot of people," Whitehill said.

Finding the right home was a little challenging, because of the size of the Msulwa family.

"We typically don't build for a family of eight, but we could renovate and this house could work for a family of eight," said Maggie Withrow of Habitat for Humanity.

Another problem is that in these uncertain financial times, Habitat has seen donations plummet.

"it costs about $42,000 for us to rehabilitate this home. And right now, with the check I have in my pocket, we have $8,000 in contributions," Withrow said.

The family is contributing sweat equity to their new home. They have to put 350 hours into the renovations as a down payment, and their mortgage will be less than they are paying for rent now.

"I think it is the best house I have ever seen and I love it," said daughter Isha.

Both parents work at a design company, and Mohamed also works for a cleaning company. The eldest child attends Taylor Allderdice high school and the other children are in the Fox Chapel school district.