SOUTH BEND, IN—Many Americans have been shut out of the mainstream paths to homeownership, missing out on the key way families build wealth. There are desirable houses that cost less than $80,000 and potential buyers who want them, but banks are uninterested in originating mortgages for these low-cost properties due to regulation and profit structures. Consequently, many prospective homeowners are left to either continue renting, earning no equity, or to find seller-financing, a field with its own significant issues.

Hurry Home offers a different way: They work with people who are interested in owning where they live and taking on the responsibilities of ownership. They match single-family rental investor properties valued at less than $80,000 to families who want to own their home in a modified, non-predatory rent-to-own contract.