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Seeing our clients achieve key milestones is what drives our work at BCL of Texas. From startups that have expanded to multi-employee businesses to families buying their first homes, our success all comes down to you.
Ruth and Arnold Guerra were born and raised in Gonzales, Texas, where they have opened hotels, restaurants, and built homes to meet their community’s needs. “We started with nothing,” Ruth said. Now, they have built over 100 homes in their community of 7,000 people.
I visited the Guerras and we drove around the town, as Ruth pointed out both homes she and her husband had worked on, as well as other neighborhoods of older homes in states of disrepair. Gonzales has not had new home construction in a long time. “Big builders are not going to come into this town,” Ruth said. In a previous subdivision, a builder constructed about 5 homes and then left town, the work unfinished. We drove past a 17-home affordable subdivision of 3-bedroom homes the Guerras built in 2009.
Now, they are building Angel Oaks, a 6-home development for median income families, featuring 3-bedroom ranch-style homes with yards. A longtime customer of BCL, having worked with us in the past for an SBA 504 loan, the Guerra family is now working with BCL’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Texas Community Builders for our new pre-development loan product.
The demand for median-priced new housing in Gonzales is apparent, as five of the Angel Oaks homes have already been purchased, just as groundbreaking has barely begun. Most of the buyers are people of color, and all are first-time homeowners. “People are getting out of renting and into their first homes,” Ruth said.
And as with their hotels, their construction business is a family venture. They’ve taught their two daughters skills in construction, management, and project administration. “In the big city, you get a job and you learn one thing,” Ruth said. She said her daughters are now prepared with a wide range of skills to take on all kinds of jobs.
“I’m really glad that Texas Community Builders is investing in small developers,” Ruth said. “I appreciate that they saw that we have projects that will benefit individuals that probably never would have been able to buy a home. Without Texas Community Builders, we would not have been able to do this project.”
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As new homeowner Steven Hanaway stands over his cast iron skillet talking about his love of cooking he says, “One of my favorite things about owning a home is that I love being able to pick my own appliances.”
Junior Players, a non-profit that provides underserved kids with the opportunity to shine through summer and after-school arts programs in over 60 locations throughout North Texas, will be celebrating their 60th anniversary next year. In that time they have assisted thousands of children ages 5-18 from low-to-moderate income backgrounds to build their confidence, strengthen their social skills, learn to express themselves creatively, and transform their future.
Irina Cortinas is owner of Elgin Physical Therapy, a small outpatient physical therapy clinic who helps patients with issues like joint pain, post-operative challenges, back and neck pain, balance deficits, and sports injuries.
Donald has been working in the fuel department at the City of Dallas for 8 years, and this is the first time he’s seen a benefit like the Community Loan Center of Dallas offered through his employer.
“This is a great program that’s very beneficial for those who use it,” Donald says. “It was easy to use online and the money came right on time.”
When she began to get serious about buying her first house, Rose Perez sought out BCL of Texas to find out about programs available to help her get there.
“I wanted to have a safe environment for my kids, something that we could call our own, and to have a neighborhood that reflected who we are as well,” says Rose. She began to work one-on-one with HomeOwnership Center Manager Merecia Smith to start working toward that goal.
Brandon Ward’s story is one of passion, perseverance, and a willingness to take risks. After a successful career as a schoolteacher and school principal, Ward decided to pursue his dream of becoming a construction entrepreneur.
Not often is a parking lot considered an interesting business success story. That is, unless that parking lot is situated next to the brand new Baylor University McLane Stadium with a crowd full of rowdy fans on game day.
Suite 500 Austin, TX 78701 P: 512.912.9884 F: 346.301.5752 NMLS #1114924
Suite 1220 Dallas, TX 75208 P: 214.688.7456 F: 346.301.5752 NMLS #1114924
Suite 2 San Marcos, TX 78666 P: 512.383.0027 NMLS #1114924