A Decade of Success: Get That Deed’s Impact on Homeownership in North Carolina

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Lots of families would love to be homeowners, but its a dream that often feels out of reach for many.

A program called Get That Deed teaches people how to navigate what can often be a really challenging process for buying one’s first home.

In 2013, real estate broker Brenda Dixon started “Get That Deed” as an educational program.

Since its inception, the program has placed 164 families into homes in the Cape Fear and throughout North Carolina.

Tonight’s dinner celebrated the families who moved into homes in 2023, as well as the program’s 10th anniversary.

Terri Smith will be closing on her new Charlotte home soon and says the program made it easier for her to find a home.

“Oh, its been such a blessing,” Smith said. “We went through a lot of trouble, like I mentioned before with different realtors and also banks. And she got us in touch with a good bank to help us out and a down payment assistance programs and so now we’re further than we’ve ever been with closing a house and we’re about to be very successful with that.”

Dixon said it’s never too late for anyone to become a first time homeowner.

“I just want everyone to know that you can do, no matter your current finances,” Dixon said. “It doesn’t matter if you starting at a 300 credit score. Everything that is down can go up. It doesn’t matter if you;ve been turned down in the past for maybe a small debt. But you’re going to get the financial education to understand how to budget and do what you have to do.”

The program has really taken off in the past 4 years, having helped more than 100 families in that time.