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the New Lenox Patriot | December 8, 2016 | 11
New Lenox native invests in homes to rehab, give back to veterans
Atwell seeks veteran
contractors to assist
with new business
Rebecca Susmarski
Contributing Editor
Capt. Kirby Atwell recently
decided to combine
a humanitarian cause with
one of his passions, and so
far, his decision has yielded
great results.
The Lincoln-Way Central
alumnus and U.S. Army
veteran started his own business,
Green Vet Homes, over
the summer to help homeless
veterans find and ultimately
own quality homes. Kirby
rehabs old or abandoned
homes in the south suburbs,
then lets veterans rent them
via vouchers until they can
save enough money to purchase
the home on their own.
So far Atwell has fixed up
and moved a veteran into an
Oak Lawn condo, and he
also bought an abandoned
house in Blue Island so he
could flip it and donate some
of the proceeds to an organization
that assists veterans.
“It’s always exciting to
find new deals and rehab,
and turn an ugly house into
something beautiful, but
when you can do it and then
also add another higher purpose
on top of that, it really
is much more fulfilling,”
Atwell said. “My vision is
to give [veterans] the whole
package — move them into
the house, help them get a
job, get them a computer and
get them a financial plan.”
Atwell majored in business
management when he
attended the United States
Military Academy at West
Point, but his passion for real
estate truly began to blossom
during his time in the Army.
Following his West Point
graduation, Atwell spent two
years stationed in Texas, followed
by another two in Hawaii
and then two in Japan.
While encamped, he
bought a few rental properties,
watched shows about
flipping houses and read any
book he could find about real
estate and investment. He
also served as an air defense
artillery officer, a patriot fire
control enhanced operator
and a general’s aide before
he rose to the rank of captain
and returned to the United
States in 2011.
Atwell went on to cofound
a Mokena flipping
business called iCandy-
Homes, and took some
classes hosted by the stars
of “Flip this House.” Yet
soon he saw a great need
for homes for veterans, as
many fell into poverty after
returning from the service
with Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder or non-translatable
skills.
“If you’re a soldier, you’re
trained how to get close to
the enemy and kill them,
but when you come back
here that doesn’t necessarily
translate to getting a
job, personal financial planning
and all the day-to-day
tasks,” Atwell said. “It’s
also very humbling because
you’re taking on such a huge
responsibility in one aspect,
then you come back home
and people treat you like the
same guy who left. It’s difficult
to handle day-to-day
stuff when you’re used to
doing things that felt like a
much bigger role.”
Many individuals call Atwell
with home referrals,
such as people living across
the country who inherited
a run-down home or those
who have been evicted due
to unpaid taxes. Once he
finds and fixes up a home,
Atwell contacts the HUD-
Veterans Affairs Supportive
Housing program, which refers
him to veterans in need.
To rehab one home typically
takes about four to five
weeks, while flipping one
Green Vet Homes
For more information or
to donate materials to
Green Vet Homes, call
(708) 231-0100, or visit
www.greenvethomes.
com.
takes about eight to 10, Atwell
said. Cleaning out the
Oak Lawn condo — which
had previously belonged to a
woman who hoarded items,
Atwell said — took the efforts
of Atwell and a full
crew, and they filled a dumpster
with items four times.
Once they cleaned and
rented it out to a veteran
named Joe Stephens, however,
Stephens said it was
“the nicest place he’s ever
lived in,” Atwell said. Atwell
makes quarterly checkins
with Stephens, who has
offered to fix any smaller
repairs that might be needed
around the home, though
Atwell always checks for issues
that may have popped
up while making his rounds.
“I’ve heard of a lot of investors
who are afraid to
rent to voucher holders,
whether it’s Section 8 or VA
voucher holders, because
they’re afraid they’re going
to tear up the place,” Atwell
said. “I haven’t done it for a
real long time, but the ones
I have done — because I’ve
done Section 8 [homes] also
— how you treat the tenant
is how they’re going to treat
your place. If you are really
respectful to them and are
proactive in managing the
property, and you stop by
and you show that you care,
then they take care of it pretty
well usually themselves.
And they’re going to treat
you with respect just as you
treated them with respect.”
Currently, Atwell’s family
assists him with the business.
His father Cory and older
brother Brock help with the
rehab work, and his wife
Taryn makes gift baskets for
Kirby Atwell looks inside
some cabinets at a home in
Blue Island he purchased
through his business,
Green Vet Homes. Atwell
invests in the homes to
rehab and then allow
veterans in need of homes
to rent them. Rebecca
Susmarski/22nd Century
Media
the veteran homeowners.
Atwell also works with
veteran-owned contracting
groups to rehab the homes,
and he plans to work with
such groups full-time and
hire veterans in-house someday.
He also hopes to eventually
pick up one new home
project per month to help
more of his brothers and
sisters-in-arms find good
homes.
It’s the least he can do,
he believes, for others who
made great sacrifices for
their country.
“I was very fortunate with
my service,” Atwell said. “It
became sort of a passion for
mine to work with veterans.
I think there’s a shared connection
with them.”
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