What I Wished I Had Done Before Buying a Home
Never did I realize just how much goes into buying a house. And, I wasn't really prepared for it either. Yet, I'm glad God pushed us into our house hunting journey because had He not, I suspect we still would believed home ownership was out of range for us.
Neither of us saved any money for a house, in fact we lived for years in fear because of how we were turned down the first time back in 2014-15. Fear is a potent mechanism for the enemy to use. It paralyzes, keeps you from your dreams, makes you worry for no reason, makes you act out of character and it makes you weak, frazzled and afraid of everything.
All that said, these are things I wish I had done when I was much younger:
- Saved my monies in my 20s. I'm 62+ now. Just how much would I have by now?
- Wanted a home. I had some mental challenges growing up, but still why would I want to live in an apartment for the rest of my life?
- Opened a separate account or signed up for a 401(k) package. Every time on my jobs that I had that opportunity, I declined thinking I needed all my money now! And for what reason? I blew it mostly on fashion!
- Invested. Perhaps, if I were financially savvy, I could have found a legitimate and profitable company to invest into and become a stockholder that would have helped me now.
- Build assets. It wasn't until age 30 that I learned to drive and buy a car. Still, if I had thought to build some assets, something that would appreciate in value over time, I could sell it and use those monies for a down payment.
- Attended some financial planning classes to learn how to use monies to my advantage.
- Worked with or partnered with financial professionals. I could have hired a financial advisor or asked a banking professional specific questions related to financial planning for a home, retirement, how to properly use credit cards, etc. But I was too headstrong and downright stupid.
None of this is to wallow in self pity, what's done is done. I'm moving forward and I know that although I didn't do any of these things, God is still able and He granted me the biggest wish of my life--a Home.
What's important to me now is that I stay on this path I'm on. That I rely on The Lord and trust that as we go through these hurdles, steps that He will bring us through.
And, there were many hurdles, this journey took the life out of us both, we've cried rivers, had to start over, 14-month house hunting journey, lost 4 houses in the mix until we scored on the 5th. Went through 4 lenders, living part-time homeless in our truck eating out everyday worried about the money we were spending. But, through all that hardship, The Lord answered our prayers, blessed us with our 1st home and we've lived in it now 2 years!
