Kimberly Rudy, a lifelong renter, mother, and breast cancer survivor, never thought she’d be able to afford a home. Like many Americans in today’s strained housing market, she struggled to save up enough money for a down payment because rent payments leached away at her monthly income. Earning about $42,000 per year, she had been making $1,500 rent payments each month at the same rental home she’d had for 10 years, and was unable to direct enough money into savings to buy a house.
“Renting pretty much takes every penny you have,” Rudy says. “It’s like you’re being penalized by being forced to pay more for rent for something that’s never going to be yours.”
This was especially frustrating for someone who didn’t move around a lot and had dreamed of owning a home. Indeed, Rudy had been living in her rental house for more than a decade and had previously rented another property for seven years before that. Rudy’s daughter, Anna DeHaven, however, in 2021 found a viable solution that allowed her mom to finally be able to purchase a home in her early fifties.
Divvy Homes, a rent-to-own home service, helped Rudy start making rent payments toward her house for about 15 months before closing. Rudy, then 51, started the Divvy Homes program in spring 2021, right after she had been diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer.
Through Divvy Homes, Rudy selected a home within her price range in Rome, Ga., a small town with about 35,000 people. Then, Divvy Homes purchased the two-bedroom brick rancher for $137,000 in spring 2021 and rented it to Rudy for $1,430 per month. The company even covered repairs to the 1950s home post-inspection that the original seller wouldn’t—including a new water heater, HVAC system, and electrical wiring throughout the house.
What’s different about purchasing through the Divvy Homes program is that part of that monthly rental payment actually went into a savings account that would later be used to cover the down payment on Rudy’s eventual purchase of her home.
The Divvy Homes program is designed for hopeful homeowners, like Rudy, who either can’t afford a mortgage payment or don’t have enough money saved for a down payment and closing costs associated with a home purchase. Prospective homeowners can apply online through Divvy, which asks for financial information and the areas where the applicant is looking to purchase. Then, Divvy Homes gives approved applicants a shopping budget, and clients can choose any qualifying home on the market either through their own real estate agent or one through Divvy.