Yassir Yousif: Land bank helps turn a house into a home

Our home in Chalfant sits in a quiet, low-traffic neighborhood. It has plenty of space to raise a family. But it wasn’t always this way. In fact, it stood abandoned for over four years before our family moved here in 2022. Thanks to the help of the Tri-COG Land Bank, our family was able to turn this house into our home and became the first owner-occupants of a home recovered by the land bank.

2020 was a challenging year for everybody, but it made many of us realize the importance of family. My wife and two young boys were living in Minnesota then, and we decided to move closer to the rest of our family on the east coast and find a home in the Pittsburgh area.

We wanted a home in a good neighborhood, with a good school, at a reasonable price. During our search we found a home listed for sale that met all of our criteria, so I sent in our application.

I had never heard of the Tri-COG Land Bank before, but I learned a lot, quickly. Many properties in Allegheny County are blighted, abandoned and tax delinquent. It can be a nightmare even to figure out who owns them, let alone settle outstanding tax debts. In the past that meant homes were locked out of the housing market and doomed to eventual demolition.

A land bank breaks the cycle. It buys blighted and tax delinquent properties, clears their tax debt and restores them to productive use. The Tri-COG Land Bank worked with me through the struggles of covid-19, and our family living in Minnesota at the time, to make sure this house was right for us. They answered all our questions, helped us fill out the necessary paperwork and accommodated our desire to have the house inspected before placing an offer. We knew there would be some work to fix it up, but our third-party inspector and I determined that all the issues were accurately disclosed and relatively minor.

Many formerly abandoned houses, including ours, have some damage and need to be renovated. The low cost of the home meant that we had a budget to make these renovations. When we closed on the house in the fall of 2021, there was some work we needed to tackle before we could move in. We repaired some of the drywall, rewired the electricity, fixed broken pipes and removed asbestos from the basement, among other tasks. While making these repairs, I was overjoyed when some neighbors stopped by to welcome me to the area and instantly made me feel at home. They were happy to see a family who would make renovations and move into this once blighted house.

As soon as the initial repairs were finished and our inspector deemed it safe, we obtained an occupancy permit and moved our family in. That day, we officially made it our home.

When we were about to move in, I discovered our family would become the first owner-occupants of a home recovered by the Tri-COG Land Bank. This is a great honor for our family, after those many days and hours of sweat and labor. We are very grateful and thankful. I feel a sense of pride in owning a home, and it’s a comforting symbol that our hard work paid off.

My family loves our house as well, especially my young boys, who finally have their own rooms. They also love playing in our backyard, as well as the big public playground within walking distance. It’s a nice feeling to be part of this community, and I hope more people get the chance to put down roots and enjoy owning a home. We’re happy to be part of the neighborhood.

Yassir Yousif and his family moved to Chalfant from the Midwest in 2022. They are the first owner-occupants of a home sold by the Tri-COG Land Bank.