In the hierarchy of needs, housing is right there at the top of the list—along with food, water, and sleep. However, too many people across the United States are missing this basic need. In some communities, there are simply not enough homes available to account for the growing population. In other situations, it is a matter of access—access to capital, access to programs that help first-time homeowners, and access to financial education that helps families navigate the path to get there. Operation HOPE and Clayton have partnered since 2022 to address both issues of inventory and access.
Access to homeownership falls short
In our most recent national survey of nearly 2,000 HOPE clients, 85% said they are concerned about the cost of housing in their community, and over a third said they considered purchasing a home within the last year but found it to be unaffordable (37%). “Housing and the cost of living have increased so much, that there are times we don’t have enough food or gas to last until the next paycheck—we can’t even afford a home right now,” said a new client who is working on their budget to turn their situation around.
According to the U.S. Census, only 65% of Americans own their home. Furthermore, over half (53%) of those who are not currently homeowners say that owning a home will never be financially affordable (Northwestern Mutual Planning & Progress Study 2025).
Operation HOPE equips people with financial tools and education to help individuals overcome barriers to homeownership, such as poor credit, lack of down payment, debt, and challenges with money management.
Creating the path to reach that dream
To break down barriers, Operation HOPE’s Homeownership Program provides individualized coaching, workshops, tools, and resources to meet people where they are—at no cost to participants. For example, Coach Yajaira in Atlanta worked with a client who went from being in default on her student loans to becoming a homeowner early this year. Together, they created a personalized plan for a budget and discussed action items to improve her credit report. In a little over a year, the client paid off $2,000 in debt to bring her defaulted account up to date, which reduced her repayment plan from $809/month to $103/month. This allowed her to save $13,000 for her downpayment.
To date, Operation HOPE has helped over 12,000 new homeowners reach their dream. However, it’s not just about that sole accomplishment—homeownership means so much more. Families who own homes can pass down that wealth, providing increased financial security to each new generation. In addition, they can contribute to the general wealth of their community—by nearly 40 times the amount of net worth than renters, according to the latest report by the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF).
“While there’s a lot of assistance for first time home buyers, you do need to do your part and commit to saving for a down payment and other closing expenses. At first, we didn’t think it would be feasible to buy the home but with the assistance we received through Operation HOPE and the resources our loan officer connected us with, we were able to actually get the home with the funds we had saved. It’s a relief that I know exactly what my housing costs will be, so I have the wiggle room to take on other loans and still maintain a reasonable debt to income ratio,” said Nancy and George, HOPE Homeownership Clients.
Cross collaboration with Clayton
Clayton is a leading national builder of single-family attainable housing dedicated to opening doors to a better life through homeownership.
With Clayton’s partnership, we expanded our digital offerings of self-guided homeownership education, making financial literacy instantly available to more people. Digital access, like our HOPE in Hand app, has been crucial to reach people across the nation, no matter where they live or where they are in their journey toward financial freedom.
With Clayton’s support, since 2022, the HOPE Inside Homeownership Program empowered more than 14,000 clients with homeownership services and resources, placing them in a better position to purchase a home. Importantly, working with Clayton allowed us to help over 300 people achieve homeownership in 2024 alone.
Many individuals and families across the country feel that homeownership, a fundamental piece of the American dream, is out of reach. As we continue our valued partnership with Clayton, we look toward making homeownership a reality for more families across the country, at any financial starting point. Access and planning represent a necessary first step.
If you are looking to start this journey, go to OperationHope.org to sign up with a coach or register for our workshops.