Happy 16th Anniversary to Housing Counselor Rebecca Wiese

We are incredibly grateful for the hard work and dedication of our team members. This April we congratulate Rebecca Wiese, Lead Housing Counselor, who is celebrating her 16 year anniversary with Movin' Out!

Rebecca shares about her many years of experience as a housing counselor in the following interview.

Rebecca is wearing a black and white spotted blouse while holding her brown, black, and white puppy.

Can you share a little bit about yourself, your background, and your career at Movin’ Out?

I started my career working with people with disabilities at Community Work Services, where for 9 years I supported people with intellectual disabilities at their jobs. In this role I met and supported André when he was working at Movin’ Out. A few years later when I was looking to return to work, I saw an opportunity at Movin’ Out where I realized I could still work with people with disabilities but this time from the housing side. I was taken on, was trained to be a housing counselor, and 16 years later I am still loving it! 

What is the scope of your work as Movin’ Out’s Lead Housing Counselor?

As housing counselors, we have to be experts in purchasing homes so we are able to share that knowledge with the people and families we work with. In all of our work it is important to approach each individual with empathy. By getting to know each person for who they are, I begin to understand their needs and how I can best support them and I can adapt how we collaborate through the homebuying process. I see myself as a guide who can help take our clients through the homebuying process. Even though they will also work with lenders, realtors, and sellers, I am standing with them the entire time and can help explain confusing documents, next steps, and hopefully answer any other questions that they may have. I get to be involved from the early stages of education about how you buy a house and I am there until the very end when they are sitting at the closing. The homebuying process can be very confusing and I think it is very helpful that I can be there to be on my client’s side and provide support through it all and also provide advocacy if something isn’t the right fit for the future my client is working towards.

What is the most memorable home purchase you’ve helped with? 

I worked with Sarah after she became paralyzed and had significant life changes as a result of her disability. She was looking to leave her apartment with stairs to find something that was accessible as someone who uses a wheelchair. I was able to work with our programs so after Sarah’s purchase of her ranch home, we were able to provide funds for home repair so she could make the changes she needed so her home worked for her. I will never forget Sarah’s strength at her closing. I realized that with her strength and the stability of her home she was going to be okay. I still think about Sarah, and many other past clients, and wonder what their lives are like today. I hope they are all doing well!

What motivates you to empower individuals and families with disabilities? 

Working with people with disabilities has always been my passion. I have always cared for and wanted to help people. I love being the bearer of good news that Movin’ Out programs are here to support people with disabilities to purchase and stay in their homes. I feel motivated when I am working closely with someone over a period of time and they might not think that homeownership is a possibility for them but I can take them through the whole process and help them get to the day that we are both sitting at their closing together. In those moments there is so much happiness and gratitude that they were able to reach this goal they didn’t think was possible. 

The people, my team and the clients, provide so much in my life. My team is so supportive and collaborative and we are lucky to work with clients and help them reach their goals.