Courtnee Boyd has been looking at homes since seventh grade when she was assigned a school project to design her dream life … right down to the type of house she’d live in. It was then that she discovered the home website Zillow.
“Ever since then I spent my free time looking at home sites and planning what I would one day own myself,” says Courtnee, who is now 24 years old. “It's something I've really wanted for so long.”
Courtnee’s mother always stressed the importance of homeownership telling her: “As long as you have a roof over your head you can get crafty and figure out things like heating and water, if need be, but having a home and a place to lay your head at night is very important.”
But, when the time came for Courtnee to start the homebuying process, there were challenges. Courtnee says she didn’t know where to start and often wasn’t taken seriously when she sought help. “When you’re young, people assume you aren't prepared, and will blow you off thinking you're wasting their time,” she explains. “This process taught me the importance of educating myself and staying ready to face any unplanned challenges.”
In the process of educating herself, Courtnee was introduced to Invest Atlanta’s Down Payment Assistance Program, which was the resource she needed to bring her childhood dream to fruition. With down payment assistance, Courtnee was able to close on a home two years after college versus waiting until she was much older and more established in her career. “My mortgage is cheaper than most of my friends’ rent, so this program has truly been a life and money saver,” she says. “It was one of the first and biggest steps in my life to achieving financial and mental freedom.”
Courtnee purchased a one bedroom, one bath, high rise condo with floor-to-ceiling windows in the Fox Theatre Historic District. It’s walking distance to the grocery store, nail salon and her work and just minutes away from MARTA and the highway. “The moment I received my keys felt surreal,” says Courtnee. “I could finally take a sigh of relief that I'd done it. I'd made the little girl in me proud.”
Courtnee says it means a lot that there are programs like this that help ordinary people with regular income become homeowners and is grateful to Invest Atlanta for helping to make her goal a reality. “Being a homeowner is my first step in achieving my American Dream,” says Courtnee. “I'm no longer just dreaming, I'm actually living it!”