The new digs

So here it is, the ugliest house on the block, but soon it shall be mine. So you may be asking yourself what on earth would inspire anyone to want to buy such place? The answer is simple, money.

I first decided to live the American Dream when the seller funded down payment programs were being shut down. I didn't really understand what this meant at the time. All I knew was that Bush was taking away potential money with which I could buy a home and in my attempt to stick it to the man, I was going to buy a house. Turns out the programs they shut down weren't even an option for me, but I didn't know that at the time.

I started to get in touch with lenders. I contacted 3, most of which wanted nothing to do with me. I make $29,000 a year and had no money for a down payment. On top of that I wanted a "fixer-upper" and some money to do the repairs. Luckily for me I found Christy King at Golf Savings Bank, and I was off to the races, pre-qual letter in hand.

The Average price for a home in my area of Tacoma Washington is $215,000.00. Going through an FHA loan, it wasn't my credit score that mattered, but my debt to income ratio. I don't have a whole lot of debt. I have an auto loan for my car, a 2004 PT Cruiser that I purchased used, 1 credit card with under $500 on it, and a Student loan. Even so, I was only able to get approved for $110,000.

My choices in homes within my budget were a little frightening. I looked at several. One had black mold growing on almost every surface. In another the floor had reminded me of a roller coaster because the foundation had buckled. My second choice after this house was one who's kitchen addition was not supported properly and the floor sloped. The rest were in neighborhoods too bad to consider. I chose this gem because there were no structural issues (unlike the sloping kitchen house), the surrounding property values were the highest, and seeing it for sale on Googles real estate listings helped me decide that I should buy a house.

While the problems with this home are "cosmetic" don't be fooled. The issues in this house are numerous. There is a roof that's been leaking because the shingles have all blown off. There is a rodent infestation. The house has been sitting vacant since May and vandals have been in the home. Their work has included an effigy to Homer Simpson on my laundry room wall, and more broken windows than I can count. The list just seems to go on and on.

While the To-Do list is long, and the money is short, to say that I'm excited is an understatement. I got word just now that the waiting is over and that the loan documents are on their way to the escrow office! I may have a new house this weekend.

To see more photos you can check out my Flickr site.