- When you realize there's so many people, so many more people giving better offers than what you can afford, it makes it hard for you.

- [Hernz] That was Shiobanne Parra.

She and her husband, Diego Raxuleu, had been looking for a new home since 2020.

- As the children started getting older, the space started reducing.

And then we realized that this is never gonna be ours.

- We tried to stay in, you know, the area of Cincinnati.

So we looking everywhere.

- [Hernz] Between 2020 to late 2023, Shiobanne and Diego looked at approximately 25 homes in the area.

While disappointing to them, what made it especially tough was explaining it to their kids.

- The majority of the time they would say, "I'm tired."

Sometimes we would go to see homes and it would be five in the afternoon.

And they would get off the bus, "Let's stop at McDonald's and (laughs) get something quick, or a pizza or whatever, 'cause we have a home to go view."

And then they will be in the car and they'll say, "Well, yay, this is finally it," and they're all excited.

- They kids, they got emotion.

Jedi, he wants his room.

Yeshua, he wants his room.

It's difficult to have a home or buy a home too.

- Whether you're trying to find a home to accommodate your growing family, or in Ella Carre's case, waiting for a house to get on the market, the options in this housing market are slim when the budget is tight.

Ella has found a Port home that she really likes in the West Price Hill neighborhood, but there are still renovations being done, so she'll have to wait, even though she's ready.

- Now.

(laughs) - [Hernz] You wanna move into the house now?

- I'm ready.

Could you tell?

- [Hernz] Ella Carre is a retired nursing aide and an Army vet.

She found out about The Port while watching the local evening news.

She also learned that The Port was partnering with WIN, Working In Neighborhoods, to help tenants become homeowners.

To do that, they help people learn more about home ownership, increase financial literacy, and improve communities.

Ella has taken classes from WIN before, and she reached out to her counselor to see if it was possible.

- And then she said, "Yeah, they are working with us and they have some houses."

And so I said, "Well, I'm interested in it."

- [Hernz] She lives alone, but wants more space so that she can host her family and have a place for her hobby, gardening.

- All my life, I always love plant.

I love a garden.

That's one of the reason I want to own my own home.

I would rather have a bigger place, like I say, with my grandson and my great-grandson.

I'll have more room where he can run.

- [Hernz] Sister Barbara Busch is the co-founder and executive director of WIN.

She talks about the need for affordable housing in the area and the challenge ahead for The Port.

- So a starter home that is in a price range that is somewhere between 140 and 200,000 is a necessity.

In terms of The Port, sure, we all learn in a process and, you know, they will be the first to tell you that they had never done anything like this.

Learning how to rehab a whole chunk of buildings that they weren't expecting to rehab, (laughs) you know, is difficult.

- [Hernz] The Port is revitalizing these homes to create a pathway to home ownership.

Andrew Fischer, Senior Construction Associate of The Port, shares why the process might take longer than originally expected.

- We really found out that we had to take a step back, reassess how we're gonna prepare these homes for future sellers, because we did not want to give homes to new residents that looks great from the outside, but didn't have a hot water heater that was gonna last more than four months.

- Of the 194 homes purchased, 110 are still renter-occupied, 71 are vacant, and more than a dozen have been sold.

33 of the vacant homes are renovated and ready for sale.

Ella's hoping that the home that she's waiting on comes on the market soon.

- I'm ready.

I'm, you know, trying to be patient.

I'm praying like, you know, "If it's for you, it'll come."

- [Hernz] Shiobanne and Diego were patient as well.

In October of 2023, the couple met Rachel Thompson, a real estate agent from the Greater Cincinnati Realtist Association.

The Realtists are a group that works to secure equal housing opportunity for local residents.

In the fall of 2023, The Port partnered with the Realtists in order to make home ownership more accessible and affordable to all Cincinnati residents, especially minority and first-time buyers.

The Realtists are responsible for 25% of The Port homes.

Rachel has been working with Shiobanne and Diego for about a year to help them find a new home.

- I mean, a lot of properties we would see either at their price point, but because the interest rates kept changing so much, their affordability changed so much.

So maybe one month, you know, we can afford 195 and the payment feels comfortable.

Interest rates went up a point, and now they're down to 175.

And then houses at 175 are not livable, or they need $30,000 for renovation.

Honestly, that's why this Port property was absolutely a godsend.

- [Hernz] In October of 2023, Rachel reached out to Shiobanne and Diego with some new homes from The Port, and Shiobanne responded... - I'll look at 'em whenever I can.

I started looking through a lot of the homes that they have on their upcoming homes, or homes to be on the market and whatnot.

And I said, "Oh my gosh, these homes look nice.

(laughs) I might as well, you know, jump and see what's on there."

- [Hernz] Instead of having to bid, The Port financially met Shiobanne and Diego where they were.

- I was really excited about it because I knew that I wasn't gonna have to give another offer on it.

And I know that it's based off of your income.

- [Hernz] I asked Rachel what it would mean for Shiobanne and Diego to finally get the keys to their home.

- Oh, that makes me so, like, makes me so teary.

I think it's gonna mean a lot for them.

They're a family that's really deserving, and their kids are always just like so happy whenever I see them.

A home full of memories that they can create is always really exciting.

- [Hernz] On February 23rd, 2024, Shiobanne and Diego closed on their Port home.

They can finally call themselves homeowners.

- How I'm feel right now, like, relaxed.

So we did it already, we signed.

- Oh my God, I'm so relieved now (laughs) because now I can walk into the house and be like, "Woo!"

- Thanks for that story, Hernz.

- No problem.

- This is really a great opportunity for lots of folks.

What are the requirements?

- Yeah, so there's a lot of requirements, and we have a lot more information on the web that you guys can check out.

But I'll share a couple now.

You have to meet the AMI requirements, and that's area median income.

The Port is offering these homes between 80 to 120% AMI, and for a single person that's anywhere between 57,000 to 85,000.

And for a family of four, that's between 81,000 to 122,000.

And then the second thing is that they want you to live in the homes for five years.

That's a requirement, 'cause they don't want you to buy the homes and to sell them immediately or rent them out.

They want to encourage home ownership in the area.

- The journey to find a home for Shiobanne and Diego seems like it was a really long one.

What do you think was their biggest hurdle?

- You know, like we highlight in the story, being outbid was their biggest obstacle because they had a limited budget and there's a limited housing supply which, you know, just didn't allow for too many options for them.

And that's why honestly The Port was a godsend for them because they didn't have to stretch their budget to meet what The Port was asking for, The Port was able to meet them where they were.

And then the second thing I wasn't able to add to the story, Shiobanne and Diego mentioned raising awareness for people with English as their second language.

And I think that was super important, you know, just to let more people know about the program.

By reaching out to Tom Millikin and he shared with me that they work with community councils and WIN to get translators so that they could make the message known to as many folks as possible.

- What's the latest on Ella Carre?

- Not too many updates as of now.

The house that she's waiting on is still not on the market.

And like I shared in the story, because of the extra renovation that has to be done to these homes, it just prolonged the timeline.

So, you know, she was waiting for the house this past July, 2023, we're in February.

Her and her realtor are hoping that in the spring of 2024 the home will be ready.

- Very good.

There's still quite a few renters in these homes.

Is the ultimate goal to make them all homeowners?

- You know, that's what I thought like going into the story.

I automatically assumed that every single person wanted to be a homeowner, especially who were living in these homes.

But Barbara Busch from WIN assured me that, you know, that's not everyone's desire.

It is either that people don't envision themselves as homeowners because they prefer the renter lifestyle.

You know, that's not where they're at right now in regards to raising funds.

You know, they have other things that they want to tend to.

Or it is, like I said earlier, just not the desire to become a homeowner.

So, you know, the only question that comes to mind, I just wonder what will become of their tenant status the longer, you know, that The Port owns these homes.

- Thank you, Hernz.

We'll check in with you later.

- No problem.