After a five-alarm fire started in the basement of Yasmine's Washington, D.C. apartment building, she, and 200 other residents, were homeless. But Yasmine did not give in. She knew the building had a laundry list of issues, including the near-complete absence of working fire alarms. Yasmine fought against ownership through her rights under D.C.'s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), to pursue her dream of living in a safe and stable home. 

After her divorce, Betrang was kicked out of her home with her children, and with no where to go, ended up in a woman and children's shelter. As a part-time elder-care professional, Betrang struggled to find a safe home she could afford for her family.

Nam fled his home of Saigon in 1975, at the young age of 21 as the Vietnam War came to an end. Nam struggled to find work and stable housing in the United States, leading to an even larger struggle - mental illness. 

Now a single mom with four children and a grandson on the way, Yvonne needed to get out of the drug-ridden neighborhood of Mayfield and into a safe community for her family. However, it was nearly impossible to find a new home she could afford on her salary alone. 

These two brothers were only teenagers in High School when they became linguists for the United States Army. After it became too dangerous for them to remain in their birthplace and home, Afghanistan, both Saifullah and Fnu were brought to the U.S. as refugees.