And so it begins. Over our routine Sunday lunch at our favorite in town pizza parlor, we decided. We're putting off applying for a home loan for six months. It seems preposterous that our beginning is off to a procrastinative start, but for the first time we've got a mutual plan.
We've been planning on buying our first home for almost a year. We have even started the application process twice. I've been randomly updating search inquiries on Trulia, and never come up with fewer than 15 homes that meet our criteria. Still, nothing has moved forward. We've never been on the same page - always one or the other.
The good news is that in that year I have substantially reduced my debt. I eliminated a 15 year-old credit card debt that was more recently sitting on my credit report as a judgement, and have my credit utilization in a reasonable percentage.
In that year we have also dealt with cancer, surgery, time off work, and considerable medical bills without drowning. So I feel good about where we are now.
The plan:
The Mr. will focus on reducing what's left of his outstanding credit debt. (~3k)
I will continue to build the emergency fund. Goal: $7k
Mr. feels that starting out without debt will reduce his stress, and we won't be moving during winter. It always takes so long to get to the "why" when he is dragging his feet, but when it surfaces it's always fairly reasonable.
The downside is that where we live now is extremely stressful. So, I hope we can maintain.
-M
