Black Woman Entrepreneur On a Mission to Offer Affordable Housing
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by BlackBusiness.com. It has been edited for the MOXY platform and republished here with permission.
In August 2023, Janay White, an African-American entrepreneur from Jacksonville, Florida, launched J White Construction Inc. The launch paves the way for her mission to offer affordable housing to first-time homebuyers and single mothers, revitalizing poverty-stricken areas in the process.
At just 36 years old, Janay’s achievements are nothing short of remarkable. She is the CEO of eight successful businesses, including a hair salon and rental car company that exclusively serves single mothers, the founder of a non-profit organization, and owner of more than 50 Airbnb properties and eight investment properties, three of which are new construction homes.
Janay’s story is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Rising from homelessness and living paycheck to paycheck, she transformed her life through sheer determination and hard work. She honed invaluable traits of tenacity and dedication while working as a social worker and fraud investigator at the Florida Department of Children and Families and as a revenue auditor at UPS. These experiences fueled her passion to make a difference and serve as a guiding light for those facing financial challenges, and she soon established herself as an accomplished serial entrepreneur.
“My lessons are hard won,” Janay writes on her LinkedIn page. “I didn’t come from money and didn’t have any understanding of how credit worked. My first interaction with credit was at age 18. I got a $500 loan and promptly ruined my credit. At age 25, I learned how to raise my credit score and got approved for plenty of credit —and soon became a slave to debt. I worked two jobs for 10 years to make ends meet with a long-term goal of changing my financial future.”
Today, she stands as a beacon of hope, dedicated to empowering others to attain financial freedom and create generational wealth. She also owns and runs J White Credit University, which helps people flourish financially by teaching them to leverage their credit, creating multiple streams of income that lead to financial independence and generational wealth.
Janay’s impact is undeniable. Countless glowing reviews from those she’s touched and empowered bear witness to her transformative influence on individuals and communities alike.