Mortgages

So this is kind of a funny story, so I just have to share it.

Shortly after our interview at Twin Rocks, Emily and I began talking about housing. We're not terribly excited about renting a space. We have done that for a couple of years and would rather be putting money towards owning a house rather than just throwing it at rent. So during the couple of days that we were camping we decided to drive around the area and look at what was available in the real estate market. Beach front property is obviously pretty expensive, but we did find a few fixer-uppers that could fit our budget a little better.

When we got the job offer call, we got really excited. The next day we went straight to a mortgage broker in the area. We had been told by the real estate agents we talked to that we should try to get pre-qualified for a loan before we looked to seriously at the houses. Well, we already had a house in mind (see picture at right) so we used that as a price range to try to get a loan for.

So here's the funny part. We walk into a the mortgage broker's office at around noon after having camped for two days. That means no showers, by the way. We introduce ourselves as first time home buyers and take a seat. At this point things are ok. We say we're looking at one house for around $190k, so that would be our target for a lone. How much do we have to put down? About 5%. Ok, and where do you currently work? Um, I just got hired on as a maintenance guy at a summer camp less than 24 hours ago. What did you do before that? I was a mechanical engineer for 2 years. So you're not in the same field you were before? No, not really. Ok... and Emily? Well, she's thinking about substituting (not a steady income) but doesn't have anything lined up yet. Right... so that won't really count on an application, but that's ok we'll get something to work for you two. So what is your current address? Riiiight... about that. Technically we live in our car, will a license plate number work for that? You mean, you don't have an address? Well, we quit our jobs about two months ago and worked at a summer camp in California until now. So we haven't had a permanent address since our apartment in Tualatin. Could we use your apartment address? Not really, we haven't rented that place for about 2 months, so our mail is forwarded to California. Well, we don't want to put the two months in California thing on your application, better leave that out, so we'll have to come up with another address...

With every new question, the broker's eyes got bigger and bigger. Her expression said, "And you expect to get a loan for how much?" But she was very good at verbalizing it in a positive way, "Well, you two have a very interesting situation. We'll have to work on this a little. Jeff, would you say that you're a 'Maintenance Engineer' at this new camp? Because that sounds a lot more like you're still working in the same field at least."

At this point, things actually look better than they did that morning in the mortgage broker's office. Within a couple of days she was actually able to have us approved for a loan based upon our credit history. So everything, we're sure, will work out.

This event all sticks out in my mind so much, partly because it was our first experience looking into buying a house and with a mortgage broker, but also because it was the first time since we've made these moves towards camping that we've met anything but support. I feel like after I tell people our plans I'm always waiting to hear someone say, "What are you doing that for? You are quitting two comfortable, well-paying jobs to work for a camp?" But up to this point, every person we've talked to has been extremely supportive in our decision. So I do want to say "thank you" to all of you who have given us your supportive words. It has been a great encouragement.