Robbie Knight sets foundation for homeownership by participating in credit builder program.
For Robbie Knight, her homeownership journey began with her desire to move out of her apartment. Although it is incredibly difficult to find housing on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, she had a strong desire to provide a better life for her family.
“I wanted to give my family what they deserve, and to have something I can pass down to my kids,” she says.
She knew cleaning up her credit needed to be a priority, so she enrolled in Four Bands’ credit builder program. One of the first things she did was meet with her coach, Cora Mae Haskell, to establish her goals. She wrote four things on her goal sheet, which were clearing up her credit, getting a new vehicle, finishing college, and purchasing a home.
“They are all happening – not in that exact order – but it’s all coming together,” she exclaims.
As part of the credit builder program, she completed a personal finance training, created a budget, opened a savings account, and started making monthly deposits over the course of a year. She also received incentives when she reached certain savings milestones.
“The incentives give you that little extra pep to keep going at it,” she says.
As she was saving, Robbie utilized Four Bands’ credit builder loan to pay off and consolidate some old debt. As she repaid her credit builder loan with monthly, on-time payments, she began establishing a positive credit history and increasing her credit score. With her higher credit score, she was able to achieve her second goal – buying a vehicle. Robbie notes that making her vehicle payments on time is also contributing to a stronger credit score.
With two goals checked off her list, Robbie turned her focus to homeownership. She is one of the first applicants to apply for Four Bands’ new mortgage loan product, and has plans to put a home in the newly developed Badger Park. While she is going through the home loan process, she is continuing to pursue her college degree with plans to complete her AA this semester and BA next year.
Most importantly, Robbie’s children (age 13 and 15) are learning how to budget and manage money by going through this experience with her.
“When they ask for something, I ask my kids if it is a need or a want. I do just like Cora Mae did with me,” she says of her approach to teaching the difference between essential and nonessential purchases.
With some substantial achievements, Robbie’s hopes are high that she’ll reach all of her goals.