Lexington, KY - On the way to realizing the American dream of owning a home, potential home owners must first navigate the innumerable challenges and pitfalls of the home-buying process itself. Buyers must be thoroughly educated on the myriad aspects of home ownership from the beginning until the ceremonious signing on the dotted line.
For those seeking to make educated decisions regarding the home-buying process, Kentucky's Community Venture Corporation has created eHome America, a nationwide low-cost online service directed at meeting the informational needs of low- to moderate-income home buyers.
"Basically we realized that we were doing a horrible job in reaching rural customers," said eHome Senior Executive Vice President Sandy Canon of her initial involvement with CVC. Knowing that the requirement for home-buyer courses had been in place for decades, she helped launch eHome America to rectify these glaring needs.
"It is very challenging for those lower- to middle-class individuals to be able to take a day off, find child care for the day and/or travel," she said.
Canon added that this program allows interested home buyers to "take the required courses on their own time and at their own pace."
In addition to meeting course requirements, eHome America offers guidance throughout the often lengthy and convoluted home-buying process, which can intimidate would-be home buyers into submission. The eight-hour online course tackles various concerns including home-buying readiness, budgeting and credit, shopping/searching for a home and the purchase and sustainment of a mortgage.
Now available in 42 states, the program actively educates and connects potential home buyers to neighborhood home counseling organizations near them. This aspect of eHome is central to its convenience and, as Canon said, "assures that the process is not faceless" and doesn't amount simply to students staring blankly into computer screens and gazing at endless tutorials. eHome boasts 112 housing partners across the country and requires no government funding.
The course is offered in both English and Spanish to accommodate all participants, and especially minorities. Spanish-speaking courses are increasingly popular in the Southern states, according to Canon, and eHome America's online structure emphasizes accessibility. The web service features a multitude of videos and animated clips that accelerate the learning process.
Frequent quizzes and tests are administered throughout to keep students on their toes and to ensure that the information covered is truly being retained. These tests typically consist of two- to five-question mini-quizzes to provide users with small checkups on their progress.
"Post-purchase support is incredibly valuable, and the customer can come back for counseling as long as they need," said Canon.
The program has served more than 10,000 total home buyers since its launch, Canon said.
Canon also discussed what she saw as an eyebrow-raising trend that illustrates a symptom of the current economy when exploring eHome's statistics.
"Almost 95 percent of our home buyers come from households that earn $75,000 or less," Canon said. "Nearly 43 percent of these people have a two-year college degree or higher."
This figure highlights how things have changed in the overall social and economic composition of the country, according to Canon. Despite these shifts, eHome is doing more than its share to serve interested home buyers, despite the less-than-ideal conditions of the economic landscape. Recently it was recognized as a winner of the national HOPE Award (Home Ownership for Everyone), which "recognizes individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to increasing and sustaining minority home ownership, revitalizing communities and expanding affordable housing opportunities." The HOPE Awards are sponsored by a partnership of national real estate associations and are conferred every other year.
"It was such a big deal to receive national recognition with an award like this," said Canon.
Canon hopes the notoriety will also bring more attention to eHome's cause, allowing it to put the knowledge needed to obtain home ownership within the grasp of more individuals and families across the nation.