"Not the Last": A Homeowner Advocate Speaks Out

"We don't want to be the last ones." Guillermo's voice is firm and strong, addressing a room full of reporters, legislators, and advocates at the California State Capitol. "We don’t want to be the last family who got the chance to own an affordable home. We want thousands more families to follow us — we want families who can look around their neighborhoods and say, 'We belong here.'"

Guillermo and his partner, Yulisa, own their home at Habitat for Humanity's Esperanza Place in Walnut Creek. They'd been homeowners for a year when Guillermo stood at the Capitol to advocate for CalHome funding — determined that his family be just one in a long line of other families that could build their futures on the strong foundation of affordable homeownership.

Before purchasing their home, Guillermo and Yulisa rented for years. "And not the kind of renters who could just move out when things got bad," he points out. "We stayed because we couldn't afford to leave. We stayed because we were raising our son, Cesar, and we needed a roof over his head — no matter what it took. We stayed because, like so many families, we were doing everything right — working hard, paying rent on time — and still had no control over the place we called 'home.'"

To provide the best care and support for Cesar's health needs, Guillermo left a career in community organizing to devote himself fully to their son, while Yulisa's job provided the insurance that was vital for their family. It meant, though, that their finances narrowed to a single income — and their housing options narrowed, too.

Their partnership with Habitat changed the story. "As renters, we lived month to month," Guillermo says. "As homeowners, we think in generations." Today, home means security and the consistency Cesar thrives on. It means "a future that's stable, safe, and full of possibility."

Guillermo isn't content to simply enjoy this new chapter of their lives, not when the door may close behind them. When he learned that CalHome — the single state funding source to build affordable ownership housing — faces de-funding, he knew it was time to put this voice and his years of organizing experience to work. 

It's why Guillermo enthusiastically gives his time to meet with legislators, to rally fellow advocates at the state Capitol, to speak to supporters, and to write letters to urge others to stand with Habitat. He wants to be sure his family isn't the last.

"Because in California," Guillermo says, "home shouldn't be a dream you rent. It should be a future that you own."