Single Family Lease Purchase

"Buying this home felt like Christmas in November. My mortgage with taxes and insurance is less than what I paid for rent. I like being in my own home. I love sitting on my own porch and having a big yard. Best of all my kids are proud. We are happy to know that if anyone in our family falls on hard times, they have a place to live. With me.”  -  Shirley, a New Homeowner

Shirley in front of her house
Shirley's story

Lona Council joins a Q&A session with Yulonda Byrd, Cinnaire VP,  Innovation, to describe the thrill of becoming a homeowner through Cinnaire's Lease to Purchase program.

Advancing Communities Through Homeownership

Cinnaire launched a single-family lease purchase program to help low-income families in Detroit achieve and sustain homeownership.

This Advancing Communities Through Homeownership program incorporates five steps to homeownership that have helped hundreds of families purchase their own homes. Cinnaire is applying this program in Detroit for 188 families living in single family homes developed through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program to help them achieve affordable homeownership over the next 8 years.

Learn Why Homeownership Matters

How it Works

Scattered Site Lease Purchase Program

Integrated Solutions for Success

The goal of the Single-Family Lease Purchase pilot program is to help 188 low-income families achieve affordable home ownership over the next eight years. The pilot program includes homes in these Detroit neighborhoods:

    • Eastside Detroit Homes
    • Pinigree Park Homes
    • University Grove Homes
    • Homes at Houston Whittier
  • Home Ownership & Sales Team
    • Home purchase workshops connect residents to personal financial coaches to walk them through the steps to toward owning their home with an individualized plan.
  • Alternative Mortgage Loan Program
    • Opportunity Resource Fund developed an alternative mortgage loan program that addresses residents' needs and allows long-term sustainable homeownership and is offering this loan product in Michigan.
  • Cash Savings Match Program
    • A cash savings match program that helps residents to begin to save in Year One and provides a 3:1 match at conversion (sale).
  • Down Payment Assistance
    • A Down Payment Assistance (DPA) program that helps residents maintain a reasonable mortgage amount relative to their income.
  • Post Purchase Services
    • Buyer access to post purchase services, including: Energy conservation/repairs, financial counseling, employment services, income supports and utility assistance.

Tools for Success

Our Single Family Lease Purchase Program as an anti-poverty and economic security strategy

  • Home Ownership Preparation
    • Families work with housing counselors and take home-ownership classes to ensure they are prepared and mortgage-ready to become homeowners.
  • Equivalency Principle
    • The "equivalency-principle" maintains a family will succeed as a homeowner as long as the cost of homeownership (including insurance and taxes) does not exceed what they had previously paid in rent.
  • Program Qualifications 
    • On-time rental payments
    • Cash Savings
    • Homebuyer Educational Courses
    • 40% Debt-to-Income Ratio

Interested residents and buyers can contact:

Cinnaire In Action

Dogwood Estates was developed during World War II to provide temporary housing for factory workers in Walkerton, IN, Forty years later, residents living in these plywood houses were plagued with issues: Ceilings were caving in. Floors pockmarked with holes. Uninsulated walls caused pipes to freeze.

Developers worked with the Town of Walkerton, Cinnaire, First Source Bank, the Federal Home Loan Bank, Neighborhood Development Association to tear down the existing 86 homes and develop 40 beautiful, affordable, lease-to-purchase homes. The project has provided an unprecedented impact on the small community, changing the lives of over 200 families.

Read more

Our Locations

Home Office - Lansing
1118 South Washington
Lansing MI, 48910

Indianapolis
320 North Meridian, Suite 516
Indianapolis IN, 46204

Wilmington
100 W. 10th Street, Suite 502
Wilmington, DE 19801

Chicago
225 West Washington, Suite 1350
Chicago, IL 60606

Madison
10 E. Doty Street, Suite 617
Madison, WI 53703

Grand Rapids
100 Cesar E. Chavez Ave., Suite 202
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Detroit
2111 Woodward Avenue, Suite 600
Detroit, MI 48201

Milwaukee
231 E. Buffalo Street, Suite 302
Milwaukee, WI 53202

Scroll to Top