I can’t believe I bought my first home, y’all!!

I did a really cool thing this past week – I bought my first home!

When my mom and dad sat me down a couple years ago and told me that they wanted to sell me their house, I was stunned. I remembered back to the day we drove around in the van going to house after house with our real estate agent. We didn’t intend to tour what later became our home, but I was looking out the window as we drove by and screamed to my parents that I wanted to live in that green house! My mom was intrigued by the trellis on the back deck, and it just so happened to be for sale. It was meant to be.

This house has been one of the only constants my entire life. We moved here when I was starting 4^th grade and my parents have lived here ever since. This was a big deal after we’d spent the beginning of my childhood moving a lot because my dad was in the military. This wasn’t my first house, but it was my first home.

At the time my parents offered to sell me the house, I wasn’t really in a financial place to do so. After calculating how much the mortgage would be, I knew that I’d need some help. My parents offered to stay with me for a while to help out. We didn’t know how much longer my mom would have since her cancer was one with a poor 5-year mortality rate, and it made sense to stay with them. I tried applying for different FHA loans but my okay-credit and my high debt to income ratio didn’t allow for any approvals. I was starting to regret my master’s degree.

It took me a good two years to raise my credit and lower my debt to income ratio enough to get approved for the loan, but I finally did it in the spring. It took a lot of work, and self-restraint on my part. When I finally got the approval, and for much higher than I had originally tried for, I couldn’t hold back my tears. Although my mom passed away last year and didn’t get to see this moment, I’m confident that she was looking down on us as we signed the closing documents on Wednesday.

I know buying a home from your parents isn’t the norm, but I’m pretty excited that my children get to call this house home too. There’s something really special about being able to see my children grow in the same environment that I did. I can’t wait to start painting and decorating and making this house our own. I’ve been scouring Facebook marketplace for discounted furniture and décor all week.

I’m thankful for this opportunity to give my family a place we can all call home for many years to come. And even if we outgrow this home, I will have memories of my family in it forever.

So cheers to being a first-time home buyer and buying my childhood home! I wish I could have some champagne to celebrate, but Armadillo Grill burritos had to do. 🙂

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