Finally closing on our forever homestead felt like so much more than just buying a house, because it represented an arrival at the destination we had been dreaming of through a long journey. From paying off debt and being surprised by twins, to surviving a pandemic, this milestone has been the motivation for our efforts for the past decade. Before moving forward though, here’s a look back at what it took to get here.
Mr. Smith and I bought our first home together in 2004, just about one year before our wedding. It was a two-bedroom house that served us well, through our newly-married phase, law school, and starting parenthood. This was when we really started racking up our debt. We thought that buying brand new furniture and appliances was the normal thing to do when you move into a new home. We ordered take out and bought fast food WAY too much. And I was still purchasing new, brand-name clothing.
We decided to find something a little bigger during my pregnancy with Tornado (second child) in 2011. Back then, I had really pushed for a home in one of the more-prestigious school districts. The houses in those areas, in our price range, were very disappointing. As we were starting to lose hope on finding the right house before little Tornado was born, Mr. Smith suggested that we look at a house for sale in his childhood neighborhood, just three houses down the street from his father. It was a nice raised ranch, with three bedrooms, a pool, and woods behind our backyard. We decided that it would work well, to live in for the next three years, before Goofball started kindergarten.
We bought Home # 2 for a good price. The biggest issue that we faced was keeping our first home to be used as a rental property. We had accumulated a lot of debt, including my student loans and multiple maxed-out credit cards. It took some work to get our debt-to-income ratio in an acceptable range for the mortgage. But we managed to get it done.
Our friend moved into House # 1 because it needed some work. He has always paid a very-reasonable rent amount, with the understanding that Mr. Smith will have access to work on the house whenever he has time. Unfortunately, that house is still in need of most of that work, including finishing the attic for more living space, hopefully to be rented to a family someday.
After about five years in House # 2, we were surprised by the twins. It was a very overwhelming time, and stuck in survival mode, there was no way to even think about moving. Several more years passed by, and then it was 2020. We went on our month-long California RV Adventure and returned on February 28, 2020, with plans to start home shopping. Once again, as the pandemic hit, we found ourselves too overwhelmed to take any steps to move to a new home. It was definitely on our minds, as we struggled to maintain our sanity, all seven of us in a 1300 square foot home. Eventually, I allowed myself to start browsing homes on Zillow, hoping that something perfect would come along as soon as we were ready.
One of the reasons why we stayed in House # 2 longer than planned, was the shift in our priorities and goals, which took place around 2015. We realized that debt is a prison and we wanted freedom. I wanted to escape from full-time work as soon as possible, well before traditional retirement age. We decided that our goal was to move to a homestead, where we could live even more frugally, and support ourselves with numerous income streams including rental properties. So during this time, staying in a house that was a bit too small for our growing family, we worked diligently to improve our financial situation. We found ways to earn extra money. Mr. Smith has been a stay-at-home dad since the arrival of the twins, so we needed to do more than just rely on my income. For example, he worked short stints with Amazon and Instacart and I did Bar Exam Tutoring. And we drastically cut our spending, with things like no buying new clothes, cutting our own hair, not eating out, and growing food in our own garden. We accepted the fact that we had to be responsible and take care of our debt, before we could take the next step. Also, as the kids started attending school (in the less-than-perfectly-ranked district), and excelled, I realized that we didn’t really need to live in one of those prestigious districts.
By 2022, my student loans (undergraduate and law school) were dead. Our credit cards, once over $40,000, were all paid off. It was finally time to start looking for our dream property, where we could build our forever homestead.
Read this post for more about finding the right one:
We closed on our new home on August 2, 2022. We didn’t have much trouble at all with the mortgage company this time, even though we still have loans on both House # 1 and House # 2. Our finances are that much improved, and our credit scores are now near perfect.
We have been at war with our debt for years. It has taken perseverance, sacrifice, faith, diligence, and dedication to reach this milestone. Despite the struggles, we have also found time to enjoy ourselves. It may have taken years to get here, but I am grateful that our time was not spent only on making financial progress. We were able to move forward while making wonderful memories and going on so many family adventures. Now, though, there is gratification and pure joy in finally arriving at our destination.
On to the next journey.
HUGE congrats! How exciting.
NZ Muse recently posted…Financial fear – the struggle is real, but there’s a solution
Thank you so very much!
Harmony recently posted…The Journey To Our Forever Homestead