Home$tart Helps Buy a “Castle” for Daughters
last updated on Friday, October 2, 2026 in Affordable Housing
FHLB Des Moines member Bankers Trust recently helped a Des Moines family buy their first home with a Home$tart® grant.
Jose and his family were living in a relative’s basement hoping to buy their own home, but with rising prices, they were struggling to find one within their budget.
Cassandra Haller, vice president residential mortgage originator at Bankers Trust, helped Jose leverage funds from several local partnering housing organizations, including the FHLB Des Moines Home$tart grant. Using the $15,000 Home$tart grant to cover the down payment for the home purchase, Jose and his family were able to enter homeownership with more financial stability for their family.
“We love and value the Home$tart program, using it often to help borrowers get the chance for homeownership,” said Haller. “Jose and his family were so grateful for the opportunity to use Home$tart.”
Living in their newly constructed home or their “castle” as his daughters call it, Jose hopes sharing his story helps others know there are options available to support in the journey to affordable homeownership.
“We’re enjoying being homeowners,” said Carmen, Jose’s wife. “It’s a dream to have moved into our own home from our relative’s basement and it still feels like a dream. Our family loves our large living room to play and be together.”
Looking to help homebuyers in your community? Learn more about our Down Payment Products, Home$tart and NAHI.
About Bankers Trust
Since 1917, Bankers Trust has been a leading financial institution for commercial and consumer banking services. Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, Bankers Trust is the state’s largest privately held community bank, with $7 billion in assets. In addition to the 12 branches serving Central Iowa, we have branches in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Phoenix, Arizona, and Omaha, Nebraska. BTC Trust Company of South Dakota, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bankers Trust, is based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Bankers Trust invests more than $1 million annually into the community, and Bankers Trust employees volunteer an average of 14,000 hours each year at nonprofit organizations.
Looking to purchase your dream home? Our Community Lending Home Mortgage is designed to support your journey to homeownership within Polk, Dallas, Warren and Story Counties. Learn more here.
Equal Housing Lender.
Cassandra Haller, NMLS ID#: 681625
All loans subject to approval.
TAGS
- Home$tart