When most people think about transitional housing for youth aging out, Mike Williams thinks about home ownership as a way to help them build generational wealth. Mike is the CEO of Dreams and Success Homes and SMART DREAMS Inc. Some would say that what Mike is doing is innovative and exactly what young people need, while others might say that mixing foster youth, real estate, and profit introduces new risks. How can innovation introduce healthy and necessary risk without putting young people in a situation where they don’t have the support they need to succeed. Mike knows this tension because he lived it when he transitioned out of foster care.

In this episode of Community In-Site, host Valerie Frost talks with Mike about these perspectives. Mike walks through the mechanics of his housing and mentorship model, including how homes are financed, how relationships are structured, and the safeguards built in to protect young people as they transition to adulthood.

This conversation doesn’t resolve the debate. Instead, it asks harder questions about risk, accountability, and what it takes to build new solutions. 

Community In-Site is now on YouTube. You can go to the website to listen to episodes, access information and resources, and subscribe to the email newsletter. Podcasts Archive - Thriving Families

Here is a site where you can learn more about Mike's work. 

• DASH Foundation | Coaching & Housing

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Please email us if you want to connect with the creative team or find out how to engage with the family well-being movement. [email protected]