A new house again

We have been looking for a house for a year and a half. Sunday morning, Matt got into our bank account to see how much his paycheck was so that I could pay our tithe. While he was in there, he noticed that he had won a bonus for $600ish dollars at work, but hadn't been told yet.

After that was taken care of I got on Realtor.com to search for houses. We have looked in person at about 15 houses in the last two weeks and already I was feeling discouraged. We kept looking at one, but didn't love the price, and there were several issues that kept making us hesitate. The night before, our preacher had preached an excellent sermon, and it made Matt and I reevaluate our search perimeters and have a more open mind, if you will, in our search. So, I added four houses to our list, and reached out to our realtor. 

That afternoon we went to see the four houses on our list. We were hoping out of all four that the least expensive option would be a great fit. Our realtor had us start at a new build (which I would have preferred to go last). A couple had started to build a house but had to walk away because their house had not sold. The price was locked in, the interest rate was locked, and nothing could be changed. I LOVE new builds, this is the direction we had tried to go in the spring, but everything was too expensive and we couldn't make it work. Even with this builder (Pulte builders), we couldn't build anything for under $500,000. Anyway, I had to guard my heart because I always get attached to new houses, and this one was still more than we wanted to pay. The lady representing the builder asked where we had heard about the house and I told her realtor.com. She said she had only listed it there this morning, and the house was not active on any other sites and wouldn't be until next week. She also said another lady was coming from Columbus sometime this week. We thanked her for her time and moved on to the next house.

Long story short, the next 3 houses were duds. Two smelled like dogs (not the only problem), and the last house (our favorite, the one we wanted to work), didn't work either. The bedrooms were too small. 

We decided to go ahead and go for the new build, even though it was more than we wanted to pay. All they needed on Sunday was $500 in earnest money. Rewind to the beginning of the day, and Matt had that bonus. Thank you, God. We didn’t need to move $$ from savings, it had already been provided, more than we needed.

Now, taking care of paperwork Sunday night took us right up until bedtime (by the time they had it prepared and sent over). The result is that Matt and I didn't sleep well. We were supposed to go back to builder Monday evening and sign the contract. At 8:30 Monday morning, Matt texted me at work and said, "I recalculated the numbers. If we proceed with this house, we will essentially be spending my entire paycheck on our bills. No wiggle room. All extras would be from your pay. I'm not saying 'no' but I am very hesitant to put us back in that situation."

My heart broke, I was so overtired, my work day had started rough, then this. I was trying not to get upset, I just wanted everything settled. We were supposed to meet at the house at 4:30 so Elijah could see it (he was at work when we went the first time), and then sign all the paperwork. Matt and I were back and forth for a bit, me praying as I could. Not that it would work out, but that we would make the right decision. Like I said at the beginning, God had spoken to us through the sermon the night before, and had been in various ways for a few weeks.  I reached out to my ladies Bible study, requesting prayers for us to make the right decision. A little while later, I started feeling better. I kept praying, but I was no longer emotional or upset. I was at peace (so thankful for the power of prayer and ladies who will pray!).

Around 1:30 Matt texted me that he thought all was good. However, we had to move some money around for our down payment, and it would take more than the few days that the mortgage company had requested, so he had reached out to see if that was a problem. So, more praying and waiting. Finally, at 2:40 Matt texted that all was good. He was supposed to leave work at 3, so cutting it close to the wire, LOL. Now, part of the issue with finances was the mortgage calculator that Matt was using. He had the Pulte lady do the numbers and things came back much better. With our percentage down, the interest rate that the previous couple who were trying to build had locked in, our house payment is going to be lower than most of the houses we had looked at over the past few weeks (because of the current interest rate)-thank you God. When Matt and I finally got a chance to talk it out in person, he told me our new house payment is going to be what we are currently paying to rent our current house-praise God!! While I would still love for our house payment to be lower, we are not financially tight with our rent payment, and because the house will be new, and energy efficient, all our other bills will go down as well. How good is our God?!!!

Matt and I really wanted a new build but had let that dream die. We had stopped looking at builders, stopped talking about a new build, and had focused on preexisting homes. God resurrected that dream and handed it to us, working all things out in only the way that He can. The house moves us closer to Kayla and all our extended family members as well. It might only be 25 minutes closer, but when you are traveling long distance, every minute counts. 

On another side note, the house we kept going back to and were seriously contemplating was $3000 more than the one that God provided for us! And it was 29 years old, with a slightly smaller lot.

The house is not perfect, it is bigger than we want, and we were supposed to be downsizing. I think God is laughing at our plans, but I know His way is better than ours and I look forward to seeing what He does through this house. With the house as far along as it is, we cannot make any changes. we will need to figure out steps for the back, a patio or deck (they did nothing on the back, not even steps out the patio door, which I find odd), and no landscaping. We will also have to finish the basement at some point. There are things we would have done different, but at the end of the day we are just so incredibly thankful for this opportunity and hope to be wise stewards of what God is blessing us with.

Now, because it has taken me a few days to get my thoughts in order (I am still processing) and written out, I have a bit more to share. Yesterday, Matt reached out to our insurance company for a quote for the new house. They were talking and the man said to Matt, with you paying this amount ($80,000) for the house, the Pulte insurance will only cover this amount (not everything), but we will ensure you up to a million dollars (way more than the house is worth), and they will cover the water/sewer/gas lines etc that are in the yard, which Pulte insurance doesn't do. With better cover, the cost was almost a hundred dollars less than the Pulte insurance. Plus, Matt had forgotten to cancel our home owners insurance when we sold our house in December, so we are due a refund of about $1000. You guys, this seriously has God's fingerprints all over it and we are feeling so blessed. 

²⁰ Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, ²¹ to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.