Atlanta REALTORS® Help Veterans Buy Dream Homes

The Atlanta Board of REALTORS® has been helping veterans to own the homes of their dreams by working to remove a common obstacle veterans have faced in the home-buying process.

REALTOR® Maura Neill, a member of the ABR, brought the issue to the attention of ABR leaders, who had not realized that veterans’ loans were unfairly stigmatized as an unattractive source of financing. And not only had REALTORS® been misinformed, but veterans themselves were often either unaware of this financing source or they, too, saw it as a less-attractive option.

In reality, veterans’ loans are good options for home financing.

When the Atlanta Board of REALTORS® learned about the issue, members worked with Neill and Susan Adams, director of policy and research for the Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership Inc., to begin educating REALTORS® about the issue. They organized a workshop, at which 90 Atlanta-area REALTORS® learned the truth about veterans’ loans.

In addition to dispelling the negative myths surrounding veterans’ loans, the workshop’s five speakers gave REALTORS® a variety of tools to help veterans take advantage of this financing source.

Workshop attendees are now taking what they learned back to partnerships, teams, clients and colleagues who can help correct misperceptions and put more veterans into their own homes.According to Atlanta Board of REALTORS® Government Affairs Director Lennie Shewmaker, the workshop was just the beginning — an effort to plant seeds of knowledge — in a continuing process.

Correcting the misperceptions also benefits Atlanta’s neighborhoods, Shewmaker said, because veterans tend to be excellent neighbors. Studies have shown that residents feel good about living next to people who have served their country, he said.

By being of service to veterans, the Atlanta Board of REALTORS® has demonstrated its commitment to the community.