SJHI homes are renovated and sold at an affordable price to low and moderate-income homebuyers who have been pre-qualified and participated in SJHI-sponsored home buying education programs.

SJHI HOMEOWNER READINESS ACADEMY

This homebuyer education program is sponsored by St. Joseph Housing Initiative, in collaboration with Prosperity Connection. These free, comprehensive classes cover every step on the journey towards buying your own home. Each HRA series includes 4 classes.  SJHI offers HRA classes in both English and Spanish. Classes include:

  • Creating Your Spending Plan
  • Understanding Credit/Using Credit Cards Wisely
  • The Homebuying Process
  • Home Maintenance/Being a Good Neighbor

To learn about class registration, contact SJHI Real Estate Consultant, Nancy McGee:

314-520-9324 |  nancymcg@stjosephhousing.org

SJHI HOMEBUYER SUPPORT PROGRAM

SJHI DOWNPAYMENT ASSISTANCE

SJHI offers $5,000 Down Payment Assistance to buyers of SJHI houses. This DPA comes in the form of a 5-year forgivable loan.

HOME RENOVATIONS

SJHI complete extensive, quality and energy-efficient renovations on our all our homes. This is to ensure that home buyers are not facing any major unexpected home-related costs in their first 5 years of homeownership. Typical renovations include:

  • New roof and gutters
  • New kitchen & bath
  • New flooring
  • New ceiling fans and light fixtures
  • New appliances including washer and dryer
  • New fence and landscaping
  • Interior and exterior painting
  • New windows
  • New plumbing
  • New electric
  • New heating & cooling systems
  • Prepaid security system
  • 1 year Home Warranty

HOME SWEET HOME

SJHI is thrilled to partner with Home Sweet Home, an organization that offers families the opportunity to obtain basic household furnishings. Facilitated by a member of our team and our friends at Home Sweet Home, each SJHI family can visit the Home Sweet Home showroom, shop their own selections of new and gently-used furniture and household items based on family size and needs, and have their items delivered to their new home.

FIRST NEIGHBORS PROGRAM

In a city neighborhood, owning a home doesn’t just mean having a roof over your head–it means having neighbors by your side. In our First Neighbors program, each new homeowner is paired with a member of a volunteer team of community residents facilitated by SJHI, to offer support and foster community.

FIRST NEIGHBORS ARE:

  • Residents of the neighborhood
  • Representative of the diversity of races, ethnicities and cultures in our community
  • Willing to welcome the new homebuyer to the area by introducing them to other neighbors and families
  • Will be willing to take the new neighbor on a tour of the area, pointing out important resources (grocery store, library, post office, etc.)
  • Will invite the new homebuyer to join them in attending neighborhood meetings, block parties, alley sweeps etc.
  • Will introduce the new family to Neighborhood Stabilization Officer, Alderman and neighborhood leaders and explain their roles
  • Will provide info on churches and schools as needed
  • Will check in frequently with the new neighbor, maybe even invite for a casual dinner from time to time
  • Will give information that a new neighbor might not understand, eg. protocol for using dumpsters, where to park on street cleaning days, etc.
  • Will be willing to loan a tool or help with a project
  • Will commit approximately 20 hours/year, for at least 1 year, including attending occasional homeowner welcome parties and occasional First Neighbor team meetings with the SJHI First Neighbors team coordinator
  • Will attend an orientation conducted by SJHI
  • Will have ongoing check-ins and communication with the SJHI First Neighbors team coordinator
  • Will be provided with a First Neighbors Handbook that includes a phone/email tree, neighborhood community resources, and helpful ideas for how to be a good neighbor

If you are interested in becoming a part of the First Neighbors team, reach out to us today!