What is Homes for Heroes?

Last Updated on October 24, 2024 by Luke Feldbrugge

What is Homes for Heroes? In short, we’re an organization dedicated to honoring the heroes in American communities by helping them save money when buying, selling or refinancing a home or mortgage. But our mission extends much further than that. We look to build partnerships with real estate, mortgage and local business specialists to build a community that supports heroes.

Our Mission

To fully appreciate our mission and answer the question, “What is Homes for Heroes?”, it’s important to know how we began. Shortly after the tragedy of 9/11, during the days when unity and civic pride were top priority, Homes for Heroes was created to give back to the heroes of this country. From that day on, we have worked to honor heroes across our country.

We have the largest nationwide network of more than 3,300 local market professional real estate and mortgage specialists serving heroes in 50 states. We guarantee the most savings of any national program because we believe heroes have earned our gratitude for all that they do for our communities. Some of our specialists are even former heroes themselves! Our specialists know what it’s like to be recently discharged, or work 24+ hour shifts, and our mortgage specialists understand VA loans and irregular work history.

Simply put, making the home transaction process easy and saving our heroes money is our way of saying thank you.

Who We Serve

It’s true that not all heroes wear capes. In fact, our heroes wear badges, fatigues, scrubs or carry textbooks. The six primary hero groups served by Homes for Heroes includes, but are not necessarily limited to:

• Firefighters – All ranks of active, former or retired full-time Firefighters and volunteer Fire Fighters
• EMS – All ranks of active, former or retired Paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians/EMTs
• Law Enforcement – All ranks of active, former or retired, police officers, troopers, correctional officers, and 911 dispatchers/operators
• Military Armed Forces
  • U.S. ARMY:  All ranks of Active Army, Army Reserves, Army Veterans, Army National Guard
  • U.S. AIR FORCE:  All ranks of Active Air Force, Air Force Reserves, Air Force Veterans
  • U.S. SPACE FORCE: All ranks of Active Space Force, Space Force Veterans
  • U.S. NAVY:  All ranks of Active Navy, Navy Reserves, Navy Veterans
  • U.S. MARINE CORPS:  All ranks of Active Marine Corps, Marine Corps Reserves, Marine Corps Veterans
  • U.S. COAST GUARD:  All ranks of Active Coast Guard, Coast Guard Reserves, Coast Guard Veterans
• Healthcare Professionals – Includes, but is not limited to active, former or retired Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS), Nurse Anesthetists, Medical-Surgical Nurse, Emergency Room Nurse, Operating Room Nurse (OR), Home Health Nurse, Nurse Case Manager, Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) Nurse, Telemetry Nurse, Nurse Manager, Staff Nurse, Dialysis Nurse, Pediatric Nurse, Labor and Delivery Nurse, Cardiovascular Nurse, Radiology Nurse, School Nurse, Oncology Nurse, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Nurse, Nurse Midwives, Nurse Practitioners, all Medical Lab Technicians, Family Medicine Doctor, Internal Medicine Doctor, Hospitalist, Surgeon, Cardiologist, Dermatologist, Endocrinologist, Gastroenterologist, Infectious Disease, Nephrologist, Ophthalmologist, Obstetrician, Gynecologist, Otolaryngologist, Pediatrician, Pulmonologist, Psychiatrist, and other medical healthcare workers.
• Teachers – active, former or retired Early Childhood Educators, Primary/Elementary Teachers, Secondary Education Teachers, Post-Secondary Education Teachers and Professors, Adult and Continuing Education Teachers, Pre-School Teachers, Kindergarten Teachers, Special Education Teachers, Teacher Assistants, Counselors, Librarians and Administrators.

Whether it’s keeping us safe, healthy, or educated, each of these heroes provide an invaluable service to our communities. To thank these selfless heroes for all that they do, we offer Hero Rewards to anyone who uses our program. These rewards come in the form of incredible savings, and to date we have helped over 70,000 heroes save more than $138 million on real estate transactions.

Offer Hero Rewards® – Average Savings of $3,000

Our network of real estate and mortgage specialists share our sentiment that our nation’s heroes deserve to be rewarded. By agreeing to become a Homes for Heroes specialist, these agents and lenders agree to give back part of their commission or fees to you. These Hero Rewards® savings are primarily given back in two different ways. Loan officers or loan originators reduce their lending fees at closing. Real estate agents reduce their commission, and after closing, Homes for Heroes sends you a check.

Heroes who take advantage of all the Hero Rewards savings we offer save an average of $3,000. That’s a nice chunk of change you can use however you’d like. You can use it for moving expenses, home upgrades, paying off debts, or taking a vacation! We also help heroes save money on everyday purchases with our Local Deals.

How It Works

Real estate transactions can be complicated. That’s why we’ve designed our process to be as simple as possible. Here’s how the program works:

• REGISTER ONLINE: There’s no obligation once you’ve filled out a form, which takes less than a minute to complete.
• CONNECT:  We automatically match you with a real estate specialist and/or mortgage specialist in your area depending upon whether you plan to buy, sell, or refinance. They will find out where you are in the process of buying, selling or refinancing, and figure out what they can do to help meet your needs.
• SAVE MONEY: When you decide to work with our local specialists, you’ll receive your Hero Rewards savings after closing on your home or mortgage:
  • Buy and/or Sell a Home with our local real estate specialist, and you will receive a check after your closing for 0.7% of the home purchase price (or, $700 for every $100,000 of the home price). If you buy AND sell a home, your rewards double! If you use our mortgage specialist you receive reduced lender fees and can save an average of $500. If you use our local title specialist you can save an average of $150 on title fees. And, if you use our local home inspector specialist you can save an average of $50 on inspection fees.
  • Refinance a Mortgage with our local mortgage specialist and you will receive reduced lender fees and can save an average of $500, helping you keep as much money in your pocket as possible.

There’s no catch, no red tape, and no extra work required from you. Simply use our specialists to complete your real estate or mortgage transaction as normal, and save money in the process.

As great as those savings are, there’s another reason to consider Homes for Heroes for your real estate needs. Those who buy or sell a home with Homes for Heroes help give back to heroes in need through our Homes for Heroes Foundation and our Circle of Giving.

Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving

Every time a hero like you buys or sells a home using the services provided by Homes for Heroes, Inc. we make a donation to the Homes for Heroes Foundation to serve heroes in need. This process is defined by our Circle of Giving.

Homes for Heroes Foundation

Founded in 2009, the Homes for Heroes Foundation donates hero grants to charitable organizations who help heroes in need. These could be organizations that help homeless veterans, provide support for teachers, or a new healing center for first responders injured while on the job. The Foundation has awarded $1.6 million in hero grants donated to support the lives and efforts of heroes and their families. Homes for Heroes, Inc. covers all of the Foundation’s operating expenses, which means that 100% of donations go to help heroes in need.

Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving

The Homes for Heroes Circle of Giving is the process of how we serve our heroes. It begins when a hero registers on our site and we connect them with our local real estate and mortgage specialists to buy, sell or refinance a home. While working with heroes, our specialists provide exceptional service and assist our heroes with closing on a home or new mortgage. Following the closing process, heroes receive their Hero Rewards savings. Then, Homes for Heroes, Inc. makes a donation to the Homes for Heroes Foundation. The foundation then provides a grant to a nonprofit organization who assist heroes facing a housing crisis or urgent financial needs. By providing the savings to heroes after they close on a home, and donating hero grants to organizations who help struggling heroes, we strengthen the health of local communities by putting more money into the hands of local heroes.

It is Our Mission to Thank Every Hero in the Nation

So, Ready to Start? If you or your spouse is a hero and ready to speak with a specialist about buying, selling, or refinancing; or if you just have questions you’d like answered from someone who knows your community, the local market trends and regulations, or special down payment assistance programs that can be used in addition to the savings provided by Homes for Heroes, simply register online and our specialist with contact you within 24 hours.

Want to Serve our Heroes? If you are a real estate agent or loan officer/originator and want to learn more about becoming Homes for Heroes Specialist, how to build your all important local niche, and grow your business, simply register online and be sure set a date and time that works for you to speak with a member of our team.

If you represent a title company, home inspector, insurance or legal services business, or other local business who wants to provide a special offer(s) to local heroes, be sure to check out how to become a Friend of Heroes local business and provide heroes with a special offer through the Homes for Heroes network.

Want to Support Heroes in Need? Please donate to the Homes for Heroes Foundation and help fund future hero grants that assist heroes in need.