From One Cohort to the Next: “Anything is Possible”

October 2016

Affordable homeownership, Meet our homebuyers

As anyone who has attempted the endeavor knows, applying to own a home can be a long, arduous process. This is no different for families interested in partnering with Habitat Chicago – the process comes with natural highs and lows. In the hopes of preparing our newest homebuyers for what to expect, we caught up with some recent Habitat homeowners to learn how they felt in the early stages of their journeys. And what we learned is nothing short of powerful.

Step 1: complete the application. When asked why they decided to apply to be a Habitat Chicago homeowner in the first place, our families had this to say:

“Because I was tired of the environment I was living in. My family deserved better.”
“I really had no idea what to expect, but I had a lot of doubts. I thought I couldn’t ever own my own home but I decided to try anyway.”

Step 2: the home visit. Habitat Chicago’s Family and Neighborhood Manager, Michelle, visits our prospective homebuyers at their current homes to learn more about them. It certainly can be disorienting to have a stranger evaluate one’s living conditions, but these visits seemed to elicit a much different reaction:

“I was letting them see my living arrangements and see how I was living. I wasn’t nervous because I wanted them to let them know it wasn’t nice living like that.”
“I was scared when I first met Michelle, but she is not someone to be scared of. She is the nicest, most helpful person anyone would want to work with.”

Step 3: the call. Time and time again, our families tell us that that the most challenging part of the process was waiting to hear if they had been approved. This call doesn’t just mark the end of a rigorous application process, but also the beginning of an entirely new adventure. We know words cannot capture this feeling, but we asked families to try anyway:

“It’s all a bit blurry. But I was so excited. Happy. Overjoyed”

And lastly, most importantly, our families want our next cohort to know the most significant lesson they have learned and certainly will never forget:

“I have learned that anything is possible.”