There are roughly 100 million renters in the United States, one third of the country. For most of them, the financial knowledge that would help them transition to homeownership, get out of debt, build a credit score, and save a down payment was never taught—not in school, not by parents, not by a landlord. Steven Libman, founder of Investing With Purpose, views this as both a societal failure and an opportunity. Through 15 years of operating multifamily real estate, Libman has developed a faith-driven community investment model where financial literacy is a central pillar of how residents are served.
The model addresses a stark wealth gap. The average homeowner in the United States has a net worth of over $350,000, while the average renter has a net worth of around $10,500. This disparity is not primarily due to income differences but rather a gap in knowledge, access, and compounding decisions made without the right information.
Libman is direct about how the financial world has failed ordinary people. "We have done a really good job of reconciling our giving and our philanthropy to our core values," he says. "But when it comes to our investments, we outsource our conscience and our thinking to someone else." The same dynamic plays out in housing: renters who could become homeowners within two or three years with education and a structured plan instead remain tenants for decades, simply because no one explained the mechanics of debt reduction, credit scores, and down payment saving.
A current example of the model in action is a 418-unit property in Lubbock, Texas, owned and operated by Integrity Holdings Group (IHG), a firm Libman co-founded. The property runs a financial literacy program in partnership with Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, delivered by on-site ministry coordinators. The free program covers debt reduction, credit building, and savings strategies. What makes it notable is that the community consists of individually deeded duplexes, and residents who complete the program and hit qualifying milestones have a pathway to purchase their own unit, moving from tenant to homeowner—and in some cases to landlord. "Maybe the single mom who thought she would be renting forever is, two years later, a landlord," Libman says. "That changes the trajectory for her and her kids."
The retention data from properties running this model is compelling. Residents who have six or seven friends in the same complex are 45 to 50 percent less likely to leave, and lease attrition at properties with structured community engagement programs drops by 40 to 50 percent. Lower turnover means lower costs, more stable income, and better performing assets. The financial literacy program is not a cost center; it is an investment in community stability, which is an investment in asset stability.
Investing With Purpose is also developing summer tutoring and kids' programming at several portfolio properties to address the learning gap affecting children in multifamily housing during school breaks. The goal across every initiative is to meet real needs, build genuine connection, and create an environment where people want to stay.
The Lubbock program is relatively new, with full outcomes still being tracked. But the framework is replicable, and Libman is applying it across a growing portfolio. This raises a broader question the real estate industry has largely avoided: what responsibility does an operator have to the people living inside its assets? For most, the answer stops at maintenance, safety, and lease compliance. For a faith-driven operator, Libman argues that is insufficient. "Where people live affects almost everything their life touches," he says. "The communities they are building, the people they are with—if we can impact somebody's life inside a community, and then you see the butterfly effect of that, it is immeasurable." More information on the Asset Ministry Program and the firm's broader community investment model is available at investingwithpurpose.org/impact.
