advice In a saver's words

Lottena Wolters

"At the end of the day it’s all worth it. When I come home at night... it’s so worth it to see my daughter bound into our huge backyard and start playing. It’s worth it to have neighbors who are also home owners, who look out for each other, and patrol the neighborhood."

On Christmas Eve of 2004 my then-two year old daughter and I came back to DC after 15 months abroad trying to make a life for ourselves in a foreign land. We had only $25 cash as a gift from a friend, a mattress to sleep on in my mother’s efficiency apartment in Brentwood, and ruined credit thanks to debt consolidation schemes and months of unemployment. But we came to DC with the hope that we’d make it and knowledge that there were those willing to help. On December 22, four years later I signed the contract to my own home here in DC and on Christmas Eve we hung up our stockings, knowing that new beds would soon be picked up, my credit was clear, and there was still savings in the bank.

My journey to home ownership was not easy or linear. My parents did not own their own home until I had graduated from high school, so I did not grow up with thoughts of home ownership. I really got into it because of peer pressure. I got sick of hearing of nothing but home improvements and mortgages at my friends’ social gatherings. I got sick of my rent increasing each year, and I got sick of living without a backyard. When a parent at my daughter’s school told me about MANNA back in 2006, I jumped at the opportunity to educate myself on all things surrounding home ownership. As a woman who literally nailed pictures to the wall with her high heels, I figured I really needed to learn as much as possible.

The counselors at MANNA immediately put me on the savings track by highlighting their Individual Development Account (IDA) program, which is run by CAAB. In no time my debt was sufficiently managed so that I qualified for the matching funds and I began attending monthly meetings with my daughter and making my monthly deposit into my IDA account. However, home ownership was still a far away goal for me. I sometimes let months pass without going to meetings or depositing my money. Thankfully both MANNA and CAAB were persistent in their reminders and got me on track with my meetings and savings. I know for a fact that MANNA and CAAB have hundreds of clients, but both agencies treated me like a favorite. All calls were returned, all emails answered. Even when staff members got married, they made sure that their colleagues were 100% up to date on where I was in the home ownership process. CAAB was with me through two failed offers, through the period when DC’s Home Purchase Assistance Program (HPAP—a DC government program that enables lower-and moderate-income individuals and families to purchase affordable housing in Washington, DC) funds were frozen, and all the way to closing... always flexible, accommodating, and responsive. I have nothing but gratitude and professional regard for the hardworking and diligent CAAB team members.

When HPAP funds were frozen in November, both MANNA and CAAB were foremost in advocating for our rights to the funds promised. They arranged interviews with news agencies so that our stories were heard by the masses, and rallied residents to attend council hearings so that we were heard by the government. I really appreciate CAAB and MANNA’s dedication to this work of housing DC residents who really go through hoops and obstacle courses in order to own our homes. But, at the end of the day it’s all worth it. When I come home at night on those rare and beautiful 65 degree DC winter nights, it’s so worth it to see my daughter bound into our huge backyard and start playing. It’s worth it to have neighbors who are also home owners, who look out for each other, and patrol the neighborhood. And it’s worth it to be part of the mortgage talking, Home Depot shopping crowd of DC home owners.