Latest / The Commercial Builders’ Network (TCBN) / Affordable Housing Explained: The Path From Renting to Homeownership | Shedra Jones
Transcript
- Speaker 2: Building a home has become one of the biggest financial challenges facing families today. But what if you knew there were programs designed to help you prepare for home ownership that most people have never heard of? Today, we're breaking down affordable housing, the pathway from renting to owning, and why home ownership is still one of the strongest tools for building generational wealth. We'll also explore how affordable housing creates opportunities not only for families. But for developers, contractors, and small businesses helping build stronger communities. Today's guest is Chedra Jones, program manager at Develop Clayton, where she helps connect residents with housing resources and pathways towards long-term housing stability and home ownership. Here at the Commercial Builders Network, we say construction can change your life and it's starting to look more like you. Speaker 1: This is Speaker 2: Trust is restored, power is reclaimed, and legacy is built. Let's get to work. Hello, beautiful people, and welcome to another episode of the Commercial Builders Network. My name is Tanisha Reed and I'm your host. And today we have the beautiful Shedra Jones from Develop Clayton, where we're talking about affordable housing and how we can attach that to some more small business opportunities. How are you doing today, Shedra? Speaker 1: Doing quite well. Thank you so much for having me. Speaker 2: It is a pleasure to have you. So glad that you're here. So there has been a shift and a change from the housing authority of Clayton County to develop Clayton. Can you explain what that transition is and why that transpired? Speaker 1: Absolutely. So the Housing Authority of Clayton County was started in the 80s. We were always established to be a conduit to for developers and builders to come into Clayton County with incentives, bond inducements, tax exemptions. So that is really the reason why we were established. there is another housing authority in Clayton County that provides voucher programs, public housing, things of that nature. And we've never done that. And so we thought it would be better, especially with the current state of the economy, current state of housing, current state of affordability, that now would be the perfect time for people to get a clear message and understanding about what the housing authority of Clayton County is able to do, and that is work with developers, incentivize the economy, and create help people to create generational wealth. And so develop Clayton it was it is. It's the vision of our I'm sorry, our CEO Mondala Jones as well. No relations, but Speaker 2: Love it. I love it. So most people when they hear affordable housing, they think of subsidized housing. Can you explain the difference and what it is that you guys are building? Speaker 1: Yes. And so that's another change. We actually have made a a few changes just in terms of the language that we speak, some of our programs. We have changed the titles of as well, just so that we can provide a little bit more clarity on what we do and what's different. So with affordable affordable housing and subsidized housing, they can actually be similar and be one of the same. Affordability is like a really big buzzword that's going around in the nation right now. And so affordability, one being able to afford housing at various different levels is what we try to do. And so instead of using affordable housing, we use the term attainable because when people think of affordable housing, oftentimes they're only thinking of public housing. But there is a metric called the AMI which is the area median index. and basically that determines one's income level and their affordability in terms of the type of housing that they're able to get into. So it could be from 30% all the way to 200% that one is gauged and raged in terms of their ability to afford different homes at different price points. Speaker 2: Awesome, awesome. So one thing that stood out to me was your program called From Renting to Ready, this workshop series. Can you explain what exactly that is and who it serves and looks to help? Speaker 1: Sure. So our From Wenting to Ready is our newest program here at Develop Platon. That program is specifically designed to be a conduit or a pathway to home ownership. So Shan Jackson is a realtor. She is a business owner, and she is our newest dynamic team member who comes and delivers these workshops with ready in mind. And so each letter within the R the ready stands for something. So the R is researched. People need to be able to do their research to see what it is that what level they are at in terms of being able to become a homeowner. And then the E is educating yourself about the different products and services and resources that are out there. the A is then attaining those resources, the ones that are applicable to you. D is then making a decision, connecting with the realtor, getting that home, making that purchase. And then the why is the why. Why, why, why now? Because it's yours. And so what do you do now that it's yours? You start to make sure that you're well, you do this actually ahead of time, but making sure that you're able to maintain your home, making sure that you're able to avoid for full foreclosure, making sure that you're able to have the resources and the finances to take care of emergencies, things of that nature. So we try and make sure that people have full insight. And we work with Shan works with partners, lenders, realtors, even on the magistrate court system for people who are renting, and may have had evictions. Just we don't want anybody to think that they are not able to achieve home ownership because they've had some hardships. And so the purpose of the from renting to ready program is really to see what each individual person's state of readiness is, giving them insight and resources and connections to these resources at workshops that could be from 30 minutes to a full day. Right now we're doing workshops. The next one is the twenty fifth of July. actually. but now right now we're doing three hour workshops with real estate professionals, with financial institutions to s to allow people to get connections, gain insight on down payment assistance, all of that. And I do also wanna say that the program is not necessarily for people who are just lenting. For instance, my son I have my have three children. Two are in college, in master's programs. One is in he go goes to Cla Clayton State. He works in the hotel industry. he has impeccable credit. he've been doing investing and and taking care doing really well with his money for the last five years or so. and we encourage him to participate in these kind of workshops. to get this information because information is key. Knowledge is power. The more information that you have, the earlier that you have it, even if you're not necessarily ready at this moment, you have the opportunity to gain insights. So when you are ready, you can move forward. Speaker 2: So you spoke about how homeownership can lead to generational wealth. Can you tell me why this is one of the first steps and first building blocks to obtaining generational wealth? Speaker 1: Home ownership is one of the most stable opportunities to create generational wealth. it is an opportunity for it personal investment, it creates a legacy investment. one whether you live in it or not live in it, it can become income for for renting to other people, it can be investment income, it is the least probably volatile. It may be the the slowest growing per se, depending on the economy in terms of one building their wealth, but it is probably the least volatile in terms of its growth. and so it is probably the probably one of the easiest opportunities that one could take in terms of investing in themselves and investing in their families and having it last for generations. Speaker 2: Awesome. So I used to be a realtor. I mean I'm still licensed, but I initially wanted to help the first time home buyer. And one of the biggest things I struggle with is a shift in mindset because it's so much easier to rent. Can you tell me one of the biggest misconceptions that there is when it comes to obtaining homeownership and why people don't go after it? Speaker 1: Sure. I think that a lot one of the biggest misconceptions that people have is their ability to afford it up front, to be able to have the down payment, their, you know, being able to have the right kind of credit that keeps them out of the opportunities. And that's the reason why this program is so important so that we have an opportunity for people to explore down payment assistance program and explore packages that a a lender may have that can help them. They can maybe able to stack it and be able to get the the resources and the the money that they need to be able to fill fully make the the down payment or to clot the clothing costs. There's a lot of if you have a good realtor, there's a lot of potential really good packages. If you have a good lender, there's really good packages that may be available to someone and they just do not know and think that it's for them. And so we want people to know that there are many opportunities to explore home ownership and make their dreams come true. Speaker 2: Awesome. So can you tell me how important is stable employment when it comes to being able to obtain this affordable housing and how to be able to help these families through this process? Speaker 1: stable employment is critical. It's very important. having a source of income that can be assessed. a lot of people will say, Hey, well I I'm a entrepreneur or or I've got a gift and I have this money that I can use to just pay cash. A lot of times that can be questionable for financial institutions. So they really like to see Not only do you have the stability to be able to get into the home, but also to be able to maintain it. So being able to have a record and a history of paying your bills, taking care of your personal responsibilities, medical things, things of that nature, sometimes they may look at and so you want to be able to have that stable income that says you're able to do those things and still afford your housing. Speaker 2: Awesome. are there currently any resources or partnerships that you guys currently have that will help people become more financially stable or financial educated in finances in order to obtain f affordable housing? Speaker 1: So it's it's a couple of things. so we have a resource manual for different types of resources that people may need because what we try to do is deal with the whole person, not just necessarily their housing focus. So we have resources that one can contact us for for just general information. but then also part of the ready program that was established. The goal is to build partnerships and relationships with lenders. We work with the and I I can't name the specific lenders right now, because we do like for you to be able to go to our workshops. these lenders and real estate agents also speak and present side by side with our with our facilitator. And then in the end, the goal is not for you to work. you have to work with that person who presented at that time. Then we provide the list of resources that we would and we don't I don't even like to call them preferred lender because we'd like for you to have choice. And so we just provide this list of resources in terms of lenders in terms of down payment assistance. We definitely encourage people to try Clayton County's down payment assistance program, which is separate from us. But then there's also the Georgia Dream There's also packages again that lenders such as Truist and Wells Fargo that they have when you know within their programs. And so being able to get pre-approved, being able to get connected to those packages, it really depends on the individual person. So that's again where my old social work creed, we like to meet people where they are and then help them to get connected and help them to grow to the next level for them. Speaker 2: Awesome. I love the fact that you said we're like dealing with the whole person. because that's important to me. And though this platform typically is about creating workforce opportunities and bid opportunities to help build small business inside of commercial construction and commercial real estate, I believe that affordable housing is a catalyst that can help bridge the gap between both. Because in order to Speaker 1: To Speaker 2: afford affordable housing, you have to have a income that is sustained with it. So my thought is how can we get more people into the construction space, into the building space where they can have a lucrative income to be able to afford these places and then continue on to building generational wealth as well as there has to be somebody who builds this affordable housing, right? So how do we create opportunities for small businesses to be able to not only get on these bid opportunities for for building the actual housing, but then there's like the the shops and the development around the housing that needs to happen. So is there any partnerships or things that are being worked on behind the scenes where small businesses and workforce are all playing a part in your plan for affordable housing? Speaker 1: So what's really cool in our our goal to to have attainable housing in Clayton County is that we have are really working to lead the way to have public private partnerships to work we work with municipalities. We've we actually started a housing Clayton County housing task force here, where right now though that task force is comprised of city managers and basically those leaders were not even we haven't even necessarily had necess the like mayors and things of that nature to the table because we want to be able to develop the plan. And out of that we were able to work with Aertropolis and get because they were at the table as well. And so the Atlanta Regional Coalition awarded Clayton County a strategic plan for housing because what we're trying to do is bring the private sector sector. We want mixed use housing where people can live, work, play. We're trying to consider housing for the missing middle. that's condos and townhomes and each area may have a different need and focus. But there's a need for people who do environmental reviews. There's a need for people who are architects and and creatives, who people who have something to really bring to the table and want to be able to put some skin in the game. We are interested in partnering because we also, which is diff probably a little bit different than our initial setup, the is we're going to be developers. So we we shall have some product products coming up ourselves starting in twenty seven. And so we are working to provide and connect with, I'm sorry, different industry professionals who who are interested in working with us. So it would be great for people to be able to connect to our you know, our website, get connected to our CEO regarding that because we are really trying to push forward work. The other thing that is happening around the region, there is now a regional task force that we're a part of. There is House APL that we're a part of, which it just recently last year started doing more connections and meetings in Clayton County. and we were a part of that process as well. And so just making sure that we are connecting to the people who are moving things. And then wanting to bring people in who are new to the to the area who want to impact the area, we are very open to. Speaker 2: Now I know you said go to your website, but for those developers, contractors, small businesses that want to come to the table and be a part of what you guys are building, how do they get a seat at the table? Speaker 1: So there that is being worked out completely, but we do have because we do have a development partner who is leading the way for that, but the initial process is really to contact myself and or the CEO and the CEO will do some initial vetting and then connect people to our developer partner to see if there is a good potential fit because we have a different of several different avenues in which we're trying to bring housing development, working with commercial development as well into the county. We're working really closely with my gosh, develop the development authority as well. Now we're starting to talk with them about maybe some potential opportunities. So there's very is different ways. So our main thing is we need to hear from people, see what they're interested in, and we can just see if there is a potential good fit. and even if there's not a good fit today, that doesn't mean that there could can't be for tomorrow. So just getting in our ear, getting that connection, having a conversation, maybe some meetings. We've had several meetings with people who are from the faith-based community. people who just have an ideal and just came to Atlanta and they wanna talk about different type of housing opportunities. Again, for us, we try not to focus just on affordable. It's attainable. And so we don't want to focus on affordable in terms of, I think like you asked me earlier, just subsidy. because with the just focusing on the subsidy, we don't want housing really much anymore where it is just fully subsidy. It needs to be kind of mixed opportunity, different levels of income from the affluent to the not so affluent to and and we work all of Clayton County. And so our goal is is to see what makes sense and then help connect people to the rights municipality or to the county if it's unincorporated where they're interested. So we we wanna hear people's vision and see if it works well without. Speaker 2: Also, it sounds like we need Develop Clayton to come back for another episode to give us some updates. Speaker 1: Yeah, she definitely won't be able to do that. Speaker 2: Awesome, awesome. So how is Develop Clayton working to rebuild trust in the community? That's one of the big pillars of this podcast is a lot of times we hear about these when we are actually hearing about the opportunities, it doesn't seem like it's for us. So how is Clayton County, how does Develop Clayton specifically helping to build trust with Clayton County? Speaker 1: So it it it what I would love to be able to do is just kind of tell you about some of our other programs that kinda help to work work to build that trust so that people who need services are truly getting an opportunity to get the the help that they need. Absolutely. so one of our programs, thank you. So one of our programs our re I'm sorry, repair program, home repair program. I'm sorry, we just changed the name from HUG. and the the HUG program was called Housing Urgency Grant, and that was a little confusing. and so home repair, just straight up, this is what we do. And so with our home repair program, we have an opportunity that's facilitated by Tiffany Kenna, and that gives people an opportunity who are at 30% of the area median income. so it's not just for seniors, it's not just for disabled, it's not just for veterans, it is income-based. So it provides a little bit more opportunity than some of the other programs that are out there. But what we're doing is we're doing HVAC work, we're doing plumbing, we're doing electrical, we're doing updates in ADA for people who need accessibility. and so we work with contractors who want to Who are certified general contractors, certified HVAC workers. we vet them and make sure that they're certified and not just unfortunately we can't work with just like a handyman that we appreciate our handy people. but for this program, we want to make sure that it is people that are credentialed to be able to go in and provide quality service. And we have several positive feedback from the community of people who have received this this service from us. And with that, we also have partnered with or starting to partner with, there's a program out there, it's a federal program called Here and Her. And with that program, it provides contractors an opportunity to focus on HVAC, but it is an opportunity for people to get help with with their HVAC, then get ventilation, they could get weatherization, because we don't necessarily do that. We refer people to a partner up the street that does provide that. so sometimes there's things that we cannot do, but people need more. And so being able to connect them to the resource that can provide something like HVAC, even though we can do HVAC, then allows us to go in and do their septic tank. And then we then we can do with that within our budget. The budget is ten thousand dollars is our max for each homeowner's experience and repair process. and so really all have to do is get qualified and then we just really have a dynamic team that really makes people to feel important that we want help them to understand that we want them to feel safe. that we need them their homes to be up to code. so we provide really quality work. we also are starting to have conversations with Southern Habitat for Humanity. They have a maintenance program. so a lot of people look at them and just think, okay, if you want to build your own house and qualify for that, then that's what you want to do. But they actually have a lot of other resources as well. And a lot of people don't think about the home maintenance program. But it's really good because you s learn the insides and the outs of how the mechanisms in your home work. And so when you learn about the mechanisms in your home, then you have a little bit more clarity of what you need to do to take care of it. And so we try and partner to give referrals for that as well and just other different partnerships. we try and do many things, but we We also make sure that it's that we partner with other people because we can't do it all, or at least we shouldn't do it all, right? partnership is key to do that. From the from the home repair program, we are soon in the fall going to initiate a beautiful beautification program as well, where we'll do some more exterior work because again, being safe, things being at cold, that's primary. But what about someone just really feeling good about their space, feeling good about their home? that's what we want to be able to provide to people as well. So we'll be doing that. And then our goal is hopefully we'll start with one and then hopefully we'll be we'll beautify whole communities. And so that is the goal with that's that would be two programs. And then our last program, where we're really building trust and really people are getting the word out and we are helping people. Sometimes people it it's hard because they may get a no and or or are not right now and that may be difficult for them. But we have what is called our rant program. I like to call it ramp you because it's our rent assistance and mortgage payment program. But the U I add because we also can provide assistance with utility. Utility. And so it is one or the other. It is either a rent or mortgage or utility payments. And we only do one payment that is good for that year. but for a lot of people, it is all that they need. All that they need to be able to have a sigh of relief to say, okay, while I figure this other thing out, my lights are on, you know, while I figure this. of us hang out, I can bathe because her water is not getting turned off. while I figure these other things out and deal with life and I'm able to buy groceries and AMK my utilities because someone I s I was behind on my rent a month or two and I was able to get this support. to the tune of we just opened up our portal Brocula Arm facilitates this program. We just opened up our portal in fifteen minutes. We had over seven hundred applications. And so that yeah, so that's why I say we may not be able to help everybody. last year last year we did two hundred and two and that was a increase in a record. and we're still gonna do more than that. We're gonna beat that record. but people are hurting, you know, people need some support. People need some some some help. And so again, I'll just say one last thing that I I like to say. I had a supervisor that used to say, you know, there's the golden rule and there's the platinum. So everybody knows the golden rule from the Bible, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Well, and I I didn't necessarily like what she said at first, but then I got it. She's like, we want to go a step further and do the platinum And that is do unto others as they would have you do unto them. Speaker 2: Damn, absolutely. Speaker 1: Right. And that's just a little bit different. It's just a little bit different because what I like, what I need, what I prefer is not necessarily I I want you to start there, but then I want you to hear me, engage me where I am, and just at minimum give me some dignity, right? And And so that's what we try and do. And so I think the word is out in regards to that. Whew. Speaker 2: Let me tell you, you can see this when I met you, mm mm mm. This is why I need you here. This is so good. I mean, resource after resource after resource. Clayton is doing a big one. I mean, I I don't think a lot of counties, a lot of states can say that they're doing as much as you all are doing. So I applaud your programs. I applaud what you're doing day to day. It's beautiful because it's necessary. My favorite pastime right now is watching videos on YouTube where they go and they see somebody's lawn or their roof isn't and they go up and just say, I just want to help and we're helping our neighbor. man, the relief that people get over not having to pay for it. They Speaker 1: Yeah. Speaker 2: needed it. I mean, yeah, we talk about attainable housing, but when once you attain it, can you sustain it? Speaker 1: Exactly. Speaker 2: And sometimes we all fall into hard times. It everybody has the ebbs and flows. Sometimes better than others. And to be able to provide something, reach out and know that there's hope somewhere and my county can help me. That is a beautiful thing. So I applaud the work that you all are doing. Speaker 1: Thank you. Yeah. And I just wanna add that one of our team members even developed a a resource guide. So people wanna call us to get that resource guide. So even if we can't help in the moment, we try and at least give people a list, a connection to some resources. So Speaker 2: I love it. So can you tell me about your experiences, a little bit about your background and how you even got into this work? Because your heart seemed so good. Like I felt your spirit as soon as I met you. So can you tell about what got you into this birth and what keeps you going? Speaker 1: awesome. Okay. What got me into this work? So just going way back way, I actually grew up in public housing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on one side of the tracks we'll say. And then the other side, my father was a career politician and had a home. He was a homeowner. And and so I saw kind of two worlds. I didn't necessarily know or realize that I was in public housing, but I also experienced some childhood trauma that made me want to go into social services, made me want to understand people's behaviors. I became a certified what am I a certified anger management specialist, certified trauma informed care specialist, trauma informed care. and also certified in nonviolent de-escalation and so my thing was just really wanting to help the people help the people what do they say that hurt people hurt people and so I just kind of wanted to understand that and be the protector of the children and so what do children need besides you know they may need some direct programs they may need some support But if their sphere of influence is not in a good way, then you know, how can we help that? And I l I actually loved my community. you know, there was senior housing, there were apartments, we lived in a townhouse set up, and so it was a huge, you know, community. And I was like, Why can't there be more communities like this in terms of of housing and village the village mentality of being able to care for people. So from high school I I was always a social work or social service person, volunteer work, things of that nature, and all the classes that I took. But I also knew that I wanted to be able to guide the people that help the people. So I also was always a business minor. So that was I went to Texas Southern University, we got my degree in psychology and minor in business. Then I went to Washington University and switched a little bit over to s focused just a little bit more into social work. and but I also have a got a management specialization, a management specialization. so again, always wanting to understand the dynamics to This is how I always put it. The to truly have care for people, you need to have a business and run the business, but it needs to be wrapped in love. And so that's what I've always tried to do is just you know, teach my teams, teach, encourage my teams, and learn from them and be open. I always tell people there's nothing that I'll ask you to do that I wouldn't be willing to do myself. and just really be able to engage people at different levels. And the thing that keeps me going is really probably feedback, even if it's years later. You know, this field can be a lot of burnout. the thing that got me really, really into housing too was from the public housing, then my mother became a homeowner. She was a homeowner of two different homes, but she struggled to maintain those homes. and to keep them because coming going from the public housing where it was all bills paid to then being a homeowner where you had to you know pay your own utilities all of them you know have your phone bill take care of two kids you know all of that and I just really saw her struggle and I really said you know I want to be able to do something different that helps people who maybe may look like or may not look like they need the help. But give them some dignity so that they can pursue it if they need to. My mother said she had a really hard bad experience. She tried one time to get some help years ago. And she had such a bad experience. They made her feel so bad. She just decided she would just struggle on her own and never pursue it again, you know? And so that was really, really key to me and important to to this work. Speaker 2: Wow, so that's beautiful because I wanna know how many people are out there today that feels the way that your mother felt like. I don't I don't wanna ask for any more help. I don't I don't wanna get the thought of being disappointed, but I I do want what you said up earlier about the the program for the renters, mortgage and utilities. A no really could be just not yet. So don't take it as a no. It just might be a not yet. Let's still see that there's still resources that are there. is there any success stories that that that keeps keeps that keeps you from that that that days when you're burnt out a success story that says, you know what? This is worth keep going. Speaker 1: Yes. I probably a lot of success success story than what I'm doing now, but I really what really keeps my heart burning is most of my experience has been working in homeless services. And so I had a opportunity to build a program for for some of the leaders in the homeless shelter and transitional housing that I worked in, which I worked in several different ones, but one in particular, that program, I was able to encourage those guys to, you know, we were able to pay for them to go get peer specialist training, work with them on again not projecting their values and how their experience on other people, but actually hearing even though they're they're there they were experiencing homelessness themselves, they had lived experience, their way out or moving was different. And so a lot of coaching, providing a lot of coaching and counseling to those individuals, then allowing them to work and receive a wage from us. So we hired them on initially and so we didn't just have them be leaders in the shelter environment, but we actually gave them a wage, you know. some a starting point, encourage them to work on their savings and things of that nature and and look for other employment, knowing that, you know, this is temporary. This is a starting point for you. So what else do you want to do? Start having that vision, start having that dream. And years later, even on Facebook, I have had people, guys, ladies that I have worked with and helped in the past. Who have reached out and said, I have become a homeowner. I have started my own business. I am working in the field now. I'm a licensed clinician therapist. because of the opportunity that you gave me, because you believed in me. I'm sorry, I'm almost about to make myself go to tears because every time I think about it, it's just it's just so awesome that these are true life success stories, like big success stories. there's little ones too and I celebrate those too every time. I just I love just when someone says thank you. I'm I'm relieved at this moment. You heard me, you let me be able to get the resource. That warms my heart too. but I have those those big, big stories of people becoming homeowners and and working in in the field that that really brightens my day. Speaker 2: Awesome, I love that. Before we go, I want to know, do you have an ask? Ask from the community? Ask from potential partners. Do you have an ask? Speaker 1: So my ask is to reach out and connect to us, right? if you're interested in becoming a certified housing program, repair program specialist and you're wanting to get certified with that, reach out to us, connect with us because you know, the more options, we really like people to have options. The more options that people have, the better. we encourage people to share our story share the the the opportunities that we have if you have a vision and some skin in the game i'm just gonna keep saying that as well let us know give us a call go to our website at can I say it should I say it is h Speaker 2: Absolutely. Speaker 1: a c c Georgia.org and that's H as in Henry, A as in Apple, C C both as in Charlie, Georgia spelled out dot or and or give us a call at four zero four three two twelve hundred. Miss Deborah Liles is our program manager. I'm sorry, I'm the program manager. But she is our administrator who will be happy to guide you to the resources. Give us a call if you need resources. We're happy to share what what what we got. And and again, if even if we can't say yes exactly to our program right now, we're always happy to to help people to and to connect with what is coming up next. Speaker 2: Thank you so much, Edward, for your time. It's been awesome. Speaker 1: It's absolutely my pleasure and an honor. Thank you so much for seeing me and inviting me. I'm happy to have had this conversation. Awesome.