Denice Garcia has spent her life as an indicator of future trends.
Born in Tijuana, this talented young woman moved to San Diego at age six with her family and lived in the same house for over twenty years. Then, with her SDSU degree in International Business in hand, she went to work for Mayor Jerry Sanders doing community outreach and handling bi-national affairs.
Having focused her studies on marketing, Latin America, and Spanish, Denice doubled her efforts after graduating to ensure she neither compromised her beliefs nor fit into any stereotype. And given her background as a child of the region, it wasn’t at all surprising to any who know her that she elected to focus first on career and self-fulfillment over more traditional options. Asked for one word to describe her philosophy moving forward, Denice chose “Empowerment.”
Of course being strong and independent isn’t always easy and even people with lots of stability in their background sometimes need some help – especially when economic hard times hit. So it was in August 2009 as Denice contemplated her future and considered her need to be in her own home. “Saving money isn’t always easy and I didn’t have much. But I had a plan that included buying my own place, and I was determined to see it through to a successful conclusion.”
Her plan began with online research. From there, she participated in Community HousingWorks’ eight-hour home-buyer education program, made sure her credit record was clean, got pre-qualified to buy a $150,000 home, and promptly learned nothing on the market today costs $150,000.
So Denice returned back to Community HousingWorks and learned of our in-house real estate brokerage. There she met Realtor KJ Koljonen and started an amazing journey…
Habitat for Humanity Makes a Call…and a Difference
Most people identify Habitat for Humanity as a non-profit group that organizes volunteers to build homes from the ground up. What they may not realize is that Habitat also acquires foreclosed homes and sells them through organizations like Community HousingWorks.
“Typically investors snap up properties and pay cash long before individuals like Denice even have a chance to be considered” reports Habitat’s (title) Ken Kosman. “However, we’re tied in to Chase’s First Look program, which lets us see a home before it gets to market AND we can buy it at a discount. That discount provides monies for us to replace plumbing, wiring, flooring, stucco, fencing, or whatever else needs work in a house.”
The money was put to good use, including new flooring, paint and granite countertops. “We used volunteer labor to do most of the work, helping to extend our available resources. Of course, we pay for professionals to do plumbing and electrical work, since you don’t want to fool around with that. Then we put in a refrigerator and stove through our national partnership with Whirlpool, and knew we’d be able to offer the new owner a washer, dryer and dishwasher at discount through the same program.”
“And when the house was ready for someone to buy it, we called KJ and asked if she knew anyone who might be interested in this house in Chula Vista…”
“Denice and I had started looking at condos on January 2nd of this year and must have seen four dozen units trying to find something that fit her budget and her needs. Every single offer that we wrote was rejected,” says KJ Koljonen, recalling three straight months of nothing but disappointment. Then came the call from Habitat.
“Habitat for Humanity found this adorable fixer upper in Chula Vista,” Denice says of the process “And it had been in foreclosure for so long that both the front and back yards were all dirt. Since it was built in 1954 I knew the place was going to need a little TLC, but I figured I’d take my time trying to fix it up. You know, the first time I walked into it I felt like I was home.”