Community Development
Neighborhoods with more long term “home owners / renters” tend to be more stable with less problems. From our history, we have desired to be apart of restoring the sense of pride of living in some of Memphis’ older neighborhoods. Not only can we renovate and repair houses, we can connect you to other families, ministries, and churches who are living and working in these neighborhoods.
Our first three jobs were with families moving into Orange Mound to be apart of what God is doing in this neighborhood. From these jobs, we met the folks at Landmark Training and Development Corporation and continued our relationship with Orange Mound Outreach Ministry (OMOM). Since then, we have gotten to know people from Kingdom Community Builders, Union Baptist Church, and Neighborhood Christian Centers.
We are now working with folks in the Binghampton, Frayser, Whitehaven, and South Memphis communities. The goal will be to not displace current residents, but to come along side and offer hope. As one house becomes a home, then this can give encouragement to others to take the steps necessary to make their communities a place for all ages and backgrounds.
In 2015, we began working for Habitat for Humanity on their Aging in Place program. Habitat hires companies like us to do essential home repairs for elderly folks in need. These repairs keep these folks in their homes and help prevent another structure from becoming abandoned. We also worked with World Relief to provide a home to rent for a refugee family from the Congo: another empty house put back in good use in the Binghampton Community.
Rentals
Owning a home is not for everyone. Some people don’t want the responsibility for repairs and upkeep, or they will be moving in a few years and don’t want to have to wait to sell their current home. Sometimes a person’s past make it nearly impossible to get a bank to loan for a house. Some homeowners, to make ends meet, drop their Homeowner’s Insurance and then the “what if” happens. They do not have the money or ability to take a home equity loan out to cover the Essential Repairs. Now they have to abandon their home and the vacant property causes even bigger problems to the community.
Families with limited income need rent to be at $600 or less per month to make ends meet. Their ability to find a decent place to live, especially a single family home, is very limited. To help solve this problem, Open Door Memphis buys a house and renovates it to decent, renter quality while trying to keep costs at or below $50,000. We then work with our local ministry partners to move their graduates/members into the house and get them settled. We then look for local, caring people to buy the house and become the Landlord. We look to sell the house for what makes “business” sense. The local ministries and churches will continue to be available to help the renters in the future. Open Door Memphis will be available for future repairs on the house. This process worked a few years ago for a home in Binghampton, a family from World Relief, and a friend of Open Door Memphis who became the Landlord. Would you consider being a “local, caring, Landlord”?
Open Door Memphis has a few rental properties of our own in the Orange Mound and South Memphis area. We have more people asking for rentals, then we are able to provide at this point. But, please give us a call and we will try to point you in a good direction, even if we don’t have a home available.
Lease to Purchase
The Lease to Purchase program is a way for us to help you become a home owner if you are not ready or able to purchase right now, but will be in the next few years. Open Door Memphis will purchase or build a home you are interested in and work with you to do any renovations or repairs prior to you moving in. Once you move in, part of the monthly lease amount will go to your down payment when you actually buy the house.
Prior to and during the time of your lease Open Door Memphis will provide financial advice to make sure you are ready to close on the house. We will also connect you to banks and attorneys who will help step you through each step. Open Door Memphis does Lease to Purchases on a case by case basis.
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