Help Secure A Home-Sweet-Home

I am hoping to raise $4000 to help my best friend, her husband and their young son not become homeless. The past few months have been a snowball effect of problems, one more severe than the last and all piling up on them at once. Hopefully we can raise $2,500 by October 31 to help them catch up on monthly bills and afford to move into a new home. Anything beyond our goal will help them get fully on their feet for the first few months and begin to reimburse all that they have lost in the last year.

A little about the Warenders:
Rachel and Dustin started their happily ever after in 2014 together in Florida. Rachel has a successful career as Ballet Mistress of a local Florida dance school and Dustin has pursued a career as a chef. Their little family started with dogs and grew further with a child of their own. The decision to bring Walter into the world was not made spontaneously, in fact Rachel and Dustin had been avidly saving for the future from the very first day. Together they created a sufficient savings that would help them survive emergencies but not be used for any basic needs. Unfortunately, in the past few months things have just been getting worse and worse for the family which has led them here, asking for your assistance so they do not become homeless.

The troubles began when Dustin's job was transferred within the company to a location 40 mins away putting a lot of strain on the family car. No sooner had he started the long commute than the timing chain tensioner broke totaling the car since it would cost much more to fix then the car was worth itself. The cost to get into a new (reliable/family) vehicle used up the remainder of their savings and put an additional $275 monthly bill on their plate. After just two months of owning the car the brake pads FELL OFF while Walter was in the car putting both Dustin and Walter's lives in danger. Unfortunately the company from which they purchased the faulty vehicle took absolutely no responsibility so again the small savings that had begun to build was drained. Being the survivors that they are they took this set back gracefully and began cutting out expenses and selling personal items to recover the large unexpected cost but affording even the most basic necessities was becoming difficult (food,insurance, car payment, and electricity).

Rachel's schedule mimics that of local school systems which can make it hard to provide income over the summers. Dustin has done a great job for many years providing for his family working from home for 2 years and when the economy got slow picking up a secondary job to provide as much as possible. However the lack of hours during the slow seasons in their careers and the additional expenses were bleeding them dry on only one income over the summer months. When Rachel did return to work she was greeted with a slight schedule adjustment in the best interest of the school as well as holiday/hurricane days that unfortunately caused more damage on their finances than anticipated. No sooner had Rachel returned to work then Dustin's hours began to get cut due to his high wages and the slow season in the restaurant industry. Dustin’s years and experience in the service industry secured him a position as the highest paid cook which proved to be a blessing and a curse. As the season slowed his boss was unable to continue paying his rate for the amount of hours and cut more and more each week until he was laid off. He is seeking re-employment every single day but it being slow season has not yet been able to secure a position.

Despite Dustin and Rachel’s best efforts, their family is now facing homelessness. When they initially moved into their 2 bedroom home in November 2015 Rachel was 8 months pregnant and they were looking for a long-term home. The real estate company promised that the homeowner wanted a steady tenant for a year to year lease for as long as possible. This was only one of many lies told by Primary Realty in Deltona Fl. They assured Rachel and Dustin that there was nothing wrong with any plumbing, electric, bugs, rodents, roof and the carpeting all of which began causing problems within the first month of their lease and none of which the realty company would do anything about. The Warenders put down large deposits on the house based on the idea that it was their long-term home. (The deposits included; first and last month, security ($1000) and pet ($900) All of these deposits are non-refundable except for the last month which Primary Realty Estate threatened to revoke every chance they had through lies and scare tactics. Just 10 short months after moving in they were informed the homeowner had put their home on the market. Primary Real Estate made an effort to work with them by promising they could stay month-to-month after the lease by “checking” with the homeowner. This was also a lie. On October 6 they received a call saying they MUST EVICT BY OCT 31. (less than 30 days notice). In this message was a severe warning specifying court fees and double rent if they wanted to stay beyond Oct 31.

All this brings us back to you, sitting at your computer reading their story. Though this family has adapted as much as possible, sold everything they could that was not tied down including their wedding rings and other family heirlooms simply to keep a roof over their heads they will not have a place to live beginning November 1st. Close family and friends have done alot to help the Warender's but it is simply not enough. We are trying to raise funds to help them secure a new home and begin to heal from the hellish experience that is 2016.

Any donation big or small will be a blessing to them as they continue to fight to survive and thrive through the next few months. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and if you can find it in your heart please share the link!