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Earning equity, building character at Laurel Ridge

In DASH's new lease-to-own neighborhood, families who otherwise may never have the opportunity to own their home build equity while gaining self-confidence in a brand new community.

LaTasha Boykin wasn’t crazy about her former home. A single mom, she and her three children lived in what she calls “a loud and crowded” apartment building in LaGrange. When her 9-year-old son suffered an injury that cost him his leg, she knew she had to leave the claustrophobic, two-story dwelling.

LaTasha and her children were on their back porch in spring 2007 when their next-door neighbor, attempting to move his SUV, thought he had the vehicle in reverse but actually had it in drive; the car lunged forward, pinning young TyCorry Boykin against the wall. The child spent six months in Atlanta hospitals recovering from injuries that required his leg to be amputated. Recognizing his immense pain, doctors marveled at TyCorry’s contagious smile. “He’s lucky to be alive,” says his mother, herself a dialysis patient since August 2000.

While life for her family had seldom been simple, having a wheelchair-bound son would complicate it even more. Finding a more suitable home would help, she reasoned. When she saw a DASH advertisement in the local newspaper, she called to inquire about houses at Laurel Ridge.

“I’d always thought about owning a home but never saw how I could,” says LaTasha. “But now it looks possible.” (In a lease-to-own program, rent at Laurel Ridge is based on income and residents earn three percent equity for each year they rent with first option to buy after a 15-year tax-credit compliance period.)

Says LaGrange Mayor Jeff Lukken: “To take a child out of poverty housing and put him in a home like this can be life changing.”

Indeed. And to further promote positive life changes, DASH invites residents to join the Laurel Ridge Homeownership Club. Designed to nurture the mindset of residents from “renter” to “homeowner” long before the formal purchase of their home, the club offers monthly education and training at the on-site community center throughout the 15-year lease period. Numerous subjects will be covered, from financial fitness and home maintenance workshops to utilizing banking services and understanding “good neighbor” practices.

One family sure to join the club is that of Laurel Ridge resident Janeke VanDeer and her two children. VanDeer could barely contain her excitement when speaking at the May 29 dedication services at the new development. “When they were building, I’d ride through here and say Lord, you know I want to make a change for me and my family and I just said, Lord I claim it—and I thank you all and God for making it happen,” she told the audience of builders, developers, local officials and residents. “For a family like mine with two kids, this has just been a dream come true. We wanted to better our lives, and now it is real peaceful for us to live here. You are a blessing to us.”

The Boykin family, happily adjusting to their new life at Laurel Ridge, feels equally blessed. “We needed a house that’s wheelchair accessible so TyCorry could maintain his independence,” says LaTasha. “My children are happy and comfortable, so I am. When I walk through here at night and see them asleep and at peace, it feels good.”

Ask TyCorry what he likes best about his new home and his eyes open wide as that contagious smile spreads across his face: “Everything,” he answers. Then he does a wheelie in his wheelchair as he cuts a sharp left back into his bedroom.

The mission of DASH is to revitalize and make sustainable LaGrange's once vibrant neighborhoods by eliminating substandard housing, creating socio-economic diversity, encouraging home ownership, inviting economic development and engaging residents in active community leadership. For additional information about DASH or its initiatives, contact us at (706) 298-0221 or visit online at http://www.dashlagrange.com.

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