It's been three months, I know. But a whole LOT has been happening in the last three months and writing about it all just seemed completely overwhelming.
Well overwhelming or not, it's time to tell you a story.
As everyone knows, I have been under a massive amount of debt. You wouldn't be reading this blog if you didn't know that. Anyway, with all of this debt (one of my monthly payments was $730 each month) I have been unable to save anything, and unable to take advantage of this buyer's housing market.
Until about a month ago.
Mom calls me, out of the blue, on Tuesday, September 22, while I was driving home. She told me she would like to pay off all of my debts so I can buy a house while the market is so good. Have you ever driven a car, talked on the cell phone, and cried at the same time? Yeah, I was one of THOSE drivers that day.
Apparently Mom called all of my sisters before she contacted me to tell them of her plan and make sure that they were supportive of it, since she wasn't offering it to anyone else. They all supported it 100% and when Mom told me that, I knew my life was about to change.
The money Mom used to pay these debts off (they were still pretty significant - almost $37,000) came from my dear dad's life insurance policy. I feel like Dad has had a hand in this from the beginning and I'm continually choked up realizing the course of events that have happened since he died on July 30. I have no doubt that he's helping us out from the other side.
Speaking of helping me out, I started looking at houses almost immediately. I looked and looked and looked, mostly at homes that were short sales. Saw one that was a foreclosure with my sister Andrea, who afterward said she was so discouraged for me after seeing that most DISGUSTING house and thinking that was all that was out there for me. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. Everyone has told me over and over that when I find "my home" I would know.
I found it.
(Picture of the model home - mine will look very similar)It's almost perfect. Not completely perfect because it's a little far away, but I'm okay with that. It's located in San Tan Valley, AZ (used to be Queen Creek Pinal county) and it's a new build. It has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, maple cabinets, granite countertops, and they're including all of my kitchen appliances, a washer and dryer, as well as a 42-inch screen TV. AND my closing date is November 18, 2009 (3 weeks from TODAY), which means I get the $8,000 tax credit because I'm a first time home buyer and I'm closing before the November 30, 2009, due date.
Ever hear of a USDA home loan? It's offered if you purchase in a rural area, such as Queen Creek and San Tan Valley. It's 100% financed - all they require is $1,000 earnest money and I get that back at closing. No out of pocket costs at all and no PMI is required. I hear that in and of itself is a big deal.
So cool.
The house is awesome. It's 1,614 square feet with a small front and back yard. The builder will landscape the front yard for me, and the backyard is small enough that I won't have to worry too much about it once I get it landscaped.
(My house at it's beginning stages)Seriously, it's just about perfect.
And I can't wait.
With all of this said, I will probably be going dark on my blog. There isn't much else to share with you. I don't ever plan on getting into the debt situation again, EVER, and therefore my life has nothing else to report on. I am pretty boring, but am awfully happy and content.
But happy and content don't necessarily make for interesting reading.
So I'm signing off. You can catch me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/tara.larue) and Twitter (twitter.com/TaraLaRue).
Love and a debt-free life to you all.
Tara LaRue
