Cat Greenleaf finds solace close to the water.

She and her husband, Michael Rey, left their brownstone in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, six years in the past and moved to a home in Sea Gate — “a magical little gated group,” Ms. Greenleaf stated — on the western tip of Coney Island.

“Shifting to the ocean was so profound and restorative for our household that we needed to share it with as many individuals as we might,” she stated. “I puzzled: Who wants the water essentially the most? Individuals who hung out dwelling in cages appeared like an excellent place to start out.”

So she related with the nonprofit Osborne Affiliation, which helps people who find themselves leaving jail, and made it her mission to purchase and rehabilitate distressed waterfront properties and supply them to low-income tenants who qualify for a sponsored Part 8 hire voucher — if doable, individuals who had been previously incarcerated.

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Ms. Greenleaf, 51, has at all times been an intrepid home hunter. She and Mr. Rey, 53, a producer for “60 Minutes,” married 20 years in the past at Brooklyn Borough Corridor. “I didn’t need a wedding ceremony — I needed a home,” she stated. They now have two sons who’re 12 and 14.

For a dozen years the household lived in that Cobble Hill brownstone, the place Ms. Greenleaf would sit out entrance and tape her tv speak present, “Discuss Stoop.”

They purchased their first distressed property a yr and a half in the past, upgrading a row of three bungalows on Metropolis Island within the Bronx.

“Actually fascinating oddball properties exist in New York,” Mr. Rey stated. “The objective is to search out these waterfront gems to share the expertise of the water. We nonetheless want to usher in hire and handle our prices, so it is smart to be working with Part 8.”

They’re making a nonprofit to additional their work, calling it the Restorative Housing Group.

Final fall, Ms. Greenleaf was prepared for her subsequent challenge. With a finances of round $450,000, she started searching for a waterfront home in want of transformation, ideally an outdated one which had stood the check of time. It needed to be freed from moisture, mildew and severe structural harm. She budgeted round $15,000 for upgrades, though she knew that renovating is at all times unpredictable.

She hunted all through the boroughs, wherever there was water, and scoured on-line listings day by day.

“I drive round watery neighborhoods,” she stated. “I meet brokers and speak to folks on the road. When an excellent deal comes up, I wish to soar on it.”

Among the many choices:

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