“I thought that my children and I were soon to be homeless,” Marsha admits, recalling the first time she was contacted by American Homeowner Preservation.

For many families, owning a home is the promise of a new life chapter- a new beginning. A home not only houses a family, it becomes part of the family. That’s why American Homeowner Preservation works with families all across the nation to ensure that the dream of homeownership is not forgotten.

Marsha and her ex-husband purchased their Cleveland home in 2005 after realizing how much they had outgrown their tiny apartment.  For these parents, homeownership meant more space for themselves and their 2-year old twins. For Marsha, purchasing property in Cleveland meant creating a “home” for her children.

Unfortunately, family and financial dynamics shifted after Marsha separated from her ex-husband. Marsha was forced to take on two jobs to support her 3 children- an undertaking that proved incredibly difficult. She even underwent unemployment for 3 months, admittedly the lowest point in her life. When her home was set to foreclose on July 6^th, 2015, she didn’t think her life could get any more difficult. After her mother’s passing on July 1^st, 2015, she truly felt the weight of responsibility come crashing down on her shoulders.

“Since I was the eldest of her children, I became responsible for the finances,” Marsha shared. “That literally destroyed me.”

Marsha knew she needed financial assistance. In fact, she exhausted a number of options prior to working with AHP, including seeking personal loans from banks- all of which were denied. Now facing foreclosure and critically low on funds, Marsha truly feared for her children’s future.

When AHP called her, she admitted to feeling frightened about what the phone call would entail. What was to become of her home? Would her family be displaced due to her inability to pay high-priced mortgage payments? However, after working with AHP asset manager Jake Laffey, she felt hopeful that she would be able to save her family, after all.

“He was exceptional!” Marsha said. “Even in the beginning when I knew there was no way for me to even try to come up with the amount of money I needed to save the house from foreclosure, he empathized and provided options for me.”

AHP worked with Marsha to provide her with a lease/option agreement, which offers her the same affordable payment of $450 for the term of her lease.

“I was given a second chance,” she assured. “First with the opportunity to remain in my home with a lease at a price I can afford, and then with the opportunity to earn my house back through the lease/option agreement.  A.H.P stands for ‘ANGELS HELPING PEOPLE’ because that’s what you truly were to us… ANGELS!”