Several people have been asking us about our house situation lately and I keep forgetting to write an update - so here it is! Our house in New Mexico sold last month. Yay! We closed via email & overnight mail so we didn't have to fly down there or anything. We still made a profit on it too, which we are deeply grateful for.
Within a week of receiving the check in the mail we met with a mortgage loan officer (is that the correct title? I can't recall) to see what amount we could be pre-approved for, in order to house-hunt within a reasonable (attainable) price range for us. It was highly informative and we got some actual numbers figured out - which narrows our price range and makes it much easier to know what to look for.
We also met with some friends who have taught finance & budget classes to begin figuring out how to take more control of our financial situation instead of merely reacting to it. We're in a great position to do this since we are between mortgages and Adam has a solid job with steady income for the first time since before being self-employed. This is all very liberating!
So now we're looking at houses within an affordable price range for us and finding a lot to like. It really is an amazing housing market here.... We're trying to balance our restlessness with prudence, however, and taking slightly slower, smaller steps than we might otherwise be compelled to take. We haven't yet made an offer on anything but are certainly considering doing so - possibly soon. For the time being, we're grateful to have a lovely and spacious temporary home. We expect to stay put through the holiday season, but it's hard to predict what may become available to us. I'm trying to start a daily prayer regimen with a twofold request: that God open doors to the home that will be ours and that God close doors to all the rest.
* Tangent: I've been to many many many open houses, so I've met several other real estate agents in the area. We've experienced the full-spectrum of agent "types." There are the friendly detached agents who say almost nothing, the friendly aggressive ones you have to run away from because they are trying to figure out if you went to school together (literally...and some of them even FOLLOW you upstairs or outside!), the assertively informative but not-quite-obnoxious ones, the super cool classy ones you kind of want to be friends with, the awkward ones that talk smack about other agents, the awkward ones who are almost flirtatious, the not actually friendly at all sort of rude & gruff ones, the "tour guide" who feels compelled to point out even the most obvious of home characteristics, the passive-aggressive tour guides who follow you around but say nothing till you comment or exclaim and then provide you more than you want to know about said characteristic, the overly-informative ones who tell you the complete history of the previous owner and how they died, the ones who make you feel sort of like a jerk for not wanting to make an offer on their listing, and the ones who are just so great you WISH you liked their listing enough to make an offer!
Within a week of receiving the check in the mail we met with a mortgage loan officer (is that the correct title? I can't recall) to see what amount we could be pre-approved for, in order to house-hunt within a reasonable (attainable) price range for us. It was highly informative and we got some actual numbers figured out - which narrows our price range and makes it much easier to know what to look for.
We also met with some friends who have taught finance & budget classes to begin figuring out how to take more control of our financial situation instead of merely reacting to it. We're in a great position to do this since we are between mortgages and Adam has a solid job with steady income for the first time since before being self-employed. This is all very liberating!
So now we're looking at houses within an affordable price range for us and finding a lot to like. It really is an amazing housing market here.... We're trying to balance our restlessness with prudence, however, and taking slightly slower, smaller steps than we might otherwise be compelled to take. We haven't yet made an offer on anything but are certainly considering doing so - possibly soon. For the time being, we're grateful to have a lovely and spacious temporary home. We expect to stay put through the holiday season, but it's hard to predict what may become available to us. I'm trying to start a daily prayer regimen with a twofold request: that God open doors to the home that will be ours and that God close doors to all the rest.
I can't speak for Adam, but I feel really hopeful about our situation and the possibilities out there. We're blessed to have a very patient & friendly (not to mention professional, informative, tech-savvy...etc) real estate agent here in Grand Rapids. If anyone has any real estate questions or needs, I urge you to call Rob Young.*
We look forward to continuing to look for and pray about the home that will be ours and the finances that will make it happen. Thank God for opportunity. Thank God for the sale of our house. Thank God for a steady, stable job that Adam enjoys & does well. Thank God for our helpful, generous, loving and available families who make our being in Grand Rapids worth all this craziness.
We look forward to continuing to look for and pray about the home that will be ours and the finances that will make it happen. Thank God for opportunity. Thank God for the sale of our house. Thank God for a steady, stable job that Adam enjoys & does well. Thank God for our helpful, generous, loving and available families who make our being in Grand Rapids worth all this craziness.
* Tangent: I've been to many many many open houses, so I've met several other real estate agents in the area. We've experienced the full-spectrum of agent "types." There are the friendly detached agents who say almost nothing, the friendly aggressive ones you have to run away from because they are trying to figure out if you went to school together (literally...and some of them even FOLLOW you upstairs or outside!), the assertively informative but not-quite-obnoxious ones, the super cool classy ones you kind of want to be friends with, the awkward ones that talk smack about other agents, the awkward ones who are almost flirtatious, the not actually friendly at all sort of rude & gruff ones, the "tour guide" who feels compelled to point out even the most obvious of home characteristics, the passive-aggressive tour guides who follow you around but say nothing till you comment or exclaim and then provide you more than you want to know about said characteristic, the overly-informative ones who tell you the complete history of the previous owner and how they died, the ones who make you feel sort of like a jerk for not wanting to make an offer on their listing, and the ones who are just so great you WISH you liked their listing enough to make an offer!
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