Compass Realty Repairs Homes For Local Families In Need
Photographer: JWcreative.indy
Yardwork, roof repair, plumbing, electrical work and other projects free for deserving families. It sounds too good to be true, but Compass Realty makes it happen, just like they make home ownership dreams come true.
Through their new program, Compass Cares, the brokerage helps deserving families by easing the physical or financial burden of home maintenance projects or repairs. Compass Realty managing broker, Jake Stiles, launched the program earlier this year.
Stiles has always had a generous spirit of giving back and paying it forward. The realtors in his six- year-old brokerage share his giving spirit. In previous years, he and his staff gave their time and effort to participating in various community service projects like Habitat for Humanity. Everyone in the office made it a priority to incorporate their involvement in service projects around their lifestyle and schedule. “Everyone did what worked for them, but everyone was involved in something,” Stiles says.
A turning point came when Compass Realty had an unexpected surge in profits in 2018 and started 2019 strong as well. “I started thinking what if we found a way to create a nonprofit company,” Stiles says, “We already give back more than most companies, but we have the means, so I wanted to give back even more.”
Stiles knew immediately the target group to benefit from Compass Realty’s extra profits. “There will always be people who get hit with unexpected home repair or maintenance expenses,” he says, “Many of them don’t have the financial resources to pay for it or they have physical limitations due to illness or injury that prevent them from completing the project.”
With that in mind, Stiles decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from the closing of each home sale to Compass Cares. Next, he gathered a group of trusted local businesses specializing in HVAC, plumbing, electrical work, construction and lawn and garden to make the necessary repairs on the homes of deserving families.
Once Stiles and his team got the word out about the program, it didn’t take long before responses came pouring in. Stiles and Compass took nominations for deserving families, and something amazing happened. “Not only did we get plenty of nominations, we got even more responses from people asking how to help, where to go to volunteer, and how to contribute,” Stiles says.
As hard as it is to believe, the incredible generosity Compass Cares offers doesn’t always elicit the reaction you’d expect. When they receive a nomination from someone, Compass Cares takes great care to keep the nominating party’s name anonymous.
However, sometimes even preserving anonymity isn’t enough for the nominee’s family. “Many nominees are skeptical when we call.,” Stiles says, “When we offer them free help, they automatically think it’s too good to be true or there’s a catch. We tell the family that it’s free, and yet, some people decline. This is just how society is wired these days. The concept of free things is tough to grasp.”
Sometimes, nominees aren’t in a position to decline the offer for help. One family needed a simple tile roofing repairs badly. “The husband is a general contractor and more than capable of repairing it, but he’d been diagnosed with a devastating illness, and the wife is a nurse working long hours,” Stiles says, “it wasn’t a big job, but he couldn’t do it himself. I’m glad we could get them the professional help they needed by contacting a roofing service to come in and help them.”
Whether it’s a small or large repair or simple home maintenance task, Compass Cares is on top of it. “We may receive a call from someone with an elderly neighbor who needs some yardwork completed. We’re blessed to have plenty of people looking for volunteer opportunities, and we can send them out to get that yard mowed and branches trimmed,” Stiles says, “Not one contractor has turned us down and many businesses who’ve heard about their program call us offering to donate the labor if we cover the cost of the supplies. The Midwest has a reputation for kindness and hospitality, but you don’t believe it until you experience it. It’s truly humbling.”
While the main goal of Compass Cares is to help people in need, there is a deeper purpose that many might not realize. “We think of it as creating a sense of pride in our community,” Stiles says, “We’re not just helping people, we’re helping the entire community. It’s a win-win for everyone. We want to create pride in home ownership. No one wants their house to be the eyesore of the neighborhood, either inside or out. It’s why people that are able to hire house cleaning services regularly, even if they can’t work on other heavier aspects of their property. For others however, the reality is some people are trapped financially or physically, and we want to help because we can.”
In the short time since Compass Cares has started, people in the community are already talking. The feedback they’ve received includes comments like “So proud of the work you and your team are doing,” and “Compass Cares truly has the community’s interests at heart. Their compassion, sincerity and drive are top notch.”
That sense of community is what shapes Compass Cares. Their network of professional contractors and businesses is all over Johnson County, including Express Restorations, SPG Roofing and Restoration, Dixon Plumbing, Ferguson, First Option Mortgage, and Quality Title. To keep things in the community, Compass Cares limits the scope of their program to benefit families in need only in Johnson County. Though Stiles intends to keep the focus of Compass Cares in Johnson County, he’s hoping to grow the network of businesses there. “Someday I’d like to separate these projects into quadrants so that the businesses are matched with projects nearby.”
Nominating a deserving family is easy. If you know a friend or family member, neighbor or someone from your church in need of a repair or maintenance project but they’re unable to complete the project due to financial or physical limitations, contact Compass Cares to nominate them. You can also go to the Compass Cares Facebook page to complete the Google form nomination and send it in. The Compass Cares Program Coordinator will contact the family to discuss their need. The name of the nominating party is kept completely confidential. Next, the coordinator asks the homeowner’s permission to have a professional come out to assess the repairs needed and the scope of the project. Most often, a contractor can come out to make an estimate that same day and schedule the work to be done.
To learn more about Compass Cares or to nominate someone, go to their Facebook page at facebook.com/compasscareshome, or call them at 317-883-9461. Compass Realty is located at 4800 W Smith Valley Road Suite J in Greenwood.
