Wednesday, February 4, 2015
This is the post I have been waiting to write for the last 2 1/2 years. So many of you have been praying fervently for our family and our housing situation and I am beyond thankful for your prayers and encouragement. I know I have been pretty dramatic about this whole house hunt, but I wish I could fully explain the impact that not being in my own home has had on me physically, emotionally, and spiritually. 11 years ago when I had my hysterectomy my image as a woman and wife were dramatically altered. Jeremy and I had only been married 4 years and that surgery made me feel like I was less of a woman and that I had not proved myself as a suitable wife. NEVER in the our married life has Jeremy made me feel less than a woman and nobody has ever made an suggestion that I was less of a woman, but that is a struggle I deal with personally. To help balance these feelings taking care of my home became something that I took pride in and took great lengths to make sure every thing was in order. I guess that might sound ridiculous, but having a clean, orderly house makes me a better wife and mother. I never have needed fancy or expensive things, I just want everything to have it's own space. This apartment and it's lack of space and storage (and all of the other craziness) has been a real struggle for me.
About a year ago we contacted a realtor and mortgage company to get start our house hunt. We got qualified for a pretty good amount IF we lived somewhere other than the city. Our qualified amount could probably buy us a house in the nicest neighborhood in TN, but the amount for this neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods would make it very difficult to purchase a house. We looked at several town houses and condos (those were the only places in our price range) but we really wanted to move into a single family home. We stopped the house hunting for a while but we started back up several months ago. We got qualified for about $50,000 more so it did open up a few more opportunities. It became clear that even with the new price range we would have to buy something that would be needing some major work done. This brings us to about a month ago when we put an offer on the foreclosed home close to our neighborhood. This house has great potential but would be needing major renovations. The bank strung us along for several weeks (they still have not given an answer) but this gave us time to finish getting documents and monies in order. This past weekend we went to look at houses farther out of our neighborhood. I mentioned in my post Monday that we looked at a house that Jeremy really liked but I was hesitant about the distance. If you are wondering it is only 4 miles away, but that is huge in the city :). I could tell that Jeremy really wanted to pursue this option more and I noticed that God started to change my heart about the reservations I had about the house. The house was still over our approved amount, but we took a chance and made an offer below our price range. We went back and forth several times but we finally agreed on an amount about $10,000 under asking and they have agreed to pay that extra $6,000 we were needing at closing. This is huge because then we do not have to finance those closing costs which will result in a lower interest rate :).
The house has been completely gutted and everything is brand new. It is 5 bedrooms and 3 full baths. It has so many details that we would of never asked for because we knew it was wasn't affordable if we had to spend money fixing major problems. The kitchen is filled with updates that we have never had in any house we have ever lived in, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, double fridge with an ice maker (yes, we have never owned an ice maker) and water dispenser. In the basement is top of the line, only in my dreams washer and dryer that I cannot wait to start using. There is a big fenced in backyard that the kids and Lucy will absolutely love. With all these awesome things I am listing there is one feature that the Lord has blessed us with that we would of never dreamed to look for because they really do not exist in Chicago homes, but this house has a DRIVEWAY! The Lord has given this anxious terrible parking on the street girl my very own driveway. I am sorry, but that is HUGE to me and I am overwhelmed at this amazing detail that the Lord has given me in this house.We now will have plenty of room for everyone to visit :).
We probably will not close on the house until the first or second week of March. That will give us the remainder of the month to move things over in smaller steps. We continue to pray that the closing details will go smoothly and quickly and we are giving God all of the glory for this amazing blessing!
About a year ago we contacted a realtor and mortgage company to get start our house hunt. We got qualified for a pretty good amount IF we lived somewhere other than the city. Our qualified amount could probably buy us a house in the nicest neighborhood in TN, but the amount for this neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods would make it very difficult to purchase a house. We looked at several town houses and condos (those were the only places in our price range) but we really wanted to move into a single family home. We stopped the house hunting for a while but we started back up several months ago. We got qualified for about $50,000 more so it did open up a few more opportunities. It became clear that even with the new price range we would have to buy something that would be needing some major work done. This brings us to about a month ago when we put an offer on the foreclosed home close to our neighborhood. This house has great potential but would be needing major renovations. The bank strung us along for several weeks (they still have not given an answer) but this gave us time to finish getting documents and monies in order. This past weekend we went to look at houses farther out of our neighborhood. I mentioned in my post Monday that we looked at a house that Jeremy really liked but I was hesitant about the distance. If you are wondering it is only 4 miles away, but that is huge in the city :). I could tell that Jeremy really wanted to pursue this option more and I noticed that God started to change my heart about the reservations I had about the house. The house was still over our approved amount, but we took a chance and made an offer below our price range. We went back and forth several times but we finally agreed on an amount about $10,000 under asking and they have agreed to pay that extra $6,000 we were needing at closing. This is huge because then we do not have to finance those closing costs which will result in a lower interest rate :).
The house has been completely gutted and everything is brand new. It is 5 bedrooms and 3 full baths. It has so many details that we would of never asked for because we knew it was wasn't affordable if we had to spend money fixing major problems. The kitchen is filled with updates that we have never had in any house we have ever lived in, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, double fridge with an ice maker (yes, we have never owned an ice maker) and water dispenser. In the basement is top of the line, only in my dreams washer and dryer that I cannot wait to start using. There is a big fenced in backyard that the kids and Lucy will absolutely love. With all these awesome things I am listing there is one feature that the Lord has blessed us with that we would of never dreamed to look for because they really do not exist in Chicago homes, but this house has a DRIVEWAY! The Lord has given this anxious terrible parking on the street girl my very own driveway. I am sorry, but that is HUGE to me and I am overwhelmed at this amazing detail that the Lord has given me in this house.We now will have plenty of room for everyone to visit :).
We probably will not close on the house until the first or second week of March. That will give us the remainder of the month to move things over in smaller steps. We continue to pray that the closing details will go smoothly and quickly and we are giving God all of the glory for this amazing blessing!
KIM!!!! THIS IS AMAZING!!!!!! =D So excited for your sweet family! <3
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