steps toward home-ownership: part I

Col loves to browse on the computer. He loves looking up dogs at kennels available for adoption, furniture on Craigslist, and houses for sale. Looking is free, so he can have at it. And even though we love our apartment dearly, we would like to become homeowners in the next couple of years (for my hubby this is even more important because of said issue with no pets allowed). His great-uncle is a realtor, and last fall he told us about a first-time home buyers program through a local credit union. The only requirements are buying within Monroe and Wayne counties, having an income level under a certain amount, attending a first-time home ownership class, and saving a dedicated amount of money each month for a certain length of time into a savings account. In return, the program will match $4 for every $1 that we save up to a certain amount. Believe me, I can definitely follow a few guidelines to receive free money.

We were able to go in and sign up for the program back in December. We chose to save for a total of 10 months, which would then mean that in September 2012 we would be able to move forward with a mortgage and house-hunting, given that we close on a house by the time we hit the 2 year mark of being enrolled. The only piece that we were worried about was if Col were to get a full-time teaching position which would put us just over the maximum income requirement. Since he was only subbing day-to-day and his long-term sub position had just ended, we were below the income level at the time, but knew that if given the option of a full-time position for him or continuing this program, we would most certainly take the much needed job. However (and how awesome is this?), we found out that as long as we qualified at the initial sign-up, it wouldn't matter if our income changed during the course of the program. We filled out the paperwork, put down our first month's savings, and were excitedly on our way with a promise that the financial person would go over our paperwork to finalize our eligibility and acceptance into the program. I remember walking out of the credit union, both of us giddy about the fact that we could be homeowners by that time next year. I was also reveling in the awesome fact that such programs exist for young 20-somethings who are savings-conscious but who just aren't able to buy a house on their own.

We continued to deposit our set amount each month, but hadn't heard back with final approval. I had tried contacting the woman we worked with but never received an answer. Finally, I emailed her again in hopes that my first attempt simply got overlooked. Sure enough, she wrote back that same day saying that we were approved! Even though it will be awhile, and I'm definitely not ready to leave our apartment yet, I always feel 100% better knowing that we are working toward something, even when the process is long.

And for now, my hubby has open houses lined up for us to visit every Sunday afternoon. I think that will keep us busy :)