LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Blockchange of Louisville is a new group that just finished their first remodel on St. Xavier Street in Portland.
"What used to be the porch, we created a dining room," Jakale Freeman, said. The reconstruction work is his vision as the group's contractor.
"We try to leave some exposed brick to give it some character," he said, moving through the shotgun house. "With your own walk-in closet and what's gonna be a spa."
The house is already sold to a young couple buying their first property.
Real-estate man Chip Ridge's goal is to find the right properties.
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"Because the goal is, to keep the dollars and cents in the community," he said. "And we want to provide someone not just a house, but a home."
Executive Director Tim Barnett connects potential buyers to first-time homeowner programs.
"We want to educate them and say, 'hey, this is still obtainable because there's money out there for you,'" he said. "And that's where a lot of people don't know that. You got people paying 700, 800, 900 dollars in rent. Where if you go and become a homeowner, that number goes down."
Freeman said that's one of the reasons why he loves the organization.
"We're giving them such a great value and doing our part and giving them something that people may hold on to for the rest of their lives," he said.
Freeman and his crew are already working on their next project, three doors down. Stripped down to its bones, the new project mirrors the last — a sturdy foundation to rebuild on.
BlockChange is hosting a real estate networking event in two weeks on April 26 at the Jesse E. Barnett Jr. Enrichment Center on River Road.
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