Greetings blogger stalkers (just kidding.)
I've been meaning to post this for a while, and well, life happens...even to those of us without much going on.
This year has been different to say the least. The first official year my husband has been fully separated from the military, and us completely living amongst other civilians.
I won't lie, it's been absolutely amazing living close to our friends and family again. There will never be a time my husband and I will ever choose a job career somewhere distant than being near family ever again. The long distance really took a toll on both of us (especially me.) We've come to realize we are better individuals when we get to see our families. To each their own, this is just what works for us.
Now onto all those questions we've constantly been getting...
First and foremost, the most frequently asked question we've received is our current living situation.
Where the heck are we living??
There have been quite a few "rumors" going around, but to much dismay, no, we are not living WITH either side of our families. We are renting an awesome rental from my husband's family. A fully self-sustained unit they remodeled the year prior, and asked if we would like to be the first ones to try it out. I won't lie, it's quite small (1 bed 1 bath) but for us with 2 fur kids, it's perfect for now. There are nooks, crannies, and a place for all our treasures. There are times where we get under each other's feet, but we consider ourselves blessed to be able to live in the same little town as both our families, and saving some $$$ for our first home. The kitties seem content, and this year we have plans to build a "catio" outside for them. I've hung up a clothesline to save on electricity, planted an array of flowers, and we have a sweet little patio area outdoors to share with our friends and family who come to visit. It's crazy how things really do fall into place at just the right time.
Which leads me to the next question. Why haven't we purchased a home yet???
This question might be tied with the first, because this one gets asked a TON as well.
We can technically purchase a home now. We have already been pre-qualified, and are planning to use the VA loan. However here's the catch. Homes around this neck of the woods are PRICEY at the moment. Like crazy over-priced (sorry but I expect 1920's shacks to be made of gold with a price tag of 450K...this isn't Portland folks.)
A year before my husband separated from the military we started searching for our first home, calling realtors, setting up showings, etc. I even came back to our hometown to check these homes out, send my husband pics, and contact the home owners with competitive offers.
In the past 2 years we've put FOUR different offers on FOUR beautiful and unique homes, all to be outbid by full cash offers. To say that was disappointing is putting it nicely.
We were really wanting to have a home waiting for us when my husband officially separated, but it just didn't work out (perfect timing with my in laws rental though huh?)
So for now, we are renting. While it's not our first choice, it's a smart move for us, in order to save up for a larger down payment. Hopefully (fingers crossed) in 3-5 years this crazy housing market here will cool off a bit. Because this is seriously cray cray, lol.
I think that's kinda all I'd like to cover in this blog post. There's a few other things I would like to share that's been weighing on my heart, but I think I'll leave that for another time.
Until then, happy Wednesday!
Cheers,
~Kadie
