Are corporate landlords trapping renters? A Clay County woman\u2019s story highlights a bigger problem amid federal scrutiny<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\u201cI\u2019m a single mother of three, and I\u2019m raising money to buy a house in Jacksonville,\u201d Phanor said. \u201cMy kids, they\u2019re 11, 8, and 4. They all have different personalities. I just love seeing how different they are and seeing myself in them. It\u2019s just amazing. I love being a mother.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phanor moved to Jacksonville from Miami five years ago, hoping to find a more affordable lifestyle. She\u2019s been saving for the last three years, relying on her income tax returns and making personal sacrifices along the way. <\/p>\n
Still, she says, it\u2019s not enough. Phanor has submitted offers on several homes but hasn\u2019t landed one yet. In most cases, she says she\u2019s relying on the seller to help cover closing costs. <\/p>\n
\u201cSaving has been hard. Every time I try, I have to take money back out to take care of my kids,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd now that I\u2019m finally close to buying, I didn\u2019t realize how high the closing costs would be.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what led her to start a GiveSendGo fundraiser, a difficult step for someone who doesn\u2019t like asking for help.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t want to do it,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I figured, why not? Even a little bit could help, with the mortgage, the closing costs, it\u2019s going to go towards furnishing the home because I have to start from scratch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite moving to Jacksonville for its lower cost of living, Phanor says things have changed since she arrived.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I moved, it was easier. I feel like I should have purchased a home at that time,\u201d she said. \u201cNow? It\u2019s not great at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says her current salary doesn\u2019t match the rising cost of living, and she worries about what the future looks like for her kids.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was easier for our parents. Their salaries matched the times. But for this generation, it is hard. And I think about whether or not my kids will be able to have the opportunity to purchase a home later down the line if I myself am having a hard time purchasing a home now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, she sees homeownership as more than a dream, it\u2019s a step toward building generational wealth and breaking the cycle.<\/p>\n
\u201cI also want my kids to know that if I did it, you can too. You know, it may be hard for us right now. I hope in the future it gets better for the generations to come,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou want a big house with a, backyard in it? Maybe Mama can\u2019t give it to you right now, but I\u2019m going to give you the backyard. But you know what? You work hard to get that big house in the backyard, and you put your kids in it. So I just wanted them to know that it\u2019s possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phanor says the money raised will be used to help with closing costs and mortgage expenses.<\/p>\n
To support Dieudonne and her family\u2019s homeownership journey, visit her fundraiser at: \ud83d\udc49 GiveSendGo.com\/Donnafamilyhome<\/a> <\/p>\nCopyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As home prices and interest rates continue to climb, more families are struggling to cross the threshold into…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":16898,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5136],"tags":[16547,852,5229,8314,3188,723,7310,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-16897","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jacksonville","8":"tag-addressing-a4dability","9":"tag-affordable-housing","10":"tag-america","11":"tag-duval-county","12":"tag-fl","13":"tag-florida","14":"tag-jacksonville","15":"tag-united-states","16":"tag-united-states-of-america","17":"tag-unitedstates","18":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","19":"tag-us","20":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114750951926306679","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16897","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16897"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16897\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16898"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16897"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16897"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16897"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}