As featured in Black Enterprise.

After a lot of hard work, building The Promise Homes Company from a bold vision but a modest start up, started and run literally out of my and my then managing directors spare bedroom in June of 2017, the company is now positioned for great things.

At the end of 2021, and after 4+ years of growth, the Promise Homes Company could legitimately say that it was the largest minority controlled owner of single family residential rental homes in America.

In December, 2021, the Promise Homes Company successfully secured a recapitalization of the business for growth, allowing the company, and me, to pay off its institutional lenders, including City National Bank and Freddie Mac, and its founding individual investors Tony Ressler and Michael Arougheti.

An example of a Promise Homes Co. home for rent.

To be clear, without Tony and Michael, ‘believing’ in my dream, there would not have been one. So it was hugely satisfying for me, to be able to repay their initial investment fully, with agreed interest. No favors. No cut corners. Just good business — with a positive purpose attached.

The journey for Promise Homes in those early years was simple — blocking, tackling, identifying and solving problems, performing, producing results — and driving the company forward. And the team did that.

Beyond performing on our baseline company results, I am proud of what we have done to advance an out of the box social impact model. One that includes financial literacy for residents, contracts for minority vendors, and genuine opportunities for individuals to move from mere renters, to owners of their own affordable home.

One particularly proud stat/fact is this: more than 50% of all Promise Promises Company contracts for vendors — be there plumbers, electricians, roofers, landscapers, painters etc — are minority and women owned small businesses!

Some of the original team members, and outside advisors to me.

And now the Promise Homes Company is reset for future growth, and looking forward to all of that. A special thank you to team members such as Mrs. Jackie Williams, who was there with me and the company — from the start. And remains with us and the growing team today.

As to the recapitalization itself, I cannot say enough, and thank enough, the special team at Deutsche Bank, led by my friend John Bartling, vice chairman, and his team including Mahesh Srinivasan and Shafin Fattah. Real pros, who also care deeply about humanity, for sure.

And here we go. The best is yet to come.

John Hope Bryant, Principal

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